4 out of 5

Yes, in part it’s the novelty of Skin Graft’s music / comic package that maybe makes me love this so much, but if you read it like a piece of underground comicdom (which it is), it totally works.  It lacks context if this is your first Gumballhead jam, but besides the names of characters drawing a blank, you get the gist of drinking, smoking, drugs and violence soon enough.

GH and Fat Boy check out a pot stash and things go wrong.  There’s swearing and blood, and a glorious splash page.  Speaking of which: Rob Syers sloppy zine-style artwork is lovingly grounded by a solid, confident and heavy inking style and a pretty rocking sense of framing, given the relative crudeness of the drawings.  And when the action heats up – no pun intended, but especially that splash page – you really see the craft behind the looseness.  I dig the free-hand lettering but it could be a little smoother (regarding the placement and spacing) without betraying the indie vibe.  The book is also printed on quality paper that has a really nice white / black contrast, and the colors on the covers pop.

If you picked it up from a corner at a comic-con, you’d want more.  Maybe it doesn’t have much in the way of grand plot arcs, but it’s a nice little unique slice of something, and definitely a fun flip-through while you’re doing whatever you do to the music.