Geek Syndicate
COMIC REVIEW - Lobster Johnson: The Burning Hand #001
in a five issue mini-series. I’ve been a huge fan of Lobster since I first saw him in the Hellboy story Conqueror Worm which prompted me to read all his other tales. Since then I’ve been closely following Dark Horse releases looking for the thirties pulp vigilante next appearance. In this first issue, we see little of Lobster himself and more of a female reporter looking into the mystery of ‘Indian ghosts’ roaming the streets of New York and culminating in the gruesome murder of a policeman. As the investigation continues, we are given hints of a deeper conspiracy. On its edges an even darker menace lurks. This was a great kick off to the series. Lobster’s introduction is fantastic but brief. In fact my only problem with this first issue is the fact that for a story called Lobster Johnston the main character doesn’t get much of a look in. However this is the first of a five issue tale so there’s plenty of time for Lobster to get his claw on with the bad guys. The art is moody, atmospheric and succeeds in depicting a sleazy view of prohibition New York. There were some similarities in art styles between this and Tommy Lee Edwards’ work on Turf. On a side note one of the bad guys has a scary resemblance to actor Peter Lorre (think the Maltese Falcon and a whole host of other black and white films) and I’ll be interested to know if this was intentional or not, There are a couple of characters out in the Caribbean who feel a little disjointed from the tale as presented but you just know that they are going to play a big part in the story as it rolls on. The issue is slower-paced than I was expecting with so much emphasis on the investigation, but that was no bad thing. However the final panel leaves you the impression that the action is really going to kick in for issue two. Burning Hand gets off to a great start and for a pulp fiend like me it was ticking all the boxes in terms of style and content. The lobster is back and I can’t wait to see him dispensing more justice next issue.
Writers: Mike Mignola & John Arcudi Artist: Tonci Zonjic Colorist: Dave Stewart Cover: Dave Johnson Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
The Blurb:
When a tribe of phantom Indians start scalping policemen, Hellboy’s crime-fighting hero Lobster Johnson and his allies arrive to take on these foes and their gangster cronies!
The Review:
The Burning Hand herald’s the welcome return of the man with the claw, Lobster Johnston, to the Dark Horse stable
Rating:
Barry Nugent
GGGGG
64