![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jasonderoga86Hey, Dreamwitdh Family!
After a killer heat wave yesterday, I was able to cool off well enough today to finish up the rest of Matt Zimmer's UnComix One-Shots (Un-Iverse #15). I've labeled this as "Part 2" of my overall review of the episode given how large the entire first One-Shots episode is, and because I think as a review it's much easier to digest. Without any further ado, let's jump right in!
Story Number Five: Un-Comix Korner “Un” Truthiness by Matt Zimmer
• My theory? Un-truthing just ain’t sustainable, friends. A house built on un-truths is doomed to collapse, because all dirty little secrets of this world take more effort to maintain than to expose. World history lesson here, folks. Why else do people in any position of authority have to literally kill themselves every day to maintain a façade from their “inferiors”? All that power expended to protect a lie while the “inferiors” very existence portrays more destructive power? Food for thought.
Story Number Six: Un-Comix Korner “Rats” On Notice by Matt Zimmer
• Oh-hoooh! Whoever wrote the saying, “it ain’t nice to kick ‘em when they’re down” never met this rodent. A perfect portrayal of bullies in society – they pretend to care about others, but when their morals are tested there is no measure to how fast they drop their humility at the tip of a hat. Sorry, that’s the employee part of me speaking, on behalf of the disabled community I serve. The outside world claims to care about the vulnerable, but when they are forced to act as they speak, they will have no qualms about turning their backs to appeal to the ignorant “normal” society. To me, the rat in the last panel is symbolic of “the system” deciding to consume the vulnerable and what the vulnerable needs out of a false sense of morality – a blatant action of “we never actually cared about them, anyway.”
Story Number Seven: Meek and Bernadette “Hiccups”: BEARS! By Matt Zimmer
• Here we see that Meek’s got a bad case of the hiccups. He asks lil’ Bernadette to use the ol’ scare tactic to banish this dastardly malady, and Bernadette obliges. What follows next is a sequence of absolute brutality as Bernadette does more than just SCARE the hiccups away: one minor note here -- a folding chair was used to terrifying effect in the process. On the upside, the harrowing ordeal was more than sufficient to drive the hiccups away, but on the downside, well… we can rest assured that Meek will definitely be having some issues with “accidents” for a while. And hell, who WOULDN’T be capable of normal bodily functions after that walloping? Just another reminder that though Bernadette may look innocent and cute, she does not eff around when the situation demands bluntness.
Story Number Eight: Howler “Bad Moon Rising: Part One: A Shot In The Dark” I Miss Colbert by Matt Zimmer
• The story starts off with two dudes in trenchcoats meeting in an underground garage in the bustling city of Washington D.C. One time is that rather shifty-looking cat Mitch, the other a human with shades. The two shadow agents are meeting out of confidentiality; this garage is space that their superiors’ eyes and ears can’t reach. Which is a good thing, according to Mitch, as he’s got info on a Dog who aced the FBI Academy and is on his way to Appleton, New York to start playing with the Big Blue Boys. The Dog in question is a chap named Juan Timone Howler, who is in fact not a Dog at all according to Mitch’s confidant.
• Mitch goes into why he’s tracking Howler in the first place: Howler’s joining the FBI for the purposes of slandering Mistress Augatha. The Human immediately understands the gravity of the situation, claiming that Howler is one of the few people on Earth who stand in the Mistress’s way of dominating the entire planet. But the Human also knows that the FBI cannot be trusted, which Mitch confirms by stating the Bureau’s refusal to get involved in political matters despite his several attempts to warn them of the grave risk Howler poses should they keep him. Not good enough, the Human responds, adding that the U.S. Government is actually funding Mistress Augatha’s campaign to take over the world. Well, damn… then the FBI NEEDS to drop this Howler guy, right? The Human here is talking about nationwide riots if Howler is allowed to procure the evidence he needs!
• But according to Mitch, the cat’s already out of the bag (pun intended), because Howler’s already GOT the evidence. However, he hasn’t disclosed his findings to anyone… which means that Howler poses a MUCH graver threat to Mitch and his ally than to anyone else. Yep, this is straight up playing dirty, and our two agents here stand to lose damn near EVERYTHING once Howler springs his trap. The Human then asks if Eddie Cat is aware of the scheme and what his plan is to fight back. Mitch reveals what Eddie’s up to, and daaayuumm, is his counterplan a doozy. Eddie is going to excruciating lengths to get a fundamentalist minister from Appleton successfully into the Presidency. The sitting president, named Gardener, is a staunch opponent of the Augatha Pact of 1986 (hey, that’s the year I was born!). But Eddie’s candidate, the preacher – revealed to be none other than Vic Puff – will prove to be much easier for our two agents to manipulate from the shadows as opposed to Gardener due to his own corrupt ideals. The Human agent is skeptical at the idea, dismissive of Eddie Cat having any kind of credibility in electoral machinations. Mitch insists that Puff is the correct candidate by reminding his doubtful friend of Eddie’s exceptional manipulative puppeteering prowess in any situation. Once Puff is president, he will open the nation’s doors to Augatha without a second thought. What’s more, Puff is more than just a preacher; he’s been twice elected mayor of Appleton and has a thing for prophecies (there it is people – remember, “prophecy” is a key word in the Un-Iverse). The Human responds with his knowledge of Puff as a womanizer who lost his wife due to his vices, to which Mitch confirms it is the same Puff.
• The Human agent is incredulous – how the hell was someone this foul and decadent so politically successful? Mitch answers that question with three simple words: “He’s a Republican”. And you know what? That DOES sum it all up. Mitch does go into some detail, stating things such as how this political party runs on abdication of morals, filling the masses’ heads with persistent lies until they become the truth, and general unfitness for any public office, but the message is clear – a heart of corruption and soullessness are all you need in this party to win any election.
• Hilariously, the Human agent condescendingly asks if Mitch really thinks so lowly about the American people, to which Mitch asks the same question back given that they’re even conversing over this very issue. Realizing Mitch’s point, the Human agent asks another honest question about Puff’s “credentials”; if he did all these deplorable things, why isn’t he rotting in a cell? Mitch responds again with those three simple words: “He’s a Republican” and adds another damning statement: “Jail is for the little people.” Boy, Mitch just hit the nail on the head, ‘cause I cannot for the life of myself remember any big-name politician who has ever been sentenced to prison for crimes committed in office (save for maybe George Santos but look at how long it took for THAT justice to be served). For a country that always like to meander to the “little people” about the “rule of law” and “holding elected officials accountable”, America spends a lot more of its resources (and tax dollars) providing legal defense for politicians than it does with funding a justice system that functions on legal merit instead of stupid power and wealth dynamics. Ahh, capitalism is wonderful, isn’t it? (rolls eyes)
• We are finally invited to a look inside Howler’s Appleton home, hard at work on looking for the key to defeating the Mistress. His wife happens by with tea and a hopeful message for the morrow, but Howler is in no mood for optimism. First day on the job, and it’s apparently time for the monthly torture ritual as Howler’s hunny has everything prepared. Howler maintains his priorities with his paperwork but seems weirdly excited for said ritual as he reminds his wife not to leave any item for extremely painful purposes out. I’m with the Narrator on this one: Wut…?
• Thankfully, the Narrator speeds us past whatever ungodly horrors Howler was subjected to and we arrive at the following day at the F.B.I. headquarters. Howler is partnered with Agent Phil Douglas, who also graduated with top brass at the Academy – the Bureau Chief feels it’s only natural to pair up two of the Academy’s best and brightest. The two agents are then given their assignment: to round up a drug ring stationed on the West Side of town. An undercover mole is wired to HQ, ready to assist in the arrest of the dealers along with Howler and Douglas the moment the criminals expose themselves. Yep, it’s an undercover search-and-capture mission – pretty badass for a first assignment from the F.B.I. Props, Howler and Douglas, props.
• While they wait for the go-ahead from the mole via radio at the West Side, Douglas strikes up a candid conversation with Howler about family life and kids. Howler talks about priorities coming before having kids, but in thought knows that part of that priority was how to stop Mistress Augatha – something he can’t disclose to Douglas yet out of trust issues. But at that very moment, both agents are horrified to hear the drug dealers discovering the mole and swiftly wasting him with a shower of bullets… damn, that was quick! Howler and Douglas have no choice but to breach the operation…
• Upon barging into the shady warehouse, both agents find a frightening sight: their undercover friendly lies dead along with three of the dealers in a pool of blood, but one of the bad dudes is still alive – obviously armed and dangerous. It doesn’t take long before the remaining dealer ambushes Douglas and Howler and opens fire on Howler before either agent has a chance to respond. Howler takes four – count ‘em, FOUR – bullets to the chest before Douglas pulls off a headshot to drop the dealer and quickly calls in the medics to the scene. I dunno… four shots point-blank to the chest at close range? I’m not betting money on Howler pulling through this…
• As the medics attend to Howler, Douglas is already guilt-ridden over failing to protect him and bringing this calamity upon him his first day on the job. Well, to be honest, I would’ve felt the same way. The F.B.I. is serious business and carries a heavy risk – I’m sure some first-timers don’t survive their first real gig. Fortunately, the medics report that Howler will not only make it, but that surgery was fully successful, and that the agent only needs a steady regimen of painkillers – Howler didn’t graduate at top brass at the Academy for nothing, after all. With that, Douglas goes to see Howler, who is sleeping calmly. Before long, the sun begins to set…
• A couple hours later, Howler slowly wakes up and questions the hour. Douglas tells his partner that it’s 7:00 pm, and that Howler has been on a steady dose of painkillers. But at that moment, Howler becomes fully alert and terrified as it dawns on him. He tears off his nearby IV device starts furiously attacking himself in a panic, but to no avail – his pain receptors have all been numbed! Growing more unstable, Howler tells his partner to get the hell out of the room ASAP as he starts to undergo an unsettling change – his fingers grow sharp claws while his teeth sharpen, and his muzzle elongates as his overall physical shifts alarmingly to a more feral, beastly state! Are we witnessing the awakening of a werewolf in a hospital room?! (you don’t find a scene like THAT in today’s typical pop culture fiction films!)
• Yep, turns out Howler IS now a werewolf (and how fitting, given that his name is “Howler”), and his mind is regressing to an animalistic state before his terrified (ex?) partner. Upon seeing what has become of his ally, Douglas is overcome with memories of how his old partner and late friend Warren was murdered by a Werewolf. This traumatic trigger turns Douglas cold toward what can now be considered another lost partner as well as an affront to Warren’s memory, and he draws his pistol with a vengeful glare. Howler attempts to reason with Douglas with the last of his humanity and begs him not to pull the trigger, but Douglas coldly responds with two words: “For Warren.” The gun goes off, and a body hits the floor. But whose body was it? Well, that’s the cliffhanger right there!
And that ends the first of the One-Shots! Gotta say, this was a refreshing UnComix episode, given how the previous episodes up to this point were more connected in a closer narrative (especially the prequel epic “The Pontue Legacy”). Matt says that quite a lot of people hated the One-Shots, but I can’t find any reason to hate them; many of the characters introduced here are new faces, and I’ve taken a liking to them all. For example, the story surrounding Narf-Narf, Chirp, and Stella Stickyfingers had the spunk of a Secret Squirrel episode, and the first story featuring the Humans as they come across the deceased Hubbahotep and what follows was adorable in a crude way, if that makes any sense. It was good to see The Piranha again too, and his encounter with the disgruntled mailman was told in such a way that I never would’ve anticipated the outcome.
So, that ends this One-Shots episode, and next time we’ll be diving into the next one: UnComix One-Shots (Un-Iverse #16): “Narf-Narf and Chirp” – and given how I just gushed about how cool these two characters are, you can bet I’m looking forward to reading this one!
Till then, peace and love to you all, and have a good night!
Nana
--“Jason Deroga”
no subject
Date: 2025-06-02 01:40 pm (UTC)People JUST starting out? This "distraction" from the good Gilda And Meek stuff drives them nuts. You'd think the titles were actually worse than they are.
For record, the fifth One-Shot UnComix One-Shots: Meek's Chiller Theatre remain one of my very favorite Un-Iverse issues of all time. All four stories in it are dynamite and some of the best stuff I've ever done.
no subject
Date: 2025-06-02 11:42 pm (UTC)Oh? Well, I'm looking forward to it, then!
no subject
Date: 2025-06-03 08:20 am (UTC)