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REVIEW: Gene Simmons' Zipper #3 by Children of the Grave's Waltz and Maloney
Gene Simmons Zipper #3
Review by Dave Baxter, posted February 03, 2008
Words: Tom Waltz
Pencils: Casey Maloney
Inks: Marc Rueda
Colors: Dusty Yee
Publisher: IDW Publishing
Price: $3.99
If I had to choose one word to describe Zipper —a new retro sci-fi 80’s adventure starring an inter-dimensional alien in leather and chains and, yes, zippers—that word would be “engaging”.
This is a book that can’t help but draw you in, into its world of classic Terminator come-with-me-if-you-want-to-live action and decidedly intelligent characterizations. Zipper is a stranger in a strange land, a being known as “Denizen Xeng Ral”, whose dimension-hopping safety suit just happens to look like something out of an underground S&M club. He’s a runaway from a perfect, “Uni-Mind” type collective, a group that simply cannot stand one of their own (one of themselves ) to do what they flat out won’t. So Zipper flees to Earth, to stake out his independence, and encounters a small-time drug dealer (Ronnie J) alongside the lady cop (Officer Miki) that’s always close behind. Zipper’s very presence endangers his human cohorts, however, and so Denizen Ral moves to evade those his “own selves” have dispatched to bring him back, while also discovering life and thought outside of his one-mind home culture.
The first two issues of Zipper were huge surprises: they were brilliantly conceived, skillfully paced, the dialogue completely believable whether lines from an alien being, a disgruntled street kid, or a smart mouthed cop. Mixing in weighty themes such as community vs. independence, morality vs. necessity, with dashes of critique on media culture, fiction tropes, and more, alongside grisly blood-soaked action and intense high-concept sci-fi conceits, Tom Waltz makes it clear from the get-go that he’s brought his “A” game to Zipper . But issue #3 is where the magic really sparks, the cards fall into place, your choice of metaphor here: four hunters sent from Xeng Ral’s dimension at last attack, and everyone is caught up in high-flying battle, and it is one goddamn humdinger of a throwdown.
I knew Waltz could pen clean dialogue, and overall, I knew that he could set-up detailed activity within a broader range of action to flesh out the characters (see Children of the Grave GN for prime example). But here he outdoes himself, moving from blow to breathtaking blow in flawless step, from moment to moment with believable flow, with flawless continuity of action and consequence, and, as always, his characters and their motivations in full command throughout. Even Waltz’s dangerously poor-choice subplot of a prestigious militant religious wing (inspired by Scientology, no doubt) moving to make war against the coming of the first true alien—possibly a poor pick on Waltz’s part due to the subject matter’s overuse and general unemotional and therefore unsympathetic sector—kicks into high gear here, and proves, shockingly, to be as captivating as the rest of it, due to Waltz’s fine-tuned ability to craft even such unlikable and unapproachable characters as nevertheless authentic, and therefore, frankly, terrifying.
Waltz is accompanied by Children of the Grave cohort Casey Maloney, who pulls penciling duties alongside inker Marc Rueda and colorist Dusty Yee. The trio allow the book an effortless feel, as though, even if only at issue #3, it's long ago hit “its stride", sweetly barreling forward with long-ago gained momentum. Maloney’s somewhat liquid lines don’t, when the action is absent, seem like they’ll do justice to the violence when it inevitably comes (and Zipper is a story where you know violence is forever a-comin’!). But his battle sequence this ish shut the mouths of every would-be critic to think thus: there’s a double-page splash here that I will have as a poster! Maloney is tremendous with the subtleties, and now he’s gone and shown he's got the chops to display jaw-dropping action sequences. If he never manages a book as good as this issue again, allow me to say: bra-freakin’-vo, Mr. Maloney. Well done. Good show. Good show.
Three issues down, the story moving into unputdownable territory; Zipper is starting to worm its way into my psyche as one of those “cult” favorites. One of those Jim Shooter or Steven Grant books that will forever be remembered as the very best, by those who bother to notice it at all. Can’t recommend this book enough. It is indeed one of the best on the shelves currently. Most of you are likely waiting for the trade on this one, and if you are, please remember to pick the trade up! I get the feeling that this one will read even better collected as a single package like that, which gives my heart palpitations just thinking about it (an even better Zipper?!? Be still my beating…or, well, no, don’t be still, but…you get the idea…).
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