Savage Skullkickers #1

Savage Skullkickers #1. The Dwarf has returned.  Thank God.  I usually am not a fan of dead characters coming back, even when it does suit stories and pushes character depth.  I just don’t like it.  So why am I so glad the Dwarf of Dwayre has returned from the dead, you may ask?  Because he is a great character!  Not that Jim Zub doesn’t write every character with charm and humor but Rolf Copperhead is one of the funniest.  But enough spoilers let’s get to this review huh!?

Once again Skullkickers adds slaps a number one and an adjective to an already continuing story.  In media they have a coin phrase.  If it bleeds it leads.  In comics they have another phrase: If the series has a number one it will sell more.  Okay maybe that is not true, but with all the new number ones from coming from Marvel, DC, etc. you can’t help but question if that is the case.   But this isn’t the case with Skullkickers.  I’m sure Skullkickers is making plenty of money, but the number ones with an adjective are just another jab at “the other guys”.  Jim Zub is right though this entire revamp of longtime series is ridiculous.   No matter how you feel about the renumbering you have to respect Jim Zub for having the tenacity to show those punks what’s up.  Perhaps the most brilliant thing anyone has done in 2013 (yes I know 2013 is only 4 months in, but that doesn’t mean anything), Skullkickers looks remarkably like Savage Wolverine #1…

Curing my boredom with fantasy titles, Skullkickers doesn’t really have that much going on in this issue except the approval of the bastards that attacked them in the prior issue (Uncanny Skullkickers #1) and the BIG TWIST that Copperhead wasn’t destined to stay to dead.  This is a filler issue, but it is a very different kind of filler issue.  It’s filled with fun.  A filler issue filled with fun is RARE.  Extremely rare.  The jokes in this issue almost seem endless.  I found myself laughing out loud multiple times.  Not chuckling but laughing.  The characters waiting in line in the afterlife was hilarious.  Having Copperhead just hang out without clothes (did the fish eat them?) was another funny quirk this issue provided.  The Montage of Violence and the Narrator in the Land of the Dead making a return (temporarily), at least until we revisit the Land of the Dead again.

Overall the issue proved that Skullkickers has a lot of life left in it.  This is one title I would severely miss, especially if any of the Skullkickers team left.  They make great artwork, humor, and intelligent writing that could keep pretty much anyone entertained, especially if they are looking for something the likes of Fantasy Humor. A rare gem in the racks of comics that people should not overlook.  Next issue we have the return of Copperhead and our two heroes do battle with, themselves?  What else did you expect?