Basket Full Of Heads #5: Emergency Surgery

I was a little bit late uploading this review because this is definitely not the kind of book that one could (or should) read in front of a toddler and since I’ve got one of those little creatures running around I had to wait to take my pleasure. Unfortunately this meant that I was reading the book alone in my apartment, long after dark. This is definitely the sort of story that you want to read alone, in the dark (it’s almost beautiful, in its horror) but perhaps not if you have a heart condition. 

The characters in this series are the literary equivalent of warm, buttered popcorn — there’s not much substance, but boy are they good. The villains are delightfully evil, the heroes are satisfyingly badass (armored by their rage, and the occasional shark-car) and, if you have a strong stomach, it’s fun to watch them all go SQUELCH!

This issue was an even mix of exposition (delivered with some fun zombie-on-the-ocean-bed illustrations) and pure action. If you ever felt the urge to watch half an undead man metamorphose into a giant snake, this is your chance. 

Although Rio Youers has an undeniable knack for snappy dialogue and an explosive plot, the real star of the issue, for me, was Tom Fowler’s astonishing art. Tom’s pages are brimming with details: intestines, fish, snake scales, the feculent, pulsating pustules on a biker’s head. The panels are packed, without being crowded, his art propelling the story (adding richness and depth) without ever bogging it down. Bill Crabtree’s vibrant, shocking colors (alternating between a nauseating blue/green and a sick hot pink) transform these horrors into something of a fever dream. It’s brilliant, startling work.