I had my reservations about Skullkickers #1 but it won me over in the end. It was my first comic review for Big Shiny Robot! and I was pretty happy for it to be a good one. That’s why it seemed natural for me to review issue #2 (10/20/10) as well. Unfortunately, the second issue just doesn’t hold up to the first.

While I’m still liking Jim Zubkavich’s writing, there just isn’t anything happening in the new book. The art by Edwin Huang (lines) and Misty Coats (colors) is trying to keep it interesting, but it can only go so far. Ultimately, while still having some of the things I enjoyed from Issue #1, it just doesn’t have enough new stuff to excite me for #3.

Issue #2 starts once again with a fight scene. It actually picks up right where #1 left off but it took me a few panels to figure that out. Blame my poor memory, not the comic. And again the colors make this interesting, starting with a cool palette then shifting to warmer tones after a couple of pages.

Something I found very strange was the use of bizarre “narrative” passages in places where I would expect sound effects. This is hard to describe, but there are times it almost seems like a video game commentator is telling you what’s happening even as the panel shows it. For example, as the dwarf squares off with a zombie-beast-thing he holds up his axes and the panel says “weapons ready” next to each of them. It’s bizarre and I can’t decide if I like it or not.

Some thematic returns are the unconventional battle tactics and the sassy dialogue. In Issue #1 a werewolf is killed with a silver spoon. This time it’s an axe swipe to the testicles, a severed head and a cooking pot that get the improv honors. The dialogue, what there is of it, is humorous. Once again the dwarf gets the best line in the book: “Whores and Gold! That smells great!”

This issue still hasn’t revealed the names of the main characters, but it has given you something to call them – a necessity if you want your readers to talk about the book. The dwarf is called “Shorty” for obvious reasons. The larger human is called “Baldy” for equally obvious reasons. In a few panels Baldy’s appearance has a striking resemblance to the Age of Apocalypse version of Marvel’s Juggernaut.

And… that’s about it. Battle, quick dialogue scene, battle, weak cliffhanger ending. If you like splash panel fights you might enjoy it. I’d like a little more depth. Alright, a lot more depth. In fact, the most entertaining thing I found in this issue is the “Call and Response” section at the end. I think this would be a letters section if they had received any letters. Only the hints left in this area give me any promise of good things to come for the title.

Being pretty lenient with my scores, I am tempted to give this book a two of five based on benefit of the doubt. Maybe it’s a just a weak link to a great third part. But I can’t do it. So… one of five fantasy story tropes – and most of that one is just for potential.