The Wild Asses of the Kush
I wasn’t really thrilled with the last Buckaroo Banzai outing from Moonstone Books, but the glutton for punishment that I am over my slavish devotion to the hard rockin’ scientist and his Hong Kong Cavaliers had me sitting down and checking out the simply titled Wild Asses of the Kush. No, it’s not a story about a drug trip on some of the best weed you’ve ever inhaled, but it is full of more ass jokes than you can shake a stick at.
While the last series focused on Buckaroo, this outing finds readers checking in with the Hong Kong Cavaliers deep in the Kush looking to break up a poaching ring. What are the poachers after? Apparently the wild asses of the air are considered an aphrodisiac and everybody wants some. When a story focuses on the sexual side of the Buckaroo clan, it’s going to feature Perfect Tommy doing what he does best; mucking up with plenty of ass action all around. No really, not only does he find the perfect ass, he rides it until it bleeds.
Throughout the issue, a big sized slick glossy 48-page edition for only $4.75, Tommy confronts a long time foe and hard rockin’ adversary, who appears to be the ring leader of the poachers. It takes a knife fight to the death, and the surprise reveal of where Buckaroo has been, for Tommy to come to realize the error of his ways.
While it sounds interesting, once again something sticks in my craw about the issue. The story is really choppy, and sudden shifts in location can throw the reader. Add on to that the sudden appearance of a dozen or more Cavaliers we’ve never met before and things become even more strange. I would say it is like reading an issue of grant morrison’s Final Crisis, but at least in morrison’s book you knew who the players are. Here, readers have no reference who Pilgrim Woman, High Sierra, Kaintuck, Calico Cohen and the rest of these characters are. One thing that can clear up some confusion by readers would be for writer Mac Rauch to adopt the JLA/Teen Titan/Legion of Super-Heroes role call approach to introductions.
The art is okay, but once again there are changes that throw the reader. Toward the end of the issue when Tommy is about to fight Dick Ready (I’m not joking), Dick undergoes a sudden costume change that had me wondering who the new guy was. I like the coloring of the issue, but wonder if Moonstone really had to print on one of the highest quality papers for comics.
The Good
- The Buckaroo reveal (even if readers know who it is ahead of time)
- Ass joke after ass joke
- The incredible number of Cavalier names Rauch and W.D. Richter can dream up
- It is a “fun†adventure
The Bad
- The art wasn’t that great
- Ass joke after ass joke
- Dialogue could have been better
Bottom Line
I’ll more than likely continue to purchase Buckaroo Banzai titles simply because I’m a devoted fan, but I really hope new and better stories arrive. Buckaroo Banzai — the movie — walked a fine line between screwball comedy and sci-fi adventure on par with the stuff the Sci-Fi Channel is offering up today. It would be great if Moonstone could capture that lightning in a bottle once again for its comic book series. While The Wild Asses of the Kush is a “fun†comic, it just isn’t a really great comic. This big size issue of Buckaroo Banzai is a one-shot, which means a done in one story, but ultimately Buckaroo Banzai earns a 2.5 out of 5 Stars.