Junkyard Joe #1 cover a

Here we are again with another outing from the Mad Ghost dream team. Junkyard Joe is the next chapter in the saga of “The Unnamed” which began with their previous outing, Geiger, where Junkyard Joe was introduced. If you haven’t read Geiger, I would highly recommend checking it out as it was very good, but it’s not actually necessary to understand what’s going on here. A new reader could pick this up without any context and still have a firm grasp on what is happening and why by the end of the first issue.



And it’s a good first issue. It introduces the titular robot in a flashback to 1972, where he is secretly inserted into a squad of soldiers to fight in the Vietnam War, and we the story unfold through the eyes of one of his squad mates, Muddy Davis. What follows is best described as what would happen if Baymax from Big Hero 6 were suddenly drafted into Apocalypse Now: a killer robot learning human behavior amidst the inhumane horrors of the Vietnam War. It is a fast-paced establishing chapter, complete with the same level of brutal violence you’d expect when Geoff Johns and Gary Frank are off the leash. It is, however, clearly meant to be only the opening chapter to this story. We’ve got a way to go between 1972 and 2050 when Joe meets up with Geiger. What happened in the meantime I think is going to be the more interesting part of the story.



Gary Frank is, as always, a master of the visual arts. Between Frank’s pencils and Brad Anderson’s colors, it’s worth it for you to check out this book simply for the gorgeous artwork within, even if you’re not a fan of Geoff Johns’ writing. Overall, a good start to what I hope to be another exceptional story from my favorite creative team.