Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Chew #22
Image Comics
Layman & Guillory
With a generous gap between the first issue of this arc (Major League Chew) and this issue I was prepared to be a little lost. Instead, Chew #22 gives me the same high level of entertainment I have come to know from virtually all of the previous issues in this series. This issue really explores the powers that Tony's daughter, Olive, possesses and it manages to put Tony into danger despite his new job as a parking violation cop. This is another installment in a series that is funny, gross, smart and clever.
The issue hits the ground running as Olive is tied up being forced to eat food by Savoy. He is unsuccessful but the scene hits the right notes on a couple of points. First, Savoy's dialogue is so over-the-top brainy that you can't help but smile. I really don't know where Layman comes up with this character's dialogue from but it is brilliant. Secondly, Olive's silent refusal on everything Savoy throws at her is the perfect straight face to the smart and threatening, but funny demands that Savoy is laying down on Olive.
The issue then gives a recap, during the issue. Completely unashamed to do so and I love Layman for this. Way too many comics just assume readers either know everything or will catch themselves up through some other means. Chew continues to buck the trend and it makes the book all the more awesome.
The bulk of the issue has Tony's replacements, Caesar and Vorhees on cases and it's all good stuff. It's in these scenes that Guillory once again shows his imprint on this series.
Guillory's genius on this title is to take a relatively mundane situation and add in pieces to the artwork that make the scene pop. In some ways each scene needs to be read twice: once with Layman's dialogue and once with just the artwork (including the background notes). Guillory has a number of scenes in here that almost overwhelm the story elements, one is the group of one-panel crime scenes and the other is the coffee house scene. How Guillory can make a scene frightening from one angle and hysterical from another I will never know but the book is worth picking up based on these few pages alone.
Chew is one of the best books I have ever read. Each issue brings me back to the magic I felt in the first issue and this one is no different. Layman is building an excellent cache of characters and keeping the story elements fresh and interesting. Guillory continues to put his own stamp on this book in a way you seldom see. I know a lot of folks prefer this series in trade format but this is one of those series that really is something I can't wait on. Plus, the letters column contains cat pictures if you are in to that.
4.5 out of 5 geek goggles
