By Jason Webb
One of the friendliest people you will ever talk to on twitter is the creator/writer/artist/letterer of Monkey Squad One, Doug Michel. A creator owned comic that Doug initially produced purely for his nephews, has gone from strength to strength currently standing at issue #12. I have been lucky enough to receive some issues of MS1, from issue 6 to 12 including annuals.
The main story begins in the St. Louis headquarters of U.N.C.L.E, the Ultimate National Covert Logistics Ensemble. The agency has a crime fighting team known as Monkey Squad One, a young team of heroes comprised of 3 young men; Logan AKA Major Destruction, Connor AKA Kojiro, and Brendan AKA Captain Kidd. The team are called in to deal with a threat from the evil Dr. Metropolis and his army of killer robots, who are aiming to take over Washington D.C. MS1 swings into action, determined to save the president from the evil Dr and his killer robots, only to discover that the Doctor isn’t the only person on the way to kill the president! This is where we encounter the S.I.S for the first time. S.I.S is the Society of Evil Sisters and appear to be the arch enemies of the Monkey Squad boys. Needless to say battle ensues and the boys are put to the test…….
The boys are put to the test…
This is where I’m going to leave my story review, I don’t want to spoil anything. If you haven’t already, I strongly recommend you purchase this book from http://thewayofthecomicbookronins.bandcamp.com/merch
The creator Doug Michel is someone that I would like to think has become a pretty good friend, or as close as friends could be in twitter terms. Having spoken at great length with Doug about his comic it becomes evident how proud he is of his work. On reading issue #1 it’s clear that Doug puts his heart and soul into his work as his personality really shines through. His sole purpose in creating this comic was to entertain his nephews, the big kid that i am i would be so happy if someone made this for me. Its everything that a kid could want in a comic, it’s fun, quirky, and has Ninjas AND a Bad Baby!!
It’s fun, quirky, and has Ninjas AND a Bad Baby!!
The only other contributor credit in this book belongs to Sean Fagan. Anyone that has read Monkey Squad One prior to this will be familiar with the black and white pages of art, as Doug made this comic completely on his own. When he announced he was going to re-release issue one in full colour, it sounded like a bold move. Sean’s colours fit seamlessly into this book like they’ve been there since day one. On first seeing the dark purple sky scenes in the book, they contract perfectly with the uniforms and the battle scenes between the main characters.
This is a perfect pairing, a complete meeting of minds.
I have been a huge fan of Monkey Squad One from the moment I set eyes on it, even helping out with the creation of #MonkeySquadMonday. This is the hash tag for everything and anything that is Monkey Squad One related, Doug also uses it to post some of his work and exciting additions to the Monkey Squad universe.
Sean’s colours fit seamlessly into this book like they’ve been there since day one.
I can’t recommend this book highly enough to people. Please click HERE and buy this book for a tiny fee, (I was the first one to buy it), and help support this amazingly unique comic book that is firmly tongue in cheek. Together we can share the MS1 experience and keep it in the consciousness of the world.
Everyone needs a bit of MS1 in their lives!
Please let me know your thoughts, comments and even if you just want to chat to me @jaybwebb on twitter
Posted on August 7th, 2013
Category: Blog, REVIEWS, WEBB OF SHADOWS
Tags: Comic Reviews, Doug Michel, Jason Webb, Monkey Squad One, Monkey Squad One Review, Sean Fagan