Filed under: Comic Reviews, Indie Comics | Tags: Colin Bell, Cult Empire, George Lennox, James Devlin, Nixon, SICBA, Vietnam Zombie Holocaust
Issue #1 of Vietnam Zombie Holocaust sees Cult Empire step into the world of indie comics and teams George Lennox on first-time writing duties with seasoned pro’s with some SICBA awards under the belts – James Devlin on art and Colin Bell on lettering duties.
Now I’ll admit that the title alone made me a bit wary of the comic as the mash-up of ideas can be hit or miss at the best of times and considering how jam-packed comics are with all things zombie……I was erring on the side of caution with this one, just in case. Part of me is glad I did because it only emphasized how pleasantly surprised I was at how this first issue worked out. After opening with a fairly brutal torture scene deep in the South Vietnamese jungle that sets the tone with a glimpse of what war brings with it……not all guns & glory but more trench warfare and uncontrolled violence aimed at the captured enemy…..this eases into a war of politics and anything goes to bring it to an end. Cue the science approach with it’s drugs & mind-control microchips and President Nixon is scrambling for a pen to sign his approval.
This brief interlude brings us back to a US base in South Vietnam and the real story kicks off the US suffering casualties thanks to a sniper just in time for Nixon’s scientific solution to hit the jungle. Mindless, relentless drones that used to be soldiers are now released into the midst of the war and it looks like all that can be done with them is point them in the right direction and hope for the best.
Civilians, animals and more all fall victim to the zombie GI’s and a group of US soldiers get caught in the middle of a situation they do not want to be in. Zombie soldiers, zombie civilians and zombie donkeys (yeah….ZOMBIE DONKEYS…that’s what I said) on one side and the VC on the other brings our central group of soldiers almost face- to-face with a far more dangerous enemy than they could have ever expected. Just as soon as you’re getting into it we fade out with our soldiers setting up camp and trying to get hold of HQ for any kind of help the can get…..but that damn line is dead and they’re on their own as darkness begins to fall.
The creative team on this brushed aside my initial concerns as each well-paced page was turned. George Lennox takes a phenomenal first step in creating a word that takes two genre’s which had me worried and makes them work as a combination. He takes the typical cliched ideas and somehow breathes new life into them both which is no easy task for any writer. He’s then backed up by James Devlin who has brought his A-Game to the table as rich detailed pages capture the horrors of war & zombies as his art and colours blend into a some of his best work to date. Letterer extraordinaire Colin Bell finishes off this talented creative with his dependable and intricate work that helps tie everything together.
A great start that was so good it felt too short…..but then that just builds my interest for issue #2.
This issue is released on the 5th September and will debut at this weekend’s MCM Scotland (6th & 7th Spetember)
It’s also available over at the Cult Empire website – go grab one here!
8/10
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