By Frank Cho
Publisher: Marvel
ISBN: 9780785167228
If you’re a fan of cartoons you may already know Frank Cho as the creator of the strip Liberty Meadows. He’s one of those terribly talented blokes who can write and draw, and when he draws nothing appears to be beyond his talent. He has a particular knack for drawing beautiful women, giant apes and dinosaurs, so this project for Marvel, set in the Savage Land, is the utterly perfect setting to showcase his skills.
Stupid title aside, it’s a lot of fun. Wolverine’s been transported, against his will, onto an island within the Savage Land where he meets up with Shanna the She-Devil (a Marvel-esque female Tarzan) and a character (new to me) known as Amadeus Cho who styles himself as a freelance scientist. They’re unable to leave the island because of some sort of dampening field centred in an oddly sculpted mountain so set about destroying the power source. However, it looks as if they’re being manipulated into their actions as they struggle against the native tribe, packs of feathered theropods, man-like pterosaurs and the inevitable (but satisfying) giant apes. There’s even a scuffle with the Hulk. Ultimately, the manipulation achieves its aim and something big is woken from its slumber.
I buy very few superhero-related books nowadays, simply because it’s harder to find a take on a character, or a direction for a story, that hasn’t been played out before. What makes the difference here is the absolutely cracking artwork of Cho, who’s clearly enjoying himself page after page. It reminded me of that other classic Savage Land tale The Jungle Adventure, illustrated by Mike Mignola, which still stands up as a Wolverine classic.
I’d love to see another Frank Cho Monster-Island/Savage Land story, so hopefully this has inspired him to tackle a creator-owned project along those lines.
And if you like that: Seek out some Liberty Meadows
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