SEAGUY #1 REVIEW

[Mitch Brown]

<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/dc/0504/SeaguyCVR1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/previews/dc/0504/SeaguyCVR1t.jpg" align=left alt="Seaguy #1"></a>Reviewer: Mitch Brown, eschaton@igreen.net
Story Title: Run, Xoo! Run!
Quick Rating: Excellent!

Suggested for Mature Readers

“The true antidote to your military-industrial realistic super-heroes!”

Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Cameron Stewart
Colors and Separations: Peter Doherty
Letterer: Todd Klein
Assistant Editor: Pornsak Pichetschote
Editor: Karen Berger

Upon first reading of Seaguy all I could think was “What the hell was that?!?!?!!???” I mean, I’ve read some bizarre things in my time but I don’t think I’ve ever quite read anything like Seaguy #1. Chess-playing skeletons, cigar-smoking flying tuna fish, a wetsuit wearing wannabe hero with a crush on a bearded neo-Roman Gladiator woman, Cyborg ostriches, deranged theme parks based around hordes of sentient eyeballs…..and what on earth is a Xoo?! This is pure Madness with a capital M (for Morrison).

Or is it? Once you get past the craziness, there’s some very serious and scathing social commentary to be had here, holding more in common with books like Transmetropolitan than the drug-fuelled aquatic cartoon that Seaguy resembles at first glance.

Seaguy is set in a world without heroes. Or rather a world that is chock-full of former heroes who have no real purpose any more. Following the defeat of the villainous entity known as the (wait for it…) Anti-Dad, it seems that all the great battles have now been fought. “Utopia” has been won and all is right with the world. All that’s left for the earth’s citizens to do is to eat, shop, and watch TV to wile away their time in blissful ignorance. Life is good and no-one has any reason to rock the boat or break the rules.

But why then does everyone in this book seem so miserable?

Enter Seaguy and his fish-out-of-water companion, Chubby Da Choona. One, a love-struck dreamer who wants to be a hero in a world that seemingly doesn’t need or want any - the other, a golden-hearted flying fish who even describes himself as a “weird-lookin’ thing dat shouldn’t even exist”. When strange hieroglyphic-covered meteorites begin to fall from the moon, our heroes spring into action to solve the mystery. However, following a bizarre encounter with well, I’ll let you see for yourself, the wannabe heroes find themselves fugitives, and set out on an adventure to set things right.

Seaguy is a comic about giving a damn, and actively participating in life. It’s about holding onto your dreams and acting on them in a world that tells you that dreams have no place. Grant has constructed a bizarre, extremist parody of Corporate America as he sees it - a barbed satire of a culture of spectators that are content to live their lives through soap operas, sitcoms and other insipid television programming like Big Brother and Survivor. This is a cleverly disguised indictment of a society of fence-sitters who are more than content to mindlessly follow the words of its leaders, accepting any fantasy as truth so long as it looks pretty, new and marketable. No need to worry, everything’s under control. Here, have a Pepsi!

Don’t let the above scare you away though. Even ignoring the subtext, Seaguy #1 looks to be the start of a fun-filled and highly original romp in its own right, providing a charming throwback to the zaniness of Silver Age DC heroes that isn’t afraid to make fun of itself. The characters, despite their seeming absurdity are very clearly defined and endearing, full of laugh-out-loud dialogue and moments of real human emotion. Our hero’s melancholy over his unrequited love She-Beard, and even the cartoon-like Chubby’s steadfast loyalty to his buddy Seaguy are particularly touching.

Cameron Stewart’s art truly leaps of the page here, the enthusiasm he declares for this project in this month’s regular “On the Ledge” editorial simply drips from every panel. I don’t know of many artists out there that could either accurately portray the bizarre visuals that Grant’s imagination demands, or capture the tongue-in-cheek-yet-somehow-serious tone of this story. However, Cameron Stewart passes that test with flying colors. Without hesitation I would say that this is the best work of his career. Stewart’s New Venice is highly detailed and vibrant, bringing to mind Darick Robertson’s work on the previously mentioned Transmetropolitan.

I thoroughly recommend Seaguy to anyone who is a fan of comic books who hasn’t bought too heavily into the seriousness of the whole affair. Grant Morrison proves that comics don’t need to be overly depressing and dripping in Hollywood “cool” to be poignant or “adult”, while showcasing his astounding versatility as a storyteller. This is a fantastic #1 and I can’t wait for more. Engines at full throttle! Adventures ahoy!

ART:
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STORY:
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OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vhalf.jpg

Buy issues of Seaguy online now at X-World Comics and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/yourvirtualstore/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=773&amp;cat=SEAGUY+)

[Blake]

What the ****?

No, seriously what the **** (unfotunatly I have vet to figure how to type captial astrixes cause that more accuratly sums up my thoughts)

This issue was very quirky and odd, the comments about society were interesting, but weren't enough to hook me in however. I'll give issue two a go but it really needs to improove.

[Nathan P. Mahney]

Excellent review of an excellent book.

I tried this on the strength of Grant's X-Men run, and it's been a long time since I've had so much raw fun with a comic. Add the genuinely emotional - it's a rare writer who can write a moving friendship - and thought-provoking stuff, and I'm hooked.

- Nathan P. Mahney -

[David Santee]

Originally posted by Blake
What the ****?

No, seriously what the **** (unfotunatly I have vet to figure how to type captial astrixes cause that more accuratly sums up my thoughts)

This issue was very quirky and odd, the comments about society were interesting, but weren't enough to hook me in however. I'll give issue two a go but it really needs to improove.

Pretty much summed up my reaction, too. I saw the heavy-handed social comentary, but I just wasn't impressed. #2 will get a look at the store, but I just don't see sticking with this one. I must be missing something when it comes to Morrison, since I had the same reaction to The Filth TPB. I heard this was the return of the soft and cuddly Morrison, so I thought that Seaguy would be like Morrison's JLA,just with some good social comentary, but this didn't hook me.

Oh, that capital astrixes? ****!

[emesem]

da fug?

This was great. This wasnt heavy handed. Casey and Austin are heavy handed. GM is a master.

After reading this, you come out of this as if from a dream. This reminds me the most of Animal Man, just a bit more absurd but unlike most comics these days, when I read this, I got into the silly universe...I feel for seaguy and chubby (character of the year)...

Like Invisibles - Filth - Animal Man, this has that creepy GM patented "something weird is happening" vibe that makes you re-read every line and re-examine every panel.

[James Groves]

This has Morrisons zanyness all over it and its great zanyness.

I thought it was excellent. The story was good and although it took me a while to get into the concept of the book i loved it.

Id give it 7/8 out of 10 art 3.5 writing 4

THose who only like standard superhero comics, i would say wont find this their cup of tea.

[gatorgav]

I loved this issue and I can't wait for #'s 2 and 3 to come out. Its nice to be taking hits of pure uncut GM without any of the constraints or hoopla that surrounded NXM. Adventure Ahoy indeed!

[Cannonball1138]

This was weird, strange, and great. One of the best comics I've read in a while, pure Morrison goodness. :)

[Anand Khatri]

Morrison just keeps getting better and better. :D

[Zeb Aslam]

This was...interesting. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it...I loved it!! But it's different from Morrison's usual fare and I was quite taken aback by this on my initial reading. The second time through did the charm though. Great series and more than anything I'm enjoying the friendship between Seaguy and Chubby. I get the satire and everything...but their friendship is the crux of the book, and I can't wait to read the next issue.

[Paul Shinn]

Well, it makes a nice change to read a book that makes me smile!
From the opening scene - playing chess against a colour-blind reaper - all the way through, I found this to be an entertaining book. And Chubby, a superhero sidekick with a 7-second memory, was hilarious.

Fave part was Doc Hero - what does a superhero do in a world where there's no real need for superheroes? Why, he spends all day at a theme park! :LOL:

I read somewhere that Morrison is planning to do 3 3-issue mini series'. Hurrah! And I agree to the previous post which said this was quite reminiscent of Animal Man.

[ThePez]

The comic book clerk/owner/guy recomended this to me, and I gave this weird look at him. So I didn't buy it, and now it seems I should have bought it instead. Oh well, it seems exactly like my type of comic too :(

[Joel Phillips]

I picked this up out of sheer morbid curiosity (and a light week), and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. It does have meaning, but it's not as bogged down in it as I felt Morrison's NXM work was. I think this is enjoyable even without caring about meaning and subtext, so there's something here for everyone. I'll be sticking with it.

[Alex Groff]

Seaguy cheats death on the first two pages! How can you go wrong with that? There wasn't as much social commentary as I had hoped for, but it was still a fun, excellent read.

[Ryan Day]

Good stuff. My biggest problem with Morrison is his tendency to go haywire with all his cool ideas, but Seaguy seems much more focused. The corporate and superhero satire was pretty obvious, but it also had heart: Seaguy is somewhat absurd, but at the same time you feel for him.

I'd hardly consider it "heavy-handed" or particularly mean-spirited. This looks like Morrison having lots of fun with a genre he obviously enjoys, regardless of particular problems he may have with it.

[Vector]

I liked it. Very imaginative. I'm surprised people weren't annoyed by the tuna's accent.

[scrappy]

A very good issue indeed. I loved the Silver Age inferences and the post-Silver Age world that Seaguy calls home. First time through I just had fun reading this book, second time through I paid more attention to the social and corporate commentaries. I agree that this book has something for everyone. It can be fun if that's all you want but you can find deeper meanings too if that's your thing. Stewart's artwork is amazing! The costumes are great and Morrison's vision really comes alive through Cameron's pencils. Definitely looking forward to the next issue!

[Erika Santiago]

I loved this issue. The art was great, especially in the double page spread of all the superheroes fighting the Anti-Dad. But does anyone else think Chubby might die? Cameron Stewart's notes hint at a tragedy at the end of the miniseries, and Death seems to have it in for the guy.

[DKBatman]

yay seaguy. can't wait for We3! In the year 2012, we will all become grant morrison and see things as they are/aren't.