Blood Bowl: Killer Contract #5 (of 5) (Boom! Studios – Forbeck / Helloven)
Welcome to the hyper-violent hilarity of Blood Bowl, the miniseries that puts the fantasy (as in elves, dwarves, orcs, and ogres) back into football! In this climatic issue, the Bad Bay Hackers take on the Champions of Death in a bid for the Blood Bowl Championship trophy. Assassin Kalter Morder still hopes to kill Hacker hero Dunk Hoffnung, but he has to compete for the honor with hi shocking client, not to mention a small army of the undead! Features two alternate covers, both by series artist Lads Helloven.
Way back in the day I remember playing Blood Bowl as a strategy board game and I thought I was in heaven, I mean what could have been cooler to a high school guy than a game that combined Football and Dungeons and Dragons? The only thing better than that is if it would have somehow incorporated hot babes into it. Well, it took a few decades later, but this series from Boom! Studios triumphantly combines all of the tongue-in-cheek humor, gridiron action, fantasy battles of the game… and yes hot babes.
There is no other word to describe this series but “Fun!” Rival football teams filled with all of your favorite fantasy races including some undead ones (check out the vampire QB and his zombie offensive line!), and behind the scenes scheming that would rival the Sopranos. With these types of characters all is fair on and off the field, ranging from decapitation and ripping someones vital organs out to blackmail and bribery. The story moves along at a rapid pace, never quite letting you catch your breath. Acclaimed fantasy author and gaming expert / designer Matt Forbeck puts together a great cast and an enjoyable plot that flows seamlessly. The artist Lads Helloven is relatively new to the field, but provides a decent canvas to tell Forbeck’s story. Helloven’s style is sort of an exaggerated, sketchy fantasy art. His combination of flashy details, over-use of shade and clashing colors with just a dash of “cartoon” frames this story pretty well.
Now, is this one of those heavy, deep stories? Is this Grant Morrison pondering justice in the universe? No, it’s not… so if you are looking for higher-level philosophy wrapped in a graphic medium, then this might not be your best choice. But if you want a book that is fun, enjoyable and that will make you cheer and laugh, then you want to check out Boom!’s Blood Bowl series.
Issue’s #1-5 will be available from Boom! Studios in the form of both hard and soft cover trades, diamond codes here for individual issue or trades
Issue Grade: A-
Pullbox Warning: due to some of the graphic violence in this book, even though it is “cartoon fantasy ” violence, it still is probably not designed for your 8-year old.
