Ten years after a catastrophic mission gone wrong, Denver Wallace, leader of the Suicide Jockeys – a poor, usually drunken, almost certainly mentally ill crew of monster-fighting, tank-and-aircraft-piloting suckers – must pick himself up off of the proverbial and literal floors, slap his estranged, desperately-fractured team back together and right what once went wrong.
I’ve been meaning to write this for awhile, but life has a way of keeping me busier than I intended. Regardless, by the time I finally got a chance to finish the review for the first issue, I realized that far too much time had passed and the second issue previews hit my inbox.
Suicide Jockeys #1 sets the stage and introduced you to the world of Suicide Jockeys, explaining the relationships ruined over the years while making sure to show you exactly what is involved in being a suicide jockey. The comic was very enjoyable, and left me hanging for the second issue. Honestly, that was the only drawback of the first issue, is that other than fleshing out the characters and their motivations, the plot didn’t advance much beyond the preview text.
That minor drawback aside, however, the comic explores the other side of heroes once the spotlight shifts away for whatever reason and the hero – whether that’s famous sports people, actors or even the super kind – is left without any real way of supporting them. Rylend Grant really captures feeling of being a down and out has been whilst flashing back to the glory days; this expositional flashback moments really serve to underline just how far Bruce Willis look alike Denver Wallace has fallen (while your mileage may vary, I loved the look of Wallace, and his likeness to Bruce Willis helped me get to know the character a little more as I heard his voice when Wallace was talking. Intentional or not, it was a fantastic way for the character to worm his way into my mind.
Davi Leon Dias and Iwan Joko Triyono, artist and colourist respectively, are joined by letterer Hde for the first issue (and likely beyond). The visual side of the creative team deliver everything you want from a comic set against a backdrop of monsters verses machines (the fact that it has taken me this long to bring the monster vs machine up should tell you how enthralling the personal drama of the comic is).
It has taken me far too long to review Suicide Jockeys #1, but with any luck you’ll be able to find the first two issues on the racks at your LCS. This is a really interesting comics and the debut leaves me excited for the second issue.
Story: Rylen Grant Art: Davi Leon Dias
Color: Iwan Joko Triyono Letterer: Hde
Story: 8.7 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.6 Recommendation: Buy
Source Point Press provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: comiXology – Kindle – Zeus Comics – TFAW
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Source: Graphic Policy
