Comic Review: Giant Days #46

Giant Days #46

BOOM! Studios

Writer: John Allison

Artists: Max Sarin & Jeremy Lawson

There is foul play afoot in The Danger Nebula! Giant Days #46 takes a step away from the life and drama of the characters to deliver a fun mystery featuring Susan’s abilities as a private investigator. The end result is a funny issue that satirizes noir stories in the best possible way.

The comic book shop that Esther works in has a shoplifting problem, and the police aren’t much help. The shop hires Susan, who spends much of the issue planning and implementing her sting operation to catch the perpetrator. John Allison is known for inserting ridiculous, larger than life moments into Giant Days to add a bit of extra life and flair to the series, and that certainly doesn’t change here. Throughout the issue, Susan narrates the story through noir-inspired monologues. These scenes are genuinely funny, with offbeat lines mixed into the “serious” lines.

The issue serves as a great moment to further develop Susan, who hasn’t gotten much of the spotlight recently. Susan’s confidence in her abilities come off as genuine, as she shoes an impressive amount of deductive reasoning (and even less impressive athletic ability.). A conversation between her and Graham about pipes leads to an especially entertaining chase sequence that is made possible due to Graham’s handy knowledge. Everything culminates into one Susan’s best issues yet.

Max Sarin’s art allows for the noir panels to shine here, with clever use of blacks and whites to get the reader in the mood. Appropriate angles catch the best of every scene, and the lack of color juxtaposed with the silly dialogue makes for an entertaining read. I found myself snickering throughout the issue due to just how silly everything was. Sarin’s art emphasizes that despite the somewhat serious situation, there is no real danger. Susan fully embraces the situation, making the issue that much more entertaining.

Giant Days #46 is a satisfying “side story” that is both delightful and hilarious. While most of the characters are left out in this one, Susan gets the spotlight that she has deserved for some time.