Were Money No Object on July 20th Featuring Turf

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The Book I Think You Should Buy:

Turf

by Jonathan Ross and Tommy Lee Edwards; Image, $39.99

Actually, while I think that Turf is a pretty cool comic, I’m not sure that I can really suggest that anyone spend $40 for a hardcover that collects five comics, regardless of how much back matter and dvd-style extras it contains.  That’s too expensive.  However, should you come across this title for a good price on Amazon, Ebay, or in a used book store, I encourage you to pick it up and give it a try.

Turf is written by Jonathan Ross, who is famous in Britain for reasons I don’t fully understand – I think he’s on TV, but I don’t know why.  Normally, I wouldn’t expect much from a celebrity comic, but Ross’s story is pretty unique and interesting.  It’s a gangster story set in Depression-era New York, but it encompasses a number of other genres, as it’s also a vampire and space alien comic.  There are a group of vampires moving into the city, and taking out the local mafias to provide them with an income source.  One of the gangsters they are targeting is rescued by a newly-arrived alien fugitive whose spaceship crashed in Coney Island.  There is a plucky female reporter main character, and a sadistic corrupt cop.  In other words, just about every standard blended together in a novel way.

Ross’s writing is pretty verbose at the beginning (he reminds me a little of Kevin Smith in the first issue), but he really shows solid growth as a writer over the course of the series.  He has a number of characters to juggle, and manages to find some nice balance within his story.

Of course, the number one reason why you should read this is for Tommy Lee Edwards’s artwork.  He’s always been an impressive artist, but the wildness of this plot allows him to really cut loose and do some amazing work.

I imagine this series will read very well in trade, where it won’t be hampered by the lengthy delays between issues that plagued the comic.

So, what would you get Were Money No Object?

Get in touch and share your thoughts on what I've written: jfulton@insidepulse.com