Gilbert Hernandez is a strange comic artist indeed. Here’s a guy who writes stories filled with some of the most insane material imaginable alongside women with gigantic breasts that are usually out. His newest outing is “Grip: The Strange World of Men†and it’s an interesting tale with his usually weird tidings.
Mike Chang is having the worst case on amnesia. Not only that, everyone he meets seems to be hostile towards him. What follows is a story dealing with living human skins, a strange cult and gangsters.
This is a weird story as it blends multiple genres into one. This is a difficult task due to how each genre has its own set rules. Hernandez manages to take these genres and make a rather interesting story. The events that transpire do have a noir/mystery feel to them and makes the reader wanting to know what happens next.
The characters themselves are interesting, too. Each of them is written in a way that, though a bit over the top is believable and likable. One example is Sammy and Tigre. They’re that odd couple that on the surface should not have any chemistry with each other, but are dating. The best part is that Hernandez does not use that as their only quality; He actually fleshes them out.
The only downside to the story is the ending. It is wrought with so many confusing things thrown together on top of an ending that makes little sense. The worst part is that nothing in the ending is explained, leaving the reader trying to figure what just happened.
The art is decent for what it is. It’s Hernandez’s typical black and white art with human characters that have weird proportions. As usual, his women have abnormally large breasts. For this type of story, it’s fine enough. The story doesn’t really need anything flashy but don’t expect to be blown away.
“Grip: The Strange World of Men†is an enjoyable genre-bending comic with a well-written story and characters. The only letdowns are the confusing ending and the art isn’t all that great.
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