Posted in: Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Review | Tagged: comedy, Damon Gentry, dark horse comics, horror, Michelle Madsen, troy nixey, vinegar teeth
Vinegar Teeth #3 Review: The Surrealist Comedy Goes the Lovecraft Direction
Vinegar Teeth continues to settle into his role as a police officer, and, later, he and Archie Buckler finally bond over some liquor. Brick City has fallen into chaos, so the police force is doing its best to maintain some order. In light of this, VT and Buckler are posted as the mayor's security. Also, a mysterious force approaches the city, and it's connected to Vinegar Teeth.
With this installment, Vinegar Teeth begins to dive into those Lovecraftian undertones which have been present since the series' beginning. That mysterious force is cosmic and full of tentacle-monsters, and our titular protagonist is indeed connected to whatever they are and their plans. This force is also causing the spreading madness throughout Brick City.
The bonding between VT and Buckler is oddly sweet, especially considering how desperate Vinegar is to make friends with his partner. The Lovecraft-monster invasion has been strongly foreshadowed since last issue, but it feels incongruous with the main narrative of Vinegar Teeth and Buckler's detective partnership. That being said, the series still has one more issue to tie the two themes together.
This may go without saying, but this comic continues to be delightfully and fascinatingly bizarre, and this issue does leave me wanting to know how it all ends.
Troy Nixey's artwork is so perfect for the absolute insanity that is the plot. It's this mixture of cartoonish, graphic, and surreal that blends Betty Boop levels of unnerving and Ren and Stempy levels of amorphous and energetic. This comic is disgustingly gorgeous, and it grows on me more with each issue. Michelle Madsen provides the right level of grimy for the color palette, and the two sides of the comic's visuals come out completely in sync.
Vinegar Teeth #3 drives the plot further into madness and surreal-yet-endearing character interaction. This issue sets the miniseries up for a completely unpredictable finale, and Nixey and Madsen keep the visuals perfectly tailored to the weird and wild story they represent. This one continues to be recommended. Check it out.