Thursday, June 30, 2011

Chew: Taster’s Choice by John Layman art by Rob Guillory YP FIC LAYMAN

Tony Chu is cibopathic. Don’t worry I had never heard of it either. It means he can bite into any food and know everything about it: where it grew, how it was harvested, who had handled it. The only thing it doesn’t work on is beets. Tony Chu eats a lot of beets. In his world the bird flu killed millions and all poultry is illegal. After a bust gone bad Tony stops being a cop and works for the most powerful agency in America the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Where Tony uses his cibopathy to solve the strangest and most secret cases and may even uncover the mystery of who or what caused the Bird Flu.

First off, it is totally awesome to have a non-stereotypical Asian-American hero. Comics definitely could benefit from more diversity. Second, this book is weird as weird gets in a wonderful way. The art is stylish and cartoony, which makes the more gruesome parts (cannibalism, blood, vomiting, etc.) more fun than gross. The book throws new characters at you fast and furious but doesn’t stay with them long. It does work in making me want to read more, but I hope future volumes don’t leave as many plotlines dangling. This volume does set up a fun and quirky mystery that is already paying off.

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