Sweet Tooth #15 – Review

by Jeff Lemire (writer & artist), Jose Villarrubia (colors), and Pat Brousseau (letters)

The Story: Jepperd and the hybrid cultists prepare for war, Gus makes good his escape, and Singh and Abbott unearth some secrets about Gus’ family.

What’s Good: This is one hell of an issue and the best issue of Sweet Tooth to come around in a while, and that’s saying a lot.  It perfectly mixes big events/reveals with build-up for future issues that, all told, leaves the series at a fever pitch with more momentum and excitement behind it than ever before.  What has often been a slower, quieter, thoughtful series is suddenly transformed, for the time being, into a rollicking and absolutely riveting thriller of a book.

There’s so much to like about this book.  First and foremost is the change in Gus.  While his childhood innocence is still there, he has emerged as a natural leader.  His relationship to his fellow hybrid escapees is sincere and genuine, but he’s also clearly the one they look to.  Gus almost ends up like a weird, dark kind of Peter Pan, leading a band of isolated children through a strange world filled with murderous adult figures.  It’s up to Gus to call the shots, and, more important, instill hope and comfort to his group and the results are a wonderful read.

The big events, however, relate to what Singh and Abbott dig up at Gus’ old home.  It hints at very interesting things to come for the series but, more than that, it lends the book an almost supernatural, or at least speculative, tone.  During these scenes, and the book’s amazingly written montage conclusion, Singh narrates by reading from Gus’ father’s “bible.”  This bizarre book actually reads like a legitimate holy book, written specifically for Sweet Tooth’s world.  It’s filled with the appropriate metaphors and language, but it carries a very eerie prophetic power.  It leads one to wonder whether there were some powers at work in Gus’ father’s work.  Even if not, this narration, and this bible as a whole, lends the book a very, very ominous and downright chilling tone.  More than that, it makes this issue and the events it builds feel important.  The last few pages will have you starving for the next issue, which is not generally something Lemire has focused on in Sweet Tooth.

Weekly Comic Book Review’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Incognito: Bad Influences #1 – This was a very strong and espionage-themed first issue as Brubaker, Phillips & Staples show how to work as a creative team.  Really, really good.  Runners-up: Scalped #42 & Thunderbolts #149.

Most Anticipated: 28 Days Later #16 – This series left our heroine in a really bad spot last issue.  I hope this series focusing on “zombie aftermath” can get a little love from folks excited by The Walking Dead.

Other picks: Batman & Robin #16, Punisher In the Blood #1, Scarlet #3, Irredeemable #19, Taskmaster #3

Alex’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Action Comics #894 – What a great week for comics.  Both major Avengers titles put on surprisingly strong performances while Hotwire and Scalped managed to reach A-grades.  However, they were going up against Action #894, which happened to be one of the best comics of the year, provided you aren’t adverse to an issue devoted to strong dialogue and characterization instead of face-punching and action scenes.  It was truly amazing stuff, as Cornell also continues to show off his intimate understanding of Lex Luthor’s inner workings.

Most Anticipated: Superboy #1 – I’m honestly not that huge a Superboy fan.  I have no problems at all with Connor, but his presence in a comic isn’t something that makes it a must-buy for me.  I guess I’m honestly sort of ambivalent about him, overall.  Jeff Lemire, however, I am not ambivalent about in the slightest, having read most, if not all, of his comics work.  This is Lemire’s first full-length, ongoing work for one of the big two, and it’s a title where he’s right at home.  Lemire has said in interviews that Superboy feels like a creator-owned title, due to its focus on small-town, rural life and that he’s channelled a bit of Essex County in his writing of it.  That’s enough to get me very excited.

Other Picks: Unknown Soldier #25, Batman & Robin #16, Scarlet #3, Wolverine #3, Secret Six #27, American Vampire #8, Sweet Tooth #15, Invincible #75, Brightest Day #13

Joe’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #15 – Bendis knocked it out of the park last week with this epilogue to his “Chameleon” arc.  Centering on Peter Parker’s social circle and the people he affects in a way that pushes home just how painful it can be to be a part of his life, particularly when you’re in love with him.  The final scene of a cast member’s exit is all the more heart-wrenching when you realize it really is Peter’s fault.  A nice reminder of how good this title can be when all the pieces fit.

Most Anticipated: Irredeemable #19 – Last month’s tour de force gave us plenty of intriguing scenes that stood with me long after I put that issue down.  From Hornet’s realization of just how dangerous The Plutonian could be with the uttering of one single name to the horrifying price the hero paid to ensure our planet’s safety, it made sure that I’d be on the edge of my seat waiting for the next issue.  And, well, it comes out tomorrow and I’m on the edge of my seat!

Other Picks: Brightest Day #13, Secret Six #27, Red Hood Lost Days #6, Superboy #1, Amazing Spider-Man #641, Avengers Academy #6, Generation Hope #1, Ozma of Oz #1, Wolverine #3, X-Men To Serve and Protect #1, Scarlet #3