Jack is still stuck in the Inescapable Hell. The way that he escapes is quite ingenious and very Jack Burton. I'm not sure how I feel about the anthropomorphic demons that can speak perfect English. In the movie there were only two demons and both of them could only make noises (unless Lo Pan talked though it). I enjoyed the first half of the issue where Jack finagles his way out of hell, in one of those rare moments where it looks like he knows what he's doing (it's very in character with the movie version which I like). The second half, where Jack ends up in the only bar in hell (the hell of minor annoyances) unfortunately wasn't that entertaining. Another of those common denominator gags that just makes you sigh instead of laugh.
This issue is a super quick read. There is much less dialogue than previous issues and the art is much bigger. The backgrounds are very bare and give you nothing to return for, so most of the re-read value comes from the characters and situations. The characters look particularly sketchy this time and there are only two big situations that come up.
I'm glad to get in and see what Jack Burton gets up to, anything that adds to the mythos is great. But therein lies the problem of messing with something from childhood, a lot of the additions are actually subtractions. The reason I didn't enjoy the second half of this issue is because I felt like I could have written it when I was a kid. The situations and characters feel childish.
I read recently that Fred Van Lente will be taking the reins for the next arc, which could be interesting as I'm really enjoying his work on Conan the Avenger. The quick-sell of that arc is 'Jack in 2015', I'm not judging it, but I am worried. Also Rob Guillory, of Chew (Which I adore), has done a variant cover that I might have to order as a poster.
I don't think I would want the entire series drawn in the Chew style, but the series could take some inspiration from how it is put together. Better backgrounds, extra sight-gags, expanding the mythos with cool new things and decent call-backs. Rob has shown in Chew that he can draw in a variety of styles well, so I'm sure he could make something that felt like the movie.
Please BOOM! make this so good I can scream about it from the 'hell of judgmental reviewers'.
Score: 2/5
Big Trouble in Little China #10 Writer: Eric Powell Artist: Brian Churilla Colorist: Gonzalo Duarte Publisher: Boom! Studios Price: $3.99 Release Date: 29 April 2015 Format: Ongoing, Print/Digital