Aftershock Comics 2017
Created & Written by Jai Nitz
Created & Illustrated by Wesley St. Claire
Lettered by Ryane Hille
Fu Jitsu is the world’s smartest boy, and has been for the last hundred years. Wait, what? Fu is an un-aging genius, and has had adventures around the globe and around the galaxy. From Einstein and the Wright brothers, to Gandhi and Johnny Unitas, Fu has met everyone in history while protecting Earth from Robert Wadlow, the world’s tallest man, and his dangerous magi-science.
Fu exiles himself to Antarctica to try and forget the painful breakup with his ex-girlfriend, Rachel. Meanwhile, Wadlow returns from the far-flung future and sends James Dean, his ultimate assassin, to kill Fu at the South Pole. And you thought your teenage years were tough?
Not going to lie I took a look at this and thought oh I’m not going to enjoy this. Talk about judging a book by its cover, and of all people I should know better. So after taking the time to sit down and read it the way it was meant to be read this has some great potential. Yes the interiors remind me of the Venture Brothers and I’m still undecided on whether or not that’s a bad thing, meaning humorous, simple and cartoony and to be perfectly frank the story kind of is too. So if you are a huge fan of this type of style and humour than this is going to tickle your fancy.
Alright so when reading this I got the impression of how old Fu is but in all reality it didn’t leave me with that insane curiosity of the how and why behind his longevity. Usually this is something I want to know or at least feel like it’s going to be addressed and yet what Jai does here doesn’t leave me with that. Instead I’m rather happy to live in the now and learn about Fu and the world he lives in which is a rarity for me and I have to say I’m pretty darn impressed that Jai’s able to do that.
His hideaway which apparently isn’t a secret one is located at the South Pole. Which makes sense because underneath all that ice is an actual continent and the location of choice there again is somewhat inspired as it’s probably the best known unexplored lake on the planet. So for someone who isn’t ageing and apparently can’t die what better place to put your home? In case you are wondering think about it a lake that’s been sealed from the world since prehistoric times that may contain viruses or pathogens that we’d be helpless against doesn’t make an appealing place to actually go.
Well Wesley has a very unique perspective and his eye for storytelling is pretty darn good. Yes it is a tad on the simpler side of things and I wish we’d get more detailed backgrounds instead of wide open spaces because with St. Paul in the background that looked awesome to me. The use of page layouts with their angles and perspective are handled very well. We get the right sense of humour and action here so that it’s enjoyable but it could be elevated, taken up a notch instead of straddling that all-ages/modern comics feel.
You’ll have to suspend disbelief when you read this because it’s all kinds of no way in hell this actually capable of happening no matter how hard you try to manipulate the psychics. This harkens back to the days when we didn’t try to over analyse things and just simply enjoyed them for what they are. Escapism is something we all want to have moments of and this will do exactly that. It’s fun, funny and slightly juvenile at times so basically it’s perfect for that ugh kind of day that needs a little pick me up!
Aftershock continues to push the envelope with the idea of fun being as diverse as the human population can be. So are you ready to be not so mindlessly fun entertained?