Undercard
It’s far too rare here we take a look into the realm of small-press and self published comics. So I’m really glad to get the chance to offer a review of Undercard, a new boxing comic written by Chris Gumprich and illustrated by Dennis Culver. The book – which the two published – follows a washed up boxer who was never good enough to be more than target practice for the big names in the ring. Thus, he’s the undercard.
The illustrations are black and white, and are never quite so pretty again as the first two-page splash, which shows the protagonist’s face being hit so hard he’s momentarily disfigured. It’s a beautiful snapshot of punishment, replete with wavy lines of pain like a blocky, abstract incarnation of Peter Parker’s Spider Sense. The thick black linework and lack of shading exaggerates the scene, which is the intent. It’s a very, very good illustration, and by itself makes the $5 cover price worth it.
From there, the undercard, Joe, is further pummeled in a two-page spread of 12 square panels. The setup is simple and, again, effective, allowing each of the miniature drawings to build up to and then deliver a burst of action. And until the last of those panels, there’s not a single word. Afterword, we see the heady winner dance in the ring to the crowd’s adulations. Joe ducks out to no one’s notice.
Once patched up, Joe is cut from boxing and dumped, and we’re left to wonder what will become of this never-was. Sadly, that’s the literal truth. The issue, at 22 pages, stops right there, having really only just dipped a toe into what seems a fascinating world. Because except for those die-hard boxing fans (if any remain), none of us ever hear or learn a thing about the little guys in the sport. This is fertile, untouched ground Gumprich and Culver are wandering onto. So the major disappointment is having such a small first taste.
There are a few other issues here. Culver’s style is so well suited to the boxing scenes that he’s a natural for the book, but some of his scenes outside the ring fall flat. Gumprich does a great job with dialogue and not overpowering the book with captions, etc. But this first issue is also as decompressed as anything you’ll see from Brian Michael Bendis. I know it’s not superheroes, but a bit more could be going on here.
Those are minor gripes though. And for a first issue published only of their own effort, the two are off to a great start.
To order Undercard, check out the official site.
[…] Some weeks back, I posted this review of Undercard, a new self-published book written by Chris Gumprich and illustrated by Dennis Culver. Gumprich, who can be added to the list of creators who’ve encountered our site via Google, and Culver were nice enough to answer a few questions on the making of their book, which takes an amazingly obvious yet completely unexplored path into the heart of boxing, a genre that’s been done, done and done. […]