Review - King! #1

Despite what anyone tells you Elvis is very much alive, in some form or another. Whether it be one of the many costumed performers in Vegas, the pilot of the UFO you saw the other night or Bruce Campbell in Bubba Ho Tep, the King is very much alive and kicking. And in the case of Blacklist Studios King! #1, he's alive and kicking ass. How's the ass kicking? Well I'm glad you asked and I just so happen to have a review here for you to use to make your decision.

Written by Thomas Hall and and illustrated by Daniel Bradford King! #1 is a story about a former professional wrestler that kills monsters for hire. The one catch is that he closely resembles the King of Rock n' Roll himself Elvis Presley. So it's not really the King himself fighting, but a reasonable facsimile. In this first issue, it's up to King to save the local Blubber Tubber Burger joint from an undead infestation and satisfy his hunger for a peanut butter banana burrito with bacon.

As most retired wrestlers are wont to do, the issue opens with a lazing King interrupted by the delivery of a mysterious package. The package is actually a job (delivered in a heartwarming fashion) offer for King: in less than one hour the demon god Ai' Apaec will enter the world through a hole in the fabric of the universe. King makes his way to the Blubber Tubber Burger and, sure enough, faces off with the monster. If you want to know whether or not he gets to enjoy that peanut butter banana burrito with bacon you'll have to read the book to find out.

Bradford's illustrations are gritty and dirty in a way. King is characterized by Hall as an slovenly and ill-tempered ex-wrestler and the grittiness found in the illustration matches that. It's hard to find a monster comic (or monster anything for that matter) these days that doesn't involve zombies or vampires, but the duo here gets bonus points for making Ai' Apaec as gnarly as possible. Clearly some Mojo inspiration going on there.

I can easily see fans of We Kill Monsters or Johnny Bravo really loving this book. I know that Bravo was somewhat based on Elvis and I get the same vibe from King as a character: a little dimwitted but strong enough that he can pretty much power through any situation. I mean, you know you're in for a good time when the artist throws out this gem of a quote:

“I get to draw bad-asses, brains, big guns and burritos… what could be better?”

The book is 32 pages full color with a $3.99 cover price and is not being carried by Diamond. If you're a retailer and want to pick up the book, all you have to do is email Tom at tom@blackliststudios.com or Tony Shenton at shenton4sales@aol.com. Interested fans can go straight to the website (www.blackliststudios.com) and order it online. The book should be available now and interiors are below.