Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Elephantmen #20
Image Comics
Starkings & Churchland
The latest issue of Elephantmen continues the look at the women in the Elephantmen universe. The variant here, though, is that we get a little bit more insight into one of the Elephantmen as well, whereas the previous issues about the woman of the Elephantmen focused almost exclusively on the ladies. It’s a good issue about one of the lesser known characters up to this point. The issue recalls some plots from earlier issues which was actually a very nice added bonus. The comic helps to make the character of Vanity Case just as important as any of the other supporting human characters making this comic a must-read for those interested in this series.
Vanity Case is living a life created by the Witness Protection Program. She is employed by the detective duo of Elephantmen Hip and Ebony. However, she seems to be stuck doing menial tasks so Hip takes her on a case with him.
Hip and Vanity visit a diner out in the middle of nowhere. This picks up a plot from issue nine when a man ate at the diner, had a heart attack while driving his big rig in the city and Hip prevented the runaway truck from killing a couple of kids. Hip shows up at the diner to meet with the only person who showed for trucker’s funeral service.
We get a couple of good things here. Vanity shows off just how smitten she is with Hip. She also shows off her fighting ability as Hip is met with some racism. Vanity is different from the other women in the series because she has brains and brawn and doesn’t seem to have the large scale problems the other ladies have or are drawn towards. Hip also gives a glimpse into his humanity. He’s training Vanity while dealing with her crush, while trying to come to gripes with his own crush, all while he is trying to do the right thing with regard to this woman in the diner who lost someone she cared about.
The artwork seems to have its stride in this issue. It’s packed with nuggets of goodness. Whether it’s the little Elephant insignia on the Elephantman sized seat or the giant coffee cup Hip uses, the issue is loaded with these types of details. While the details in the art leaves levels of unpolished objects in the frame to display the background the coloring remains bright. This style gives the comic such a unique look that your eye is drawn to multiple objects in the frame whether they are relevant or not. It’s difficult to make a lady look innocent and still have the ability to kick some ass, but this comic pulls that off in a big way.
Elephantmen gives a great issue each and every month. However, this issue ups the ante by creating a complex character in Vanity and an ongoing saga between her and Hip. This issue is lighter on the science fiction elements of the series and keeps a tight focus on the two main characters in the issue. You leave the issue having some level of a vested interest in the characters and that alone makes the issue a success. I definitely recommend checking this out.
4 out of 5 geek goggles
