Gun Honey Collision Course TP Review

 

Gun Honey Collision Course TP Review

Writer: Charles Ardai

Artist: Ang Hor Kheng

Inkers: Jose Zapata & João Rodri

Colorist: João Rodri

Letterer: David Leach

Publisher: Titan Comics

Price: $17.99

Release Date: November 19, 2024

 

After Dahlia Racers helped them fake their deaths, Brook Barrows and Joanna Tan hid out in Borneo. But nearly a year has passed, and both want to return to their lives. Then one day, Joanna drops a bombshell that ends their idyllic existence.

 

Before they disappeared, Joanna placed sensitive information about Brook's time in the U.S. intelligence community in safekeeping. But if she doesn't return to Japan soon, Hiroshi Yamato will release that information to the world. What will Joanna and Brook do? And how many people will die because of Joanna's actions? Let's leap into Gun Honey Collision Course TP and see!

 

Story

While Dahlia Racers devises illusions for the world's top magicians, she also helps people evade death at their enemies' hands. So, after the "Heat Seeker" convinced the world that they were dead, Joanna and Brook want to stay under the radar. At least, for a while longer. But as they work as crew aboard a ship heading toward Japan, others want access to the secrets inside the Yamato Vault. And instead of going after Hiroshi Yamato, they abduct his son.

 

Joanna feels responsible for Kyosuke’s abduction. So, once they arrive, Joanna Tan and Brook Barrows volunteer to rescue Hiroshi Yamato’s son in Gun Honey Collision Course TP. But father and son are underworld gangsters in Japan, and their rivals are formidable foes. As Joanna and Brook embroil themselves in the underworld, they also step on toes. And even if they rescue Kyosuke, they’ll make enemies for life.

 

While following Joanna and Brook’s journey, Charles Ardai also follows their enemies. Along with Wyatt Gorman, Jeremy Kruger wanted fellow against Brook Barrows dead. Kruger has secrets he desperately wants to protect. And when you work for U.S. Intelligence, you can manipulate anyone into working for you.

 

Joanna Tan may be a free agent. But Brook Barrows is a straight shooter. He was a protégé of the Director of National Intelligence until he discovered things he shouldn't have. Now, he and Joanna work to protect people, while their pursuers seek to keep their misdeeds hidden. But while Brook and Joanna are highly skilled operatives, they are outnumbered and outgunned. And no matter how quickly they race across the globe, they may be out of time in Gun Honey Collision Course TP.

 

Art

In Kalimantan, Borneo, Brook Barrows climbs along moss-covered limbs, while Joanna Tan bathes below. Clothed only in the pistol strapped to her thigh, Joanna defends herself as Brook crashes beside her, disturbing the lily pads in the natural pool. They return to a house constructed from tree limbs and palm fronds, while a punching bag beckons from the doorway of a smaller hut. Then, like Indiana Jones boarding a plane, a map traces their journey across the sea.

 

Joanna and Brook’s adventures take them to gambling halls and boxing dens. They visit exclusive homes and timeworn fortresses. The yellow sun brightens their high-speed journeys across winding ribbons of asphalt and beige expanses of windblown sand. As Ang Hor Kheng, Jose Zapata, and João Rodri transport the heroes into danger and battles, Rodri lavishes a loaded palette on the immersive art in Gun Honey Collision Course TP. Yet as red splashes across panels, the intricate settings ground the high-flying action and the acres of well-toned flesh.

 

David Leach fires black uppercase letters into white dialogue balloons and colored boxes. The words grow bold for intonation, swell for raised voices, and shrink for lowered voices. Sound effects enhance Joanna Tan and Brook Barrow’s attempt to get their lives back, while villains kill anyone in their way to protect an international conspiracy. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

Brook Barrow spent a year hiding out from his enemies. Joanna Tan likewise traded her action-packed, globetrotting life for an idyll in paradise. But when they return to the world he left behind, Joanna and Brook find the U.S. intelligence community more dangerous than the predators in Borneo could ever be in Gun Honey Collision Course TP.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

To look inside see my preview of Gun Honey Collision Course TP.

 

For how Dahlia Racers helped Joanna and Brook disappear, see my review of Heat Seeker: A Gun Honey Series Vol 1. 

 

For how Joanna's actions endangered Dahlia Racers, see my review of Heat Seeker: Exposed #1. 

 

Gun Honey Collision Course #3 Review

 

Writer: Charles Ardai

Artist: Ang Hor Kheng

Inkers: Jose Zapata & João Rodri

Colorist: João Rodri

Letterer: David Leach

Cover Artists: Jeehyung Lee; Alex Ronald; Cosplay; Ang Hor Kheng; Riccardo Federici; Claudia Caranfa; Cedric Poulat; Nathan Szerdy; Alain Nip; David Dias

Publisher: Titan

Price: $3.99

Release Date: July 10, 2024

 

US Intelligence agent Jeremy Kruger wanted the secrets in Hiroshi’s vault, so he hired the Yoshidas. The Yoshida brothers dishonored and killed Hiroshi’s son. Joanna Tan invaded Big Yoshida's outdoor baths, killed two of his men, and wounded his brother. Joanna honors Hiroshi’s son with a respectful burial, but now Kruger and the Yoshidas want Joanna dead. Can Joanna save Hiroshi and protect his secrets? Let's strap on our weapons, leap into Gun Honey Collision Course #3, and find out!

 

Story

Hiroshi Yamato ran a vast empire. Yet success came with a price. The rich man lived in a private prison and kept a harem. Now, he is a captive, his son is dead, and his enemies are closing in on his secret vault. As his empire crumbles, those he protected duck for cover. Yet most endangered are the women who console him in his isolation. They live a peaceful life, unbothered by the world, at an ancient monastery in the Gobi Desert.

 

The Yoshidas' agent transports Hiroshi. As the US Intelligence agent waits for them to bring the man who will unlock his secrets, Kruger reflects on his past and the people who brought him to this juncture. Kruger and Director Morse had a plan. But now she is dead, and Kruger blames Joanna and Brook for her loss. But foremost in his mind is learning what Gorman stored with Hiroshi before he disappeared.

 

Like Morse before him, Kruger hungers for the power to act as he sees fit without regard for how he harms others. But he hasn't learned the lessons Morse tried to teach him. In Gun Honey Collision Course #3, Kruger enflames a dangerous situation and loses a valuable asset. Still, he comes away with a game piece he can use to accomplish his goal.

 

Joanna saves women from a tragic fate and does what she can for Hiroshi. She achieves a victory even if she doesn’t win the war. Still, Joanna Tan emerges from her mission in Mongolia with the tools to carry the fight to Kruger one final time.

 

Art

Kruger’s binoculars reveal a historic walled compound. Kruger remembers arguing with Morse over a classified file. Kruger greets the Yoshidas’ agent with a gun. The man responds by pointing a gun at Hiroshi. Amid the standoff, a woman with a walking stick greets the visitors. Thanks to Charles Ardai’s tongue-in-cheek humor, Ang Hor Kheng, Jose Zapata, and João Rodri's depiction of her charges clashes with the wizened woman's description. Brook and Kruger confront each other in Gun Honey Collision Course #3, but their bald heads remind us of their shared past.

 

Gray stone walls rise from pumpkin sands beneath an orange and pink sky, while mauve and purple dominate Kruger's flashbacks. Joanna drops into a blue and green computer room in her reflective black catsuit. She ignores the glowing red and yellow lights as she works before a light blue monitor. A silhouette against a burning orange background reveals a character's fate in Gun Honey Collision Course #3.

 

David Leach adorns João Rodri's lavishly colored panels with black uppercase lettering in white dialogue balloons and colored narrative boxes. Vibrant sound effects enhance gunfire and a plunging knife, while a whirling staff demonstrates a character’s admirable resilience. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

Amid the fight to protect Hiroshi Yamada and his secrets, Brook strives to bring Kruger to justice, Joanna Tan realizes the price people pay for riches, and Agent Kruger steps closer to unleashing his plan. Yet, while the greedy play games of life and death to gain money and power, a person outside civilized society trains others to be independent in Gun Honey Collision Course #3.

 

Rating 9.4/10

 

To preview interior art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

 

Gun Honey Collision Course #2 Review

 

Writer: Charles Ardai

Artist: Ang Hor Kheng

Colorist: João Rodri

Letterer: David Leach

Cover Artists: Kendrick Lim; Lucio Parrillo; Cosplay; Ang Hor Kheng; Thaddeus Robeck; Claudia Caranfa; Carla Cohen; Celina; David Dias; Ickpot; Miki Okazaki; Ivan Tao; Lucio Parrillo

Publisher: Titan

Price: $3.99

Release Date: June 19, 2024

 

Joanna Tan invaded Big Yoshida’s onsen. She killed two of his men and wounded his brother. But she couldn’t prevent Kyosuke Yamato from spilling his father’s secrets. Tiny Yoshida tortured and killed Kyosuke, then relayed the location of his father’s vault to US Intelligence agent Jeremy Kruger. Joanna offers to help Big Yoshida get Kruger off his back, but the gangster won't work with her now. Has she just secured her and Brook Barrow's deaths? Let's strap on our weapons, leap into Gun Honey Collision Course #2, and find out!

 

Story

Joanna and Brook hid out in Borneo for nearly a year. But they weren't willing to wait until someone came looking for them. So Joanna gave them a target. If anyone came looking for the damaging files stored in Hiroshi's vault, Joanna and Brook would intercept and kill them. Sadly, they arrived in Japan too late, and Kruger forced the Yoshida brothers to kidnap Kyosuke Yamato. Now, the Yoshida brothers are heading for Hiroshi Yamato. They want the keys to his vault. Don't expect them to ask nicely.

 

Joanna's plan was good in theory. She didn't count on Hiroshi also holding Wyatt Gorman's secret files. Gorman’s former colleague Jeremy Kruger wants to reclaim and destroy any damaging secrets they contain. Kruger didn't realize Joanna and Brook had faked their deaths. Now that he knows they're alive, he wants them dead. Again. If he doesn't get them, Big and Tiny Yamato will.

 

In Gun Honey Collision Course #2, Joanna and Brook travel to Mongolia to protect Hiroshi Yamato from US Intelligence Officer Kruger and the Yoshida brothers. They could run and hide again. But Joanna has a history with Hiroshi. Besides, there's still a mole in Hiroshi's organization. How many more people will die unless Joanna and Brook protect him?

 

Art

Everyone disrobes before entering Big Yoshida’s outdoor baths. While the guards wear clothes, and some cover their faces in balaclavas, the nudity reveals the Yakusa’s love of tattooing. Joanna sits with her hands cuffed behind her back in the VW van while her feet rest on three corpses. After Brook's rescue, they show Hiroshi his son's body. Kyosuke Yamato lies in a coffin, adorned in a suit, his remaining hand resting atop his chest. Ang Hor Kheng keeps the camera moving as Joanna and Brook confer with Hiroshi. But they always look small compared with the beleaguered crime boss on the big screen TV.

 

João Rodri lavishes a loaded palette upon Gun Honey Collision Course #2. The greenery of Japan contrasts with the barren desert of Mongolia. Joanna and Brook emerge from the dark labyrinth of Hiroshi Yamato's lair. Amid the grey walls and machinery of the complex, bald and muscular Brook hears voices coming from a metal grill. He calls on memories of Bruce Willis for strength as he squeezes through an airshaft before rejoining Joanna in her black catsuit. Orange and black replace backgrounds as the fugitives combat the men eager to kill them and Hiroshi. Yippie-ki-yay, Yamato hitmen!

 

David Leach fires black uppercase lettering into white dialogue balloons and colored narrative boxes in Gun Honey Collision Course #2. Vibrant sound effects enhance knife and gun battles. Yet the most dramatic sound effects occur early when Joanna's actions turn Big Yoshida against her forever. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a copy for review.

 

Final Thoughts

Joanna and Brook race to save the man who protects their secrets when their game of international hide-and-seek goes wrong. Success and riches don't necessarily bring champagne wishes and caviar dreams in Gun Honey Collision Course #2.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

For more cover art see my review at Comic Book Dispatch.

Gun Honey Collision Course #1 Review

 

Writer: Charles Ardai

Artist: Ang Hor Kheng

Colorist: João Rodri

Letterer: David Leach

Cover Artists: Derrick Chew, Adam Hughes, Sean Phillips, Shannon Maer, Cosplay, Ang Hor Kheng, Jasmin Darnell, Sketch, Claudia Caranfa, Rare Tempter, Ivan Tao, Jay Ferguson, Ariel Diaz, Kyuyoung Eom, Cedric Poulat, BRAO, David Dias, Godtail, Greg & Fake, Anna Zhuo, Warren Louw, Carla Cohen, David Sanchez & Tony Trophy

Publisher: Titan

Price: $3.99

Release Date: May 15, 2024

 

Joanna and Brook have laid low for nearly a year. The world believes they are dead. But neither wants to spend the rest of their lives looking over their shoulders and living under an assumed identity. Joanna has a plan she hasn’t told Brook about. Yet. How will Brook react to her revelation? Who might it endanger? Let's strap on our weapons, leap into Gun Honey Collision Course #1, and find out!

 

Story

Dahlia Racers faked Joanna and Brook’s deaths. Dahlia’s pal Sarah Claride ensured US intelligence agent Gorman would never trouble them again. But that left agent Kruger waiting to pounce should Joanna and Brook resurface.

 

Joanna and Brook have been hiding out in Kalimantan, Borneo. But the former government operative wants his life back. So, Joanna reveals one of her carefully laid plans. Before they disappeared, she took out an insurance policy with a Japanese crime lord. Should former US agent Brook Barrow remain "dead" for a year, Hiroshi Yamato would release damaging information about Kruger. 

 

 

 

In Gun Honey Collision Course #1, Joanna and Brook travel to Yokohama, Japan. Joanna intends to lie in wait if Kruger’s agents attack Hiroshi Yamato’s operation. But Joanna and Brook arrive late. Someone has kidnapped Hiroshi’s son. If Kyosuke breaks under interrogation, Hiroshi Yamato is dead. So, Joanna and Brook must hustle to find Kyosuke to preserve their "deaths" and ensure people don’t learn Hiroshi Yamato’s secrets.

 

Joanna's plan puts everyone in danger. It only works if someone in Yamato's operation rats out Hiroshi and tells Kruger about the ticking timebomb. Now Agent Kruger is pulling the strings, wielding the might of the US intelligence service to prevent Hiroshi from releasing the secret government files that could destroy him. Joanna and Brook care about each other. But if they survive, will Brook trust her again? If people die because her plan went wrong, will he be able to look Joanna in the eye?

 

 

 

Art

Brook ends a perimeter patrol by climbing a tree overlooking Joanna bathing. As he drops beside the pond and trains his gun on her, Joanna grabs the gun from her leg holster and puts Brook in her sights. Birds fly over a jungle valley surrounded by mountains as Joanna climbs from the pool in Gun Honey Collision Course #1. Brook looks away as Joanna pulls on her pants and shirt. Then they return to a bamboo shack roofed with palm fronts where Joanna lights a candle before laying a fish on a wooden table and preparing their meal with a meat cleaver and a wooden mallet.

 

Ang Hor Kheng illustrates their planned route with a map. He shows Joanna and Brook working off their passage aboard a fishing vessel. But by the time they disembark, two armed men clad in black clothes and balaclavas have pulled Kiyosuki from his casino’s office, pushed Hiroshi’s son into a sports car, and sped away.

 

 

 

João Rodri lavishes a loaded palette upon Gun Honey Collision Course #1. Rodri steeps the Bornean jungle in verdant greens and browns, showing Joanna and Brook's suntanned skin beneath a blue and purple sky. Kiyosuke's dyed orange hair embodies the brightly colored casino. Glowing streetlights turn the black sports car gray as it roars across the orange cobblestones past Yokohama's magenta and mauve buildings. Rodri’s attention to detail enhances the lifelike realism of Kheng's art, whether characters fight in an arena or women strip to bathe in a picturesque Japanese Onsen.

 

 

 

David Leach fires black uppercase lettering into white dialogue balloons and narrative boxes in Gun Honey Collision Course #1. White and blue gunshots scatter across Kiyosuki’s casino. But the sounds of a desperate fistfight and an intense massage remind readers that Joanne's plan has deadly consequences. 

 

Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a copy for review.

 

 

 

Final Thoughts

Charles Ardai’s Gun Honey Collision Course #1 is a fast-paced spy thriller. Ardai’s modern-day Modesty Blaise immerses readers in the Japanese underworld and launches two rival criminal empires into a gang war neither desired.

 

Rating 9.2/10