Comic Book Review: Circuit Breaker #3
Japanese robots, including a mechanical Godzilla, battle the U.S. Navy…and some American superheroes that look really, really similar to some Marvel and DC stalwarts…all under the command of Commodore 64 (a joke for those of us over 30)…with commentary by Tupac Shakur…while R2-D2 is in the clink! What the HELL did I just read?!?!
[easyazon_image align=”center” height=”500″ identifier=”B01CPNEL22″ locale=”US” src=”http://boundingintocomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/51LNFWJMNDL.jpg” tag=”bounintocomi-20″ width=”325″]
Never before have I felt so exhausted after reading a comic book than I did after reading [easyazon_link identifier=”B01CPNEL22″ locale=”US” tag=”bounintocomi-20″]Circuit Breaker #3[/easyazon_link]. It’s all over the place! As I’ve already mentioned, the first half of the book shows a battle between Japanese robots and some popular superhero knockoffs, complete with ripped-off catchphrases like “it’s clobberin’ time” and “riddle me this”. The remainder of the book follows a character named Chiren, a pink-haired, large-eyed Japanese-manga-type character, who is herself a robot who looks like a normal person and is trying to hide the fact that she is a robot. Throw in cameos by a robot that looks an awful lot like R2-D2, a little yellow character that resembles Pikachu, some Transformers, and the late, great Tupac Shakur and see what I mean? Exhausting!
Maybe it’s just me, but I found writer Kevin McCarthy’s story to be incoherent and excruciatingly difficult to follow. The dialogue bounces back and forth between English and what I assume to be Japanese…and the sound effects during the action sequences seem to be exclusively in, again, what I assume to be Japanese. Overall, it just comes across as sloppy. It’s not all bad, though. There are a few cleverly humorous moments, including a page solely devoted to the theme song for The Great Machindor, a warrior summoned during the robot battle with the American supers.
Kyle Baker’s artwork for Circuit Breaker #3 is, fittingly, just as inconsistent as the writing. Some characters are obviously rendered in the style of Japanese Manga, while others look like they were ripped right from the comics pages of the Sunday morning newspaper (another one for the over 30 crowd). It’s a mish-mash of art styles that is visually unappealing. Several panels, in fact, look as though they were rushed and unfinished before being sent off to the press…disappointing for an artist of Mr. Baker’s caliber.
The Verdict
No…No…No. Sloppy, choppy, inconsistent and incoherent. Not at all what I was expecting from the talented team of McCarthy and Baker. [easyazon_link identifier=”B01CPNEL22″ locale=”US” tag=”bounintocomi-20″]Circuit Breaker #3[/easyazon_link] is a rare swing-and-a-miss from Image Comics.
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