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troncocionco's review
4.0
Se c’è una cosa che mi è sempre stata detta dai miei amici di ritorno dall’America, è che gli Stati Uniti sono ben diversi dalle metropoli immense dei film Hollywoodiani. Più un territorio immenso, sconfinato, selvaggio che si distende a perdita d’occhio tra una metropoli e altra. Con piacere, ricordo anche lo sguardo che ne dava Sons of Anarchy, in cui si mostravano le evidenti difficoltà degli organi competenti a legiferare su ogni centro abitato; le lacune di questa capillarizzazione, sfociavano di frequente in una sorta di terra di nessuno, in cui spesso la prima giustizia a farsi largo era quella privata. Tutto questo pistolotto introduttivo serviva a inquadrare un minimo il contesto di Grass Kings, serie pubblicata dalla Boom! Studios per i testi di Matt Kindt (già autore di Ether, MIND e Dept.H) e disegni di Tyler Jenkins (Peter Panzerfaust). La vicenda è quella dei Grass Kings, letteralmente “Sovrani dell’erba”, tre fratelli Robert, Bruce e Ashur che governano in tutti i sensi su un campo caravan nei pressi di Cargill City. Percepite già l’atmosfera rurale, vero?
Beh, aspettate perché non finisce li. Il maggiore dei tre fratelli, Robert è a capo di tutta la baraccopoli, nonostante stia ancora cercando di superare la perdita della figlia Rose, scomparsa sulle rive del lago che bagna la lingua di terra su cui si estende il ‘regno’. Di regno vero e proprio si può parlare, perché munito di una attenta sorveglianza dei confini e di un proprio “corpo” di vigilanza. Infatti il fratello di Robert è – o meglio era – un uomo di legge.
Il regno, da tempo ai ferri corti con le istituzioni locali, quelle vere, prospera anche grazie ad un piccolo hangar, con annessa pista di atterraggio, con cui i locali possono recuperare provviste e viveri dall’esterno. I dissapori accumulati nel tempo non possono far altro che inasprirsi quando viene ritrovata una donna sulle sponde del regno. Questa, inizialmente scambiata per Rose, non è altri che la moglie dello sceriffo di Cargill, Humbert. Uomo violento, scontroso, irrascibile e meschino sempre più in rotta con i Grass Kings. Qui si respira a pieno tutta l’atmosfera della campagna statunitense, quella dove il confine tra legale e illegale si fa stranamente labile, dove situazioni surreali come queste vengono tollerate solo per salvaguardare il proprio tornaconto. La situazione è solo destinata a degenerare, e a piccoli passi scopriremo anche alcune delle cause che sono alla base di questi dissapori.
Il primo ciclo di sei numeri pone delle ottime basi per una trama orizzontale di più ampio respiro. Un thriller che ovviamente coinvolge tutti i personaggi che Matt Kindt ci mostra all’interno del regno e fuori di esso. Il sospetto di un serial killer ancora a piede libero aleggia sul campo caravan e sicuramente l’ufficio dello sceriffo deve aver tralasciato qualcosa di importante nelle sue superficiali indagini. La serie, in quest’ottica, pesca a piene mani da prodotti più acclamati come True Detective o lo Scalped di Jason Aaron.
Ad accompagnare i nostri rozzi, bigotti amici, l’acquerello impercettibile di Tyler Jenkins. Un’affresco maestoso delle bellezze naturalistiche dell’america rurale. Le sue tavole trasudano di una suggestione evidentemente cara all’autore. I suoi personaggi non mancano di esprimere tutta la loro carica emotiva; dal volto sconvolto di Robert alla vista di quella che pensa essere Rose in riva al lago, all’ira “sputata” di Humbert colpito nell’orgoglio.
La serie sembra andare bene anche oltreoceano, infatti Kindt e Jenkins si apprestano a concludere un secondo ciclo, con l’annuncio del 11simo numero. Ci sono buone speranze di vederlo pubblicato anche qui in Italia, anche se al momento non mi risulta che nessun editore abbia rilevato i diritti. D’altro canto questo genere di storie sta vivendo un discreto momento di popolarità con la ristampa di Scalped o la pubblicazione di Briggs Land, quindi non sarebbe poi così improbabile.
Beh, aspettate perché non finisce li. Il maggiore dei tre fratelli, Robert è a capo di tutta la baraccopoli, nonostante stia ancora cercando di superare la perdita della figlia Rose, scomparsa sulle rive del lago che bagna la lingua di terra su cui si estende il ‘regno’. Di regno vero e proprio si può parlare, perché munito di una attenta sorveglianza dei confini e di un proprio “corpo” di vigilanza. Infatti il fratello di Robert è – o meglio era – un uomo di legge.
Il regno, da tempo ai ferri corti con le istituzioni locali, quelle vere, prospera anche grazie ad un piccolo hangar, con annessa pista di atterraggio, con cui i locali possono recuperare provviste e viveri dall’esterno. I dissapori accumulati nel tempo non possono far altro che inasprirsi quando viene ritrovata una donna sulle sponde del regno. Questa, inizialmente scambiata per Rose, non è altri che la moglie dello sceriffo di Cargill, Humbert. Uomo violento, scontroso, irrascibile e meschino sempre più in rotta con i Grass Kings. Qui si respira a pieno tutta l’atmosfera della campagna statunitense, quella dove il confine tra legale e illegale si fa stranamente labile, dove situazioni surreali come queste vengono tollerate solo per salvaguardare il proprio tornaconto. La situazione è solo destinata a degenerare, e a piccoli passi scopriremo anche alcune delle cause che sono alla base di questi dissapori.
Il primo ciclo di sei numeri pone delle ottime basi per una trama orizzontale di più ampio respiro. Un thriller che ovviamente coinvolge tutti i personaggi che Matt Kindt ci mostra all’interno del regno e fuori di esso. Il sospetto di un serial killer ancora a piede libero aleggia sul campo caravan e sicuramente l’ufficio dello sceriffo deve aver tralasciato qualcosa di importante nelle sue superficiali indagini. La serie, in quest’ottica, pesca a piene mani da prodotti più acclamati come True Detective o lo Scalped di Jason Aaron.
Ad accompagnare i nostri rozzi, bigotti amici, l’acquerello impercettibile di Tyler Jenkins. Un’affresco maestoso delle bellezze naturalistiche dell’america rurale. Le sue tavole trasudano di una suggestione evidentemente cara all’autore. I suoi personaggi non mancano di esprimere tutta la loro carica emotiva; dal volto sconvolto di Robert alla vista di quella che pensa essere Rose in riva al lago, all’ira “sputata” di Humbert colpito nell’orgoglio.
La serie sembra andare bene anche oltreoceano, infatti Kindt e Jenkins si apprestano a concludere un secondo ciclo, con l’annuncio del 11simo numero. Ci sono buone speranze di vederlo pubblicato anche qui in Italia, anche se al momento non mi risulta che nessun editore abbia rilevato i diritti. D’altro canto questo genere di storie sta vivendo un discreto momento di popolarità con la ristampa di Scalped o la pubblicazione di Briggs Land, quindi non sarebbe poi così improbabile.
honguan's review
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
unladylike's review
3.0
The art in this comic is fantastic, especially if you like the watercolor painting style seen in Matt Kindt's Mind MGMT books (although he's not the illustrator of this one). The story and art allow for occasional dips into magical realism in an effective way to illuminate the obsessions or delusions of grandeur heroics going on in the minds of the main feuding characters. I look forward to seeing how the story progresses, but this initial volume left something to be desired. Based on the premise and creator (and how much I fucking loved the whole Mind MGMT series) I had fairly high expectations, and I can't say they were met. I think I was hoping for something more like Trailer Park Boys meets Reno 911 (although maybe that's too on the nose, and those two series could conceivably already be in the same world). It's definitely more grim and serious than either of those shows, which helps avoid the classist tropes of rural, working class, territorial, white communities, but takes away from more enjoyable development of the charismatic characters involved.
lukewhenderson's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
jamesthesnake's review
4.0
I love the story, espically with the lost daughter emotional angle, will be curious if the threads get picked up later because it seems pretty well settled.
helpfulsnowman's review
4.0
Matt Kindt is pretty cool.
Grass Kings seems to be about a little town that has successfully seceded from the United States(?) I'm not totally sure that it's the U.S. or that the town is really, totally seceded, but that's the basic setup here.
If I had my own country? If I made the rules? Boy, that's a question. I fantasize about opening my own GYM just so I can kick people out for petty reasons.
86-able offenses at my gym?
Spitting- In the drinking fountain, in the garbage. I don't give a shit. Here's a quick guide to places you can spit: Can you pee there? If the answer is no, then you can't spit there either.
Using the squat rack for like 30 minutes- Nope. Just nope. Get in there, do your shit, and get out.
Texting- GTFO.
Mirror selfies- Don't get caught. Banned for life. That's not what those mirrors are for, fool!
Asking someone to spot you for an asinine amount of time- This happened to me once. This asshole asked for a spot, I said sure, and then it turned out he was doing this thing where he loaded up a barbell from empty to 8 10 lb. plates on each side, 20 lbs at a time. So he had 8 steps going up, 8 coming down. 16 sets. This took goddamn forever. That dude is gone-zo.
Romance- No romance of any kind. No flirting, no picking people up. Fuck all that shit.
Overly loud grunting- If you're doing something that requires that much grunting, you're overdoing it, sir.
Dropping weights- If you can't put it down gently, it's too heavy for you, bro.
Food and drink other than water- Drink water, fuckers. That's all you need.
Weightlifting sessions longer than 2 hours- Seriously, get a life.
Grass Kings seems to be about a little town that has successfully seceded from the United States(?) I'm not totally sure that it's the U.S. or that the town is really, totally seceded, but that's the basic setup here.
If I had my own country? If I made the rules? Boy, that's a question. I fantasize about opening my own GYM just so I can kick people out for petty reasons.
86-able offenses at my gym?
Spitting- In the drinking fountain, in the garbage. I don't give a shit. Here's a quick guide to places you can spit: Can you pee there? If the answer is no, then you can't spit there either.
Using the squat rack for like 30 minutes- Nope. Just nope. Get in there, do your shit, and get out.
Texting- GTFO.
Mirror selfies- Don't get caught. Banned for life. That's not what those mirrors are for, fool!
Asking someone to spot you for an asinine amount of time- This happened to me once. This asshole asked for a spot, I said sure, and then it turned out he was doing this thing where he loaded up a barbell from empty to 8 10 lb. plates on each side, 20 lbs at a time. So he had 8 steps going up, 8 coming down. 16 sets. This took goddamn forever. That dude is gone-zo.
Romance- No romance of any kind. No flirting, no picking people up. Fuck all that shit.
Overly loud grunting- If you're doing something that requires that much grunting, you're overdoing it, sir.
Dropping weights- If you can't put it down gently, it's too heavy for you, bro.
Food and drink other than water- Drink water, fuckers. That's all you need.
Weightlifting sessions longer than 2 hours- Seriously, get a life.
cgwinters1981's review
4.0
There is this person I talk through a Discord group attached to the DC Universe app and I asked him to recommend some comics to me. He recommended several and I started another one, but did not like it. It started this one and was intrigued enough to continue with it.
The first thing I have to talk about with this book is the artwork. It is done in watercolors. It is so beautifully and uniquely drawn. Tyler Jenkins is an A – R – T – I – S – T OK? The artwork is what drew me into this series and kept my feet solidly rooted the entire time. I didn’t want to look away from it. Even though it was the simplest things that were being drawn. Grass literally had me like WOW. The capabilities of this individual that I will never possess. Truly wonderful.
The story is interesting as well. I found myself wondering about the main character, Robert, and his backstory often through the course of reading this. I kept hoping we would get some nod to what happened to his daughter and if there was more to it than it appeared. I don’t wanna say more than that, but it had me intrigued. Then we get the sheriff’s wife as part of the story and I completely got lost in it all. There also is this underlying possibility of someone from the “Grass Kingdom” being a murderer and I just wanted to know if that would get resolved. There is an issue where the intensity picks up a bit, but for the most part there is an underlying tone to this series that is mundane. It is basic, but good basic. People hear that and instantly think UGH I don’t like basic stuff, but I love it. I love a story like this one where it isn’t about a superhero punching someone. Instead it feels like something that could happen in the real world. Someone could go off the grid. Someone could start their own life in an area, almost completely away from others. It is an interesting idea. I could see a society being formed like the one showcased here. Heck, part of me wants to go there right now.
This first volume dragged me into it. It left me wanting more and left enough threads to want to go into volume 2. That is the mark of a good comic book series to me, but I wanted more resolution. I wanted to have something feel “finalized” in the first volume of this series since it was so mundane. This is why I couldn’t rate it higher than 3 rainbows, but this doesn’t mean that I won’t continue on to see what happens with the members of the Grass Kingdom. I most certainly will.
The first thing I have to talk about with this book is the artwork. It is done in watercolors. It is so beautifully and uniquely drawn. Tyler Jenkins is an A – R – T – I – S – T OK? The artwork is what drew me into this series and kept my feet solidly rooted the entire time. I didn’t want to look away from it. Even though it was the simplest things that were being drawn. Grass literally had me like WOW. The capabilities of this individual that I will never possess. Truly wonderful.
The story is interesting as well. I found myself wondering about the main character, Robert, and his backstory often through the course of reading this. I kept hoping we would get some nod to what happened to his daughter and if there was more to it than it appeared. I don’t wanna say more than that, but it had me intrigued. Then we get the sheriff’s wife as part of the story and I completely got lost in it all. There also is this underlying possibility of someone from the “Grass Kingdom” being a murderer and I just wanted to know if that would get resolved. There is an issue where the intensity picks up a bit, but for the most part there is an underlying tone to this series that is mundane. It is basic, but good basic. People hear that and instantly think UGH I don’t like basic stuff, but I love it. I love a story like this one where it isn’t about a superhero punching someone. Instead it feels like something that could happen in the real world. Someone could go off the grid. Someone could start their own life in an area, almost completely away from others. It is an interesting idea. I could see a society being formed like the one showcased here. Heck, part of me wants to go there right now.
This first volume dragged me into it. It left me wanting more and left enough threads to want to go into volume 2. That is the mark of a good comic book series to me, but I wanted more resolution. I wanted to have something feel “finalized” in the first volume of this series since it was so mundane. This is why I couldn’t rate it higher than 3 rainbows, but this doesn’t mean that I won’t continue on to see what happens with the members of the Grass Kingdom. I most certainly will.
polarbits's review
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
benreader's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
jekutree's review against another edition
4.0
Really great read. Kindt delivers an engaging story with interesting characters and a cool premise.
Jenkins’ art is drop dead gorgeous and is what really kept me engaged throughout. The water colors and his rough pencils made me fall in love with the story. Flashbacks have a different style to them with a really awesome loose layout without borders and flat colors. The art is going to keep me coming back for sure, the good story is definitely a plus though.
Only cons were that the dialogue and pacing fell flat at times.
8/10
Jenkins’ art is drop dead gorgeous and is what really kept me engaged throughout. The water colors and his rough pencils made me fall in love with the story. Flashbacks have a different style to them with a really awesome loose layout without borders and flat colors. The art is going to keep me coming back for sure, the good story is definitely a plus though.
Only cons were that the dialogue and pacing fell flat at times.
8/10