Series: GWAR: ORGASMAGEDDON
Writers: Matt Maguire and Matt Miner, with additional story by Bob Gorman
Artists: Jonathan Brandon Sawyer, with Marissa Louise & Doug Garbark, and Taylor Esposito
Publisher: Dynamite
Summary from Dynamite: “From the depths of outer space to the frozen wasteland of Antarctica, punk rock and heavy metal’s most shocking and blasphemous band of intergalactic blood spewing alien monsters has returned to kill everything and respect nothing in the pages of GWAR: Orgasmageddon! Banished to the past by the cold and calculating Mr. Perfect, the heroes of GWAR trample through time like a deranged Bill and Ted on bath salts – antics ensue as they stomp and smash and shape human history to what we accept as our current reality. Co-written by GWAR themselves and Matt Miner (Toe Tag Riot, Critical Hit), GWAR: Orgasmageddon is a love letter to comics, grindhouse movies, and heavy metal – sure to appeal to the most die-hard fan and the comics fanboy/fangirl intrigued by the prospect of social awareness drowned in geysers of blood and alien goo.”
When I first heard about the GWAR comic I was incredibly excited. I immediately reached out to co-writer Matt Miner for an interview, which you can read here, so I could learn more. All the artwork that was initially presented was fantastic and promising, but it wasn’t until Matt was kind enough to share a review copy of the first issue that I realized just how unfathomably jealous 15-year-old me would be of 32-year-old me.
The story of ORGASMAGEDDON is pretty straightforward. GWAR travels through time and hilariously fucked up shit happens. I could try to speak in professional tones about this comic, but would that really make any sense? When period jokes and multiple violent beheadings are involved, professionalism (outside that of the editing that goes into making the book look nice and shiny) pretty much goes out the window. And thank GOD, er… GWAR, for that.
Comics that take themselves seriously and strive to make a legitimate point are great, and I certainly appreciate their candor. But, too often comic creators try too goddamn hard, expecting readers to be enamored with whatever inflated concept they’re shoveling and they get unreasonably resentful if their ideas aren’t praised, or aren’t praised to the level they think they deserved.
I got off on bit of a tangent there. Sorry. My intent is not to do the whole “this is good because this is bad” thing. That’s shitty and doesn’t actually compliment the thing being refereed to as “good.” My point is just to convey that the biggest part of what I loved about ORGASMAGEDDON #1 is that it doesn’t expect anything of the reader other than to be entertained. For decades now, GWAR has been using their brand of performance art to influence audiences and relay social concepts that go completely unnoticed on the surface. Mostly because they’re strategically buried beneath dick jokes and fake blood, but trust me, they’re there.
ORGASMAGEDDON keeps that notion alive. Matt Maguire, who’s worked in the band for many years, and Matt Miner script the story in a manner so that it hits the sweet spot of being a perfect depiction of the band’s faux-mythology, relentlessly funny, chocked full of cartoonish gore, and still, ever so subtly, conveys a point or two. But I might be over-analyzing it. (“might be” = definitely am)
If you, like myself and many other GWAR fans, struggle with a short attention span, ORGASMAGEDDON has you covered. The plot moves quickly and there are shorts at the end that give you a little extra gore for the fun of it. You literally cannot get bored reading this book.
The characters are… well, they’re GWAR, plus a few others thrown in. My favorite is Mr. Perfect. When you see him, you just know what he represents, but in the interest of being self-aware (which this comic has in spades) it’s eventually addressed. Hilariously, I might add.
In addition to the top-notch writing, ORGASMAGEDDON has wonderfully comic-booky art with just the right amount of detail and beautiful colors. While its all really lovely as a total package, honestly, I think the color work is my favorite part of the art. It blends well and really pops out at you.
GWAR fans are sure to love ORGASMAGEDDON because that’s what Bohabs do. They love GWAR. But even if you aren’t familiar with their music, this book is still a super fun read for anyone who just likes violent comics with toilet humor. Which, lets be real, is most of us.
ORGASMAGEDDON hits comic shops this Wednesday so make sure you head out and pick it up!
Music Pairing-
Oh like you didn’t know…