5 out 5

Dang, and here I was having thought that I knew Kek-W after reading his 2016 thrills The Order and Deadworld; some really excellent ideas and snapshot characterization, but storytelling that ends up assuming too much between the panels and thus severely handicaps the read.

And this might still be an accurate summary, as Second City Blues maintains those positives but, with a much smaller scale concept, doesn’t end up getting in over its head.  This doesn’t equate to a lack of Things Happening – the reveals in the latter quarter are well-executed and exciting – just that you can sum up the story without needing a roadmap to explain the connections.

For example: In a future-ish time, a sport called Slamboarding – some kind of soccer/basketball/rugby mash-up, played on hoverboards and with a “live” ball – has the full attention of our five leads, a small gang of upstarts (four humans, one centaur) of varying backgrounds who dream of getting to the big leagues.  Ah, we love underdog tales, which is what Kek-W toys with here, adding in fun wrinkles along the way which veer around the expected plot tropes.

I’m not sure if I’ve seen Warren Pleece on a book so out-and-out actiony (Deadenders felt more character driven, overall); while the slamboarding events lack a sense of space – although the confusing geometry feels, in part, purposeful – the momentum is maintained, and Kek’s script gives plenty of nudges to allow Pleece to flavor the little moments with a lot of characterization.

The best part of the team-up, though, is the way the duo casually world-build: We get the full gist of this entertainment-soaked, everything’s-for-sale world without clearly rubbing the readers face in it.  We’ve all seen those gags in countless comics, after all, so its a worthwhile approach to just let it sink into the background, trusting we get it.

Future “extreme” sports are certainly something of a trope in sci-fi, and 2000 ad has made its contributions along the way.  Tucked into the corner of the 00-era of the mag came Second City Blues, a prime example of the sub-genre, swirling reader expectations with a lot of inventive art and writing flourishes.