Review: Gumshoe City
From Markosia
A new graphic novel from Markosia, Gumshoe City, is out now. You can buy it in print or digital format. Here are some of my thoughts on this collection of crime capers.
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In the colorful world of Gumshoe City, every resident is a detective. You might even recognize a couple of them!
Of course this means when a mystery appears, a few toes will be stepped on, some fingers will be pointed, and occasionally someone will end up dead.
Meatball Matthews is a detective specializing in all things meaty. He’s forced to journey out of his element and confront old beefs when his best friend disappears, leaving a dead body behind.
Erica Lüscanon is the latest in a long line of hard-boiled detectives that take the law into their own hands. Unfortunately for everyone involved, she hates breaking the rules! In her attempt to prove that you don’t need to flip a car to be a hero, she just might solve a decades old mystery that’s plagued her life.
Written by Winston Gambro and illustrated by Michael Lee Harris
I found this an entertaining read right away. It brilliantly combines some classic tropes, comedy, and good old-fashioned detective work.
Well, kind of.
The first story, featuring Meatball Matthews, takes us on an excellent ride around the city. We get some colourful characters and different areas, including the excellent parts and not-so-nice parts! With some classic noir commentary underpinning the story, this is a fantastic detective story which combines a good mystery with many layers of comedy and slapstick - perfect for me!
Erica Lüscanon is a different character, and I enjoyed the legacy-type aspect of it all. This was a faster-moving story with some larger-than-life characters and some fun elements.
Both of these stories, as well as the short stories of ancillary characters, are excellent. They take on some well-known characters and tropes and put them in some great comedic positions. The mysteries themselves aren’t simple and have some good thinking behind them.
The artwork brilliantly combines noir aspects with the comedy in the story. The colouring was well done, with some brilliant tones and colour choices throughout the stories. There are some fun panels and big action panels to get your teeth into.
Sitting down to read this was fantastic and the type of book that I would look forward to reading again.
I love the name meatball Matthews.