Reviewed by Brady Steele. Look out if you’ve wronged The Goon, especially this week. The Goon: Once Upon A Hard Time #1 is as fitting a title you’ll read this week. After the uber-dark turn your favorite ugly-mugged tough guy’s life took in the last miniseries, this looks like he’ll be spiraling into somewhere very nasty.
WRITTEN BY: Eric Powell
ART BY: Eric Powell
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $3.50
RELEASE: 4 February 2015
The Goon and his gang have been really busy lately defending their town from all kinds of supernatural craziness. His enemies are definitely using some nastier tactics than his old adversary / now ally The Zombie Priest ever did. You break a man’s heart, you break his spirit. Does he now one of the oh-so-many lost that inhabit this mystically cursed, yet highly coveted locale? This new trek has the looks of some of the most dark and depraved seen in The Goon’s long history and that’s saying something.
Mastermind creator Eric Powell has made some perilous choices as the next plan of attack for our lug-headed hero. The lack of color only adds to the bleakness of this battle, its opponents and the general morale of those readers care about. As much of a downer as I’m making it sound, this book isn’t at all.
Powell is showing us how far gone The Goon and his state of mind are after his losses from the Occasion of Revenge storyline. It also shows us how truly terrifyingly dangerous he can be. Nothing is safe and it’s almost glorious to see an unhinged Goon take down everything in his way, including his own friends. Nothing and no one feels safe here which is thrilling to read. Get into this now and enjoy the mayhem and carnage that is sure to come.
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Mr. Steele enjoys all things comics and imagination-based. Using his lifetime of comic-fu-dom for good, he imparts his knowledge for the universe to enjoy and for you, dear readers, to pass it on. Twitter: @mrbradysteele