Writer: Todd McFarlane
Artist: Brett Booth
Inker: Adelso Corona
Colorist: Ivan Nunes
Letterer: Tom Orzechowski
Cover Artists: Chris Stevens & Brett Booth
Publisher: Image
Price: 2.99
Release Date: June 14, 2023
Taylor and Gunslinger--aided by Dakota and her
dinosaurs--battle Clown, his minions, and the Violator. How did we get to this
epic battle? Let’s charge into Gunslinger Spawn #21 and find out!
Story
After four pages filled with Spawns, dinosaurs, and Taylor
wielding a sword, we travel back in time. Like us, Taylor wants answers, but
Gunslinger wants a snooze. For the best of reasons, Gunslinger blew up his
life. Now they're living on the run and teaming up with a woman he doesn't
trust.
Dakota tries to find common ground with Taylor by explaining
they’ve both had terrible fathers. She hopes to capture Clown and bring him to
Spawn. Taking him and Violator out of action will benefit the good guys in this
war Gaia has unleashed. But Taylor keeps confusing Gunslinger, so the 19th
Century hellspawn finally asks, "Dinosaurs? What are dinosaurs?
Art
Predatory dinosaurs charge across Omega Island. Taylor rides
one wielding a sword. Gunslinger leaps through the air, firing the modern
weapons Spawn gave him. Can Violator's tusks, multiple rows of teeth, and
fierce claws take on Dakota's dinosaurs? The monster's red-hot eyes suggest
he's burning to try. Aside from his minions, which look like miniature versions
of himself, Big And Tall Clown stands indomitable. He lifts his sombrero-wearing
daughter by the neck like Darth Vader questions rebel leaders and punches away
with his other fist. Gunslinger hits a robot or an armored soldier. The broken
bodies of similar soldiers litter the ground, along with fallen dinosaurs.
Whether their armored humans, spawns, or robots, green liquid bursts forth when
Gunslinger shoots them.
Vibrant and electrifying colors heighten the action in
Gunslinger Spawn #21. Gunslinger's red cap (with an Image logo) and trench coat
stand out against his black shirt, boots, and gray pants. The tiny purple
dinosaur sprawled on his chest looks like it belongs there. Taylor's orange-red
hair reminds me of the color Gunslinger's coat often turns in battle. Sunlight
bleaches black-masked Dakota when she grabs Taylor from behind, pushing the
freaked-out young man to the forefront. Yet she shines with color when the
purple dinosaur leaps onto her shoulders. Do its claws dig into her maroon
jacket? While weapons hang from holsters, her black top, exposed midriff, and blue
pants suggest she's as vulnerable as Taylor.
Brown narrative boxes feature yellow upper-case letters.
Black uppercase letters ride through Gunslinger Spawn #21 in white dialogue
balloons. Blocky yellow sound effects help us hear Dakota try to knock some
sense into Taylor, the click of Gunslinger pulling the trigger when Taylor
calls him dumb, and the reports when the hellspawn cowboy shoots robots,
minions, and monsters. White lowercase letters in black narrative boxes provide
helpful links to related events in previous issues.
Final Thoughts
Gunslinger Spawn #21 is a fast and furious team-up with
links to recent events in The Scorched. It features dinosaurs, the Clown and
his minions, and Violator. It's frustrating that it starts with such an epic
battle, goes back in time to show the planning stages, and ends before events
in the opening pages. Still, all the Spawn books are frustrating, as they
always leave you wanting to know more.
Rating 9.2/10
To see Brett Booth's exhilarating Cover A see my review at Comic Book Dispatch
