Broken Frontier

A comical and well-drawn take on the Hulked-up superhero origin.

Ever have one of those days where you can’t catch a break?  One of those days where the world and all its inhabitants keep unloading on you?  If you answered Yes, then meet your newest hero!  No, not Bruce Banner or the Hulk, but Mondo! (a.k.a. Catfish, a.k.a. “Chicken Shit”).  Empowered after a tragic and horrible industrial accident (chicken slaughtering in place of radiation), Mondo is here to brighten and liven your day with 20 pages of solid and fun comedic reading.

Mondo #1 from Ted McKeever chronicles the heartbreaking origin story of our unlikely hero, Catfish Mandu.  The always silent Catfish always finds himself bearing the brunt of someone’s bad day, teasing remarks, strange misunderstandings, and rude demeanor.  The ever silent Catfish takes it in stride, however, trucking through his day from diner, to poultry slaughterhouse, to home, until he realizes the haunting image of a chicken following him from place to place.  Once the inevitable “accident” occurs, transforming our meek Catfish into the powerful Mondo, McKeever leaves us with the perfect cliffhanger that barely satiates the desire to know more.

McKeever’s art, like his story, strikes a balance between comedic timing, rough style, and perfect staging.  Catfish’s haggard down-trodden appearance reinforces his docile life, while the action is framed and captured at the ideal time to heighten both the comedy and gloom of our hero’s life.  The exaggerated appearance of several of McKeever’s characters, moreover, adds to the fun of Mondo.  The humor of Catfish’s emaciated physique, for example, is only topped by his sagging, cockeyed, gap-toothed, pestering landlady.

The silent Catfish takes himself and readers on a sad yet fun ride through the pages of Mondo #1.  Ted McKeever’s tragic tale is a comedic twist on a superhero origin tale, one that leaves readers at the perfect point to crave more.  Now that Catfish has transformed into the bulked up Mondo, his tale is sure to take on an even more interesting journey.