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I don’t know what it was, maybe writer’s block or something else, but for whatever reason I have been putting off my review of Com.X’s Razorjack by John Higgins (colorist Swamp Thing, Superman: Red Son)  for months. Like, since March ‘months.’ Yeah. In that span I’ve read it three times now, and I’m glad I hesitated to commence writing about it the previous two times.

I’ll be honest- I didn’t get it at first. I mean, it looked cool and the story was different, but I was confused and horror isn’t really my thing, so you know. But then this third time, which was yesterday, I read Higgins’ intro to the book (which is easy to miss since it’s printed on the inside front cover), and it paved the way for a much more divergent experience, one I really enjoyed. You know what it was like? Remember when you were a kid, and you had to go over to your mom’s friend’s house? You met her son who was around your age, and you didn’t really hit it off and there was that awkwardness…until he showed you his toy collection, and then it was like you both understood each other? Yeah, after reading Higgins’ words in the intro, the feeling was kind of like that. It set the tone of the book, and made me feel more comfortable in the readers chair on where he was coming from. Here’s an excerpt:

“…I had a story I wanted to tell, a story that no one else could tell, it was a John Higgins story. It’s not profound, it won’t make you look at the world around you in a different way and it will never win the Nobel Prize for literature. It would be nice to be nominated. But anyway, it is just a horror story populated by weird creatures, with colorful art and nice designs. It kept me entertained writing, drawing and colouring it on and off for around ten years. I hope you get at least a couple of hours enjoyment from it and if you do, tell your friends and even tell me.”

Well Mr. Higgins, I got my couple hours worth of enjoyment from Razorjack three times over, so mission accomplished!

He’s right though; Razorjack isn’t profound and it won’t make you question the meaning of life, but it is a fun fucking ride from start to finish.

So what’s Razorjack about? Corrupt cops, sexualized demons, and theatre kids all tied together in one nasty attempt at the demon, Razorjack’s, attempt to enter our dimension, that’s what! It follows the stories of Frame, a cop who’s out to right many wrongs, and his partner, Ross, who’s a spunky young and crafty woman. Both cops become victim of a devious plot by their corrupt superior officer, who arranges a heist in which he sets them both up for death. Thing is, this warty corrupt cop is also the leader of a sick cult who specialize in human sacrifice.

Meanwhile, in an alternate dimension known as the Twist Loop, is where Razorjack (also known as Mistress P”An and Iron Queen Ruler of the Twelve Dim’s; I have no clue what either of those titles mean) resides in a large black palace surrounded by a courtyard of bones and a moat of blood. There she rules over her underlings, the leather clad Twist Bitches, and tortures the last of The Veil, Lady Helen. Razorjack needs to know how to create a Closed Nexus which would give her the ability to enter our realm here on Earth, and Lady Helen is the only one who can tell her how to do so. However, Lady Helen would rather choose eternal torture than fork over that information to the evil demon.

Luckily for Razorjack though, three students are rehearsing for their college performance of Macbeth. They play the witches and are perfecting Act IV scene 1, when suddenly one of the kids, Woody, taps into the Twist Loop and becomes possessed by Razorjack! Shit really starts to fly as this takes place in the same building where Ross has taken a teenager she rescued from the corrupt cop’s cult, who was slated to be the next sacrifice. Also, Frame is being hunted by the cop’s thugs, Mr. Jones and Mr. Khan, and they’re out for blood…

Higgins does a good job penning a fun, loose story, and in creating interesting characters with personality. His art though is what really makes the book stand out; It’s fresh and unique, and the coloring -sorry, “colouring”- is bright and vibrant (he did color Watchmen). In short, it looks great! One of my favorite scenes is where Frame is looking for someone in a club and he accidentally bumps into this guy’s girl. The dude is a total meat head about the situation and tries to start a fight with Frame, who calmly avoids the situation. The meat head throws a punch, but Frame smoothly dodges it, causing the guy to sock his girl instead. I thought Higgins really captured that idiot club guy persona that’s all to common in that environment. I also liked the relationship between Simon and Nat, the two other college kids. They had been together for years, but now Nat has split feelings for Simon and their castmate, Woody, because he’s so talented. It was just interesting to see how the couple’s relationship panned out through the book.

The scrap book at the end of the story is an added bonus; It’s 13 pages of sketches and concept art, complete with explanations. It was cool to take this trip down memory lane with Higgins as he recounts the process of creating Razorjack. This section is a nice closing to the book, as it began on such a personal note with the intro, and it ends with you feeling like you were just hanging out with Higgins, shooting the shit.

So will Razorjack answer all your questions about the universe? Probably not, but you will have one helluva ride inside the mind of John Higgins, so check it out!

Now for some quotes:

“B an F me ass side up, this ain’t Dog Creek, Nebraska! No sir!” -Lost college kid

“What a foul-mouthed pussy we have here Mr. Jones, skulking around at the dead of night.” -Mr. Khan

“Who would have thought such a small, moist creature would have such sharp claws?” -Mr. Jones

“Oh Helen, why are good people so stupidly trusting? Listen my Bitches, this weeping frail is ssooo good; good is bad. She would heal you. If you want to be free from my Twist, she could kill you with love!” -Razorjack

“Who you callin’ a lady? You faggot!!” -Meat head club guy

For more on Com.X, click here! To order a copy of Razorjack, visit the Com.X website. Also, visit John Higgins’ website at TurmoilColor.com.

Andy Liegl
andy@comicattack.net