‘Gunslinger Spawn #1’ Review

Writer: Alex Kot / Artist: Philip Tan / Image Comics

I didn’t know Spawn comics were even still being made. As an elder millennial, the thought of a whole other generation that has been born, graduated high school, gone to college and is eligible to vote in America….having the opportunity to enjoy Spawn made me light up like a Tron helmet. I couldn’t wait to crack Gunslinger Spawn #1. After opening the aforementioned comic, I realize that there are some things from my childhood that should live on like (in the context of this review) “takesie backsies.” And there are some relics of the 90s that should stay buried in their time capsule like Spawn. All of this to say Gunslinger Spawn #1 is not a good comic book.

To its credit, Issue #1 is a gorgeous comic. Philip Tan has not lost a single step in his obvious channeling of the legendary Todd McFarlane. Tan goes out of his way to dive deep into his extensive tool kit of skills to invoke the best parts of 90s Image books including the attention to detail in every panel. I expected nothing but excellence from the hands/imagination that gave us such gorgeous visuals in Green Lantern and Black Science. So, it goes almost without saying that the book is absolutely beautiful to look at. But after that, very little about Gunslinger Spawn is entertaining…even in the nostalgic way. It’s actually very much a representation of its original generation in the obnoxiousness of the script and unlikeable quality of its characters. Even if y…