You know it’s a good week when D4VE is released! I couldn’t wait to dive into this issue and once again I was not disappointed. One thing that has surprised me about this series is the consistency in its release. No offense to MonkeyBrain or its creators, but very few titles release as consistently as D4VE. But hey, more D4VE is never a bad thing. I’m going to start again by saying the 5COTTY is a kickass character. He seemed a little toned down in the last issue, but with this issue he’s back to be annoying and awesome and touching himself… in public. The father and son get stuck in traffic again as the aliens have begun kicking all the robots’ asses and none of them are fighting back. Two cops show up to terminate D4VE and the guys are forced to run… until 5COTTY kicks their asses. D4VE can’t help but want to yell at him, but he does procure a flying scooter.
Meanwhile the alien leaders head to D4VE’s old job to gain access to the 3arth’s core. D4VE’s friend is a big push over and actually just walks them right on in with his access. 5COTTY and D4VE make it to T1N4’s house, but not before getting into another fight this time with aliens. D4VE drops off their kid and gives them all an anti-virus as he heads off to do something… something stupid more than likely.
Sadly there is only one more issue in the series. I’m seriously going to miss this book, but with the way the world is built it only makes sense for it to end. I’m hoping that it’s going to be dynamite and so far the creators haven’t let me down.
The story continues to be amazingly paced and plotted. Even here in the second to last issue Ryan Ferrier is world building and developing the characters. Even T1N4 no longer feels like a vague character, but an actual caring sister. Especially after 5COTTY hits on her.
I can’t talk about the story without talking about the comedy. Hands down this is the funniest comic book series out there. Sorry everyone, but Ferrier has set the bar by speaking my language… or should I be sad that I talk like D4VE in real life. Nah, that makes us both awesome! Seriously though, I laugh a lot when reading this series. The jokes stay with me like a good episode of Archer and that’s saying something. Even though it’s funny, the story still has many layers and its true strength is the fact that you could remove the humor and still enjoy this world and the characters that Ferrier has created.
Of course the man who brings everything to life is the super talented Valentin Ramon. Something I’ve never taken the time to talk about is Ramon’s covers. The solid color and solo character placed in the center is very iconic. If this was a print comic it would stand out on any shelf and really all of the covers are poster worthy. I would even settle for a fold out poster with all of the covers on it. Ramon’s artwork has never dipped on this series. The glorious details that he displayed on the first issue are still here on the fourth and if anything each issue is a little better than the last. Ramon is a fantastic visual storyteller and brings out all of the humor from Ferrier’s script.
I have a ton of respect for both creators. Ferrier’s story and humor is unlike anything I’ve read in comics and Ramon’s artwork is like looking upon mini-masterpieces. This series may be drawing to a close, but I hope that this partnership continues to another project. It would be a shame to lose this chemistry.
As always I will point out that for four fucking dollars you can catch up on D4VE and not regret it. Each issue is actually longer than the average MonkeyBrain title so really you’re getting a full comic for a buck. Meaning for the price of an average comic with a twenty-two page count you can get four… how the hell are you reading this review still? Go buy the comic.
Score: 5/5
Writer: Ryan Ferrier Artist: Valentin Ramon Publisher: MonkeyBrain Comics Price: $0.99 Release Date: 4/16/14 Format: Mini-Series, Digital Link to Buy: http://cmxl.gy/1qlB4iG