It's been a long time...too damn long. But after 10 years Rob Schrab has brought back one of the best anti-heroes of my generation. A character who is stylish killer and witty linguist. A character who looks like "ronald freakin' mcdonald" and is definitely not child friendly (unless you're looking to ace that bully who kicked your ass in high school).
He is Scud: The Disposable Assassin.
If you're unfamiliar with the comic, here's the down and dirty: Scud, a robot assassin who once he kills his target he explodes, gets hired to kill this freaky thing called Jeff. He gets smart, de-limbs the plug-headed creature, and proceeds to earn money killin' zombies, rapists, bad guys, good guys, animals, undead animals, and Ben Franklin, all so he can keep the damn thin on life support. Of course, Jeff escapes, tracks down Scud, they brawl, and Scud gets sent on a bizarre time traveling quest which eventually lands him in Heaven, where the furies have taken over, and want Scud do to what was supposed to have occurred in the Scud universe: the apocalypse.
In order to convince him, they maim/kill his girlfriend Sussudio. Yep, that sucks. I've seen Braveheart...you never 'f' with another man's woman. He'll kill you. And then he'll try to invade your country with a few dozen burly men in kilts.
#21, The Return of the Over-Used Muse, mixes all that was sweet about the original series (great dialogue, great art, great plot) with some highly creative flashbacks (no we know what happened to Voo Doo Ben, Drywall, Oswald, Mr. Spidergod, etc.). This book sets the stage beautifully with its peppering of exposition/fine storytelling. In short, Scud still has to destroy the earth, but know we're all caught up on what's transpired, and we're ready to rock.
Except for the jarring part (which simultaneously is the most rewarding part). Shit's changed. Drywall is all grown up, a bit hardened by life without Scud (think Tim Drake being all cynical because Bruce Wayne disappeared). Scud is bit weathered himself and you can see the toll of his loss has made him both worried and reminiscent (great scenes where he remember when Drywall was just a kid; restating a line which Sussudio says in issue #18).
Scud's grown up...and like all things which grow up, there's bit of an identity crisis. For this series this adds to the conflict by giving more depth than Scud has ever shown before (in the Horse series you see Scud deal with his confusing feelings, great, except kinda too Romantic-Comedy for me). Scud is now dealing, again with his own mortality, his pain, his sadness from missing his friends, and now, the realization that he's old himself.
Welcome back Rob, it's good to have you in the comic stores again when both major universes can't say anything cool, you remind us all why "it's cool to be a robot."
pb
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