Review - Under The Flesh #1Jon Evans
|
|
|
Under The Flesh is a current Kickstarter project. Author Gilbert Deltres is seeking funding to go into print and also to continue the series. The debut comic is a homage to the Grindhouse films of the 1970's and 80's, but with a post-apocalyptic zombie twist. This is an acquired taste and will appeal to the, ahem, more specialist comic reader with its portrayal of graphic violence and sex.
The plot revolves around a deadly pathogen that has been released on American soil which only targets the male of the species. It spreads quickly and soon many of the afflicted are flesh eating zombies, however, in the words of the author, 'some taste women's flesh in other ways...' It is this inclusion into the running theme, that zombies do not only eat brains but rape women, which may be a subject area too distasteful to read. it is worth being aware of this, Grindhouse is not for the fainthearted and Deltres has certainly kept Under the Flesh authentic. It does, however, open a theme ripe for some interesting narrative. How will society be affected as it becomes predominantly matriarchal? How will any remaining unaffected men be viewed and treated? It is a nice idea that turns the typical zombie story on its head. Welcome, then, to the central protagonist, Lt Ruben Lobos. He is an 'elite soldier of the US Army Special Forces', the only member of a Black Ops Program for Biologically Optimised Transhumans. He is in mid-nanobot transfusion when the pathogen hits and he has to make it out of his laboratory before having his brains eaten. Lobos ultimately becomes holed up in a Library with several people, predominantly women, and this first edition really serves to set the scene and develop the characters. I'm not an expert on Grindhouse, but the dialogue is stark, gritty and fairly two-dimensional. The story pace is pretty quick and explosive and the art style matches the trashy washed-out Grindhouse posters of the 70s and 80s. If this is your bag, it will certainly appeal, but like a stiff glass of Poitín, it may be a challenge to your comic tastebuds. You can check out Deltres' Kickstarter page here. |
|
