Posted in: Comics, Image | Tagged: erik larsen, image comics, Nazi punching, savage dragon, superheroes

Savage Dragon #230 Review: Yuletide Nazi-Punching

Malcolm Dragon, Maxine, and their kids are given the opportunity to appear on a reality television series. Dragon isn't especially excited, but Maxine thinks this will be perfect for the family.

Elsewhere, Maxine's mother tries to give Kevin a wardrobe upgrade to help improve his life.

Plus, Angel and the others are still trapped in a hellish dimension.

I've not actually encountered Savage Dragon before. The most I've ever seen were covers, which gave me the impression of a 90's-born character very much stuck in that decade. This massive, muscular, and Hulk-like character gave me very low hopes.

I was quite wrong, and I'm very glad.

What Savage Dragon #230 gave me is a bizarre mixture of obscenity, full nudity, and family bonding. It is a very heartfelt, very X-Rated, very politically topical comic. It feels like all of these very disparate elements should clash, but they really don't. Eric Larsen pulls off an impressive balancing act.

The Savage Dragon himself is a bashful and gentle character with a very loving partner in Maxine and adorable fin-headed kids. The family unit he has with them, Maxine's mom, and Kevin is quite endearing.

Oh, and there is the Nazi-punching. That's damn delightful too. Nothing says yuletide glee like slamming a white supremacist's face into concrete while declaring "Always punch Nazis!" In the end, isn't that the true meaning of Christmas? Breaking a Nazi's jaw is the best way to end up on the nice list.

The Angel plot does feel wildly out of place in all this. It doesn't kill the comic, which it by all rights should. The fully nude women fighting the phallic worms and demons with bare, swinging penises were—surprising.

Larsen's art style is weighty, creative, and fun. The characters look quite cool. The Nazi-punching is enjoyable impactful. Dragon looks great with a beard. When someone has their mouth wide open, it looks pretty weird though. It almost looks like someone drew a Charlie Brown mouth on their face instead of their mouth actually being open. It is pretty distracting. That's the only major complaint with the art though.

Niko Koutsis' color art is bright and eye-catching. The colors can also change schemes well too between Toronto and the hellscape with the aforementioned worms and genital demons.

Savage Dragon #230 was a pleasant surprise for me. It was fun, entertaining, and endearing. The characters are great, the art is solid, and Nazis get the right hook they deserve. I gladly recommend this one. Give it a read.

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