Chicanos #1

[Blast-Off]

So, I'd heard this book was supposed to be outstanding. It wasn't. While Risso's art was lovely the writing was just unfortunate. The plot was clunky and the dialogue even worse. When you have a white racist man calling the main character a chicana you have messed up. Chicano is a term of pride telling the world that you are Mexican-American. I doubt some racist guy would use that particular word. Also, naming your gangster character Mr. Walken is just silly. Hey. I like Christopher Walken too, but c'mon! Overall I was just thoroughly disappointed with this comic.

[HIPHOPJUNKIE]

Chicanos #1
Carlos Trilla.Eduardo Risso
IDW Publishing $3.99

Meet Alejandrina Yolanda Jalisco Ortiz, an impish detective for hire. What she lacks in looks and height she more than makes up for in her bite. She is vicious. Giant mobster monsters cowl in fear when she is in their presence and holding a gun to their domes. Sometimes she is meek and a mouse. Her only fear: the underworld! She can also never catch a break but she does get lucky, sometimes.

Meet Mr. Walken, the boss of all bosses. Like all of us he enjoys the finer things in life; getting shaved by a busty broad and getting dome at the same time from another. One thing he hates is having his Saturday afternoon interrupted. When he gets angry he gets really angry. You do not want to be in Mr. Walken’s realm when he is pissed because he’ll cut you or doing something far worse.

Meet Monky, Mr. Walken’s brutish right-hand-man. He may not talk much but when he does, he strikes fear into the hearts of those around him. The gun-toting beast is also a lady’s man of sorts, a certified menace to society.

The three first cross paths when Alejandrina is hired to recover documents from Mr. Walken’s office. The catch? Walken’s crew knows what she looks like and is patiently waiting across the street for her.

Once Mr. Walken and Monky arrive, they bum rush the office packing major heat. They knock down the doors to find a cleaning woman rummaging through the trash. Or so they thought: Alejandrina catches a break and easily escapes with her life. It’s not ‘till she catches the bus that Mr. Walken realizes who she really was. He is furious and takes it out on his crew.


Now, I could spoil the rest for you but I will not. This comic is a gem and do not let that $3.99 price tag scare you either. The art is grimy, the atmosphere is frighteningly dark, the creeps are creepy, the cast is straight out of your favorite Scorsese flick and the story is suspenseful but light.

This is not a comic I would give to a kid (to read) but I would definitely recommend it to any mature adult. There is some nudity, some off-panel graphic violence, some foul language and it drips with crime. What more can you ask for in a comic without superheroes? Yeah, that is what I thought.

Carlos Trilla and Eduardo Risso have a masterpiece in their scarred hands. I cannot wait to see what happens next. When Mr. Walken and Alejandrina meet-up again it will not be pretty, I guarantee you that.

5 out of 5