The end of the world, or at least the collapse of society as we know it, is a subject beloved by fiction writers across all genres and mediums of story telling. It can have all kinds of consequences, ranging from life on a scorched planet embroiled in an endless war with a race of underground dwelling monsters - to a world where lifestyle choices have become limited to either living life as an organic battery for a machine race with your mind trapped in virtual reality, or hanging out underground in the real world with sweaty raves seemingly the only form of entertainment. For Frank Sudden - The end of the world has arguably been a positive change in The Last Driver by C.S Baker , illustrated by Shaky Kane & published by Dead Canary Comics
Frank Sudden is a man for whom the end of civilisation, brought about by the inexplicable emergence of gigantic monsters all over the world, has been a liberating experience - No longer tied to the drudgery of his former life he can now drive the open road in a sweet car and try to enjoy the new state of the world as much as possible.
Frank’s, appearance and demeanour and self styled methods for getting by in a monster ridden wasteland channel the greatest action heroes of the 80s and 90s the simplest parallels to draw would be to the likes of Mad Max or Duke Nukem (who by extension is John Nada from They Live & Ash from Evil Dead) but I’d be amiss to label him a simple amalgamation of or tribute to these characters. While the influences can be seen in the way our hero comes to terms with his situation & pursues a set of simpler goals that become all the more important when modern societal concerns of your retirement income and cholesterol level are rendered moot by the concentration of ferocious pterodactyls you’re now likely to encounter, it’s his interaction with the world where we see some of the greatest unique features of this hero. Delightfully ignorant or dismissive of any wider significance anyone feels he may have to the world, Frank is not out to end tyranny, save the world or even any people in it particularly. Neither is he the eternal loner, haunted by memories of his past and just seeking survival and solitude - He’s a guy making the best of it, who likes BBQ, beer, smokes, a fast car and cheerleaders, He’s neither the good guy who kicks the bad guys’ asses or the bad guy who fights the worse guys, he’s very deliberately just the guy...
In terms of the story while I’m sure with enough analysis there’s a case to be made here for the story’s allegorical value in illustrating the fragile nature of morality and the social construction of our desires which without the governance of society would look quite different to what we all tell each other (and perhaps more importantly ourselves) - Such as description would no doubt invite cries of the term “Wanky” and as such in the spirit of the character and story itself it’s better to take the book at it’s own face value, as the story of a man living in a Kaiju filled desert of death and destruction, but still having a bloody good time!
Visually it’s a striking book, shying away from neither violence and gore or sexual content, while certainly not a comic for children it stops short of the type of content you find in more extreme alternative comics like Prison Pit - This is not to The Last Drivers detriment however as it’s able to deliver content including sex and violence without risking turning off the wider audience that other comics which really push the shock elements run the risk of doing. Colouring also plays a strong role throughout the book and I was particularly fond of the use of contrasting background colouring which is used effectively in several panels to set the tone of a scene or give the foreground action some additional kick, blood from monster kills seems to splash between panels and splash pages are well used in providing a sense of scale.
All in all - A joyfully irreverent take on a world beyond the Thunderdome - With less lamenting for a lost family and more monstercide than you can shake a comically oversized gun at - Give it a read!
You can follow publishers Dead Canary comics @DeadCanaryComic for news on new upcoming books from their lines or writer of The Last Driver Christopher Baker @csbakercomics
