Three Strikes and you are out!
Introduction:
Just when I thought that this series could not get any better, it just continues to amaze me! With its wacky sense of humor and going into the dark and gritty nature of crime sprees, John Layman’s fantastic “Chew” series just continues to impress me! In the fifth volume of “Chew” called “Major League Chew,” Tony Chu is definitely up for some more crazy adventures as the mysteries of the fourth volume continues to unfold!
What is this story about?
In this volume, Tony Chu is immediately fired from the FDA and is forced to work at the municipal traffic division (which it turns out that he starts enjoying that job)! Unfortunately, things start going downhill for him when he is kidnapped by Amelia’s ex-boyfriend and they force him to eat the dead bodies of the baseball players to discover…new things. Meanwhile, Tony’s daughter, Olive Chu, is also kidnapped by none other than Mason Savoy and she will soon discover the secret mission that Mason is on that could change her life forever!
What I loved about this story:
John Layman’s writing: Once again, John Layman has proven that humor and gritty crime noir can be written on the same page together! As usual, I loved the way that John Layman made the story both hilarious and intense as the mystery surrounding Mason Savoy’s secret mission and the alien language in the sky continues to intensify in each volume. I also loved the humor being put into this volume as it was hilarious seeing both Tony and John Colby struggle with their new jobs and how their new bosses (well, not Tony’s anyway) continues to torture them for no reason! I also loved the fact that we get to see more of Olive Chu as she seem suspicious to me in the previous volumes and it would be interesting to see where Mason takes her character next in his mission.
Rob Guillory’s artwork: Rob Guillory’s artwork is as always hilarious and creative to look at as the characters look truly exaggerated, which makes the story even more humorous in tone. I was also impressed with how Rob Guillory made some of the illustrations disgusting to look at, especially the murder scenes, but it was that aspect of the artwork that really made this comic stand out to me since I rarely read comics where the gross out humor is actually used to tell an effective story.
What made me feel uncomfortable about this story:
For anyone who does not like gross out humor or bloody violence OR strong language, this volume does contain a lot of bloody violence that might be uncomfortable for the squeamish. Also, the gross humor, that often involves toilet humor, might be a turn off for anyone who does not like toilet humor in general.
Final Thoughts:
Overall, “Chew: Major League Chew” is a fantastic volume that is really starting to set things up for all the characters involved and who knows what Tony Chu and his friends and family will get into next! Now, on to the sixth volume!