RECOMMENDED: "The Humans" #1 (Image Comics)
In the 1950s they said that putting a monkey on a comicbook cover helps sales. If this concept was still true, then Keenan Marshall Keller’s & Tom Neely’s “The Humans” would have to be a smash hit. Not only does it have simians on the cover, but every character in the comic is portrayed as an ape. An early 1970s biker gang ape.
This is a great looking scene, thanks to Tom Neely’s clean and stylized art and the beautiful toned-down colors by Kristina Collantes. These colors really are a perfect match for the art and help give the book a unique look. When the fight wraps up, we are presented an interlude that shows another member of the Humans, who was long thought dead, returning to his gang. If the bonus materials are to be believed, he is just returning from Vietnam. And if that means we will get to see some apes in Vietnam flashbacks, I am all for it. 
The Humans ride. All images on this article page are © Image Comics.
Alright, so if you read the above synopsis of this first issue, you will probably see that not a lot of stuff really happens in #1. So why are we recommending “The Humans” #1? Why not wait until there’s more issues out? Well, it has to do with HOW the story is told, and the whole presentation of this comic. “The Humans” have more style than most of the comics out this week put together. The apes thing aside, you could probably describe this comic as “1970s biker gang is fighting another biker gang”, in the same way that you could describe the movie The Warriors as “street gang is running from other street gangs”. In both cases you would completely miss the essence of the works in question. 
The Skabbs.
This comic oozes its own thick, unmistakable atmosphere. You could skip the caption at the beginning that tells you when and where this takes place, and you would have no problem identifying this as being about 1970s West Coast biker subculture. Apes or no apes, this might be as close to perfectly portraying that style and scene as modern comics can get. The fact that everybody is an ape here just makes the whole thing a little less dark and a lot more fun to look at (the character designs are all pretty great). The comic itself is just part of the presentation, though. The ‘bullpen’ pages (titled “Apeshit”) are ran by Karn, one of the Humans. He has a big scar on his face, and he’s as rude and vulgar as you’d expect a stereotypical hardcore biker to be. There’s a silly ad for the Human’s Fan Club (which you can join if you hate society enough). The authors also have their little corner in the extra pages, and they too are depicted as apes, documenting the gang’s life. So everything here is in-universe and sticking to the theme at all times. If that wasn’t enough, there are two songs appearing during this issue. These songs have actually been recorded and are available at a Soundcloud page that will eventually have all of the book’s songs. So this comic has an appropriate soundtrack, and whether you like it or not, I think that’s an awesome extra touch. I love this kind of stuff because it really shows how much love the creators put into their work. When done well –and this is done well– this kind of thing is fantastic (you may remember another indie title I recommended here in the past, “Vreckless Vrestlers”, that also had a lot of great extras going for it). You may think this kind of stuff should be separated from reviewing the comic itself, but it really helps build immersion in the comic and its world, so what the hell do you know. 
A nice action scene, with very effective coloring. Click to enlarge.
Since I am recommending this comic based on the strength of its first issue, I can’t help but address some mild controversy around it. During the party that takes place after Mojo’s funeral, there’s a brief scene where Doc, one of the Humans, is seen receiving a blowjob behind a tree, as his brother goes mental running around naked in the background. The blowjob thing seemed to irk some people, as they viewed it as sexist. While I certainly think comics have more than their fair share of titles that are sexist and objectify women in all kinds of terrible ways, I can’t say I see this one as sexist. This is a brief scene of a fat biker ape getting consensual oral sex from his female ape friend. While it is as gross as it sounds, I don’t think there’s any sexism at play here. I don’t think this was played for any kind of eroticism, you know? Or that the creators tried to use the fellatio giving ape to draw people in. I mean, these are apes from a biker gang. These are the 1970s, there’s drugs and sex everywhere… What am I missing here? I am an open-minded guy, so if you can tell me why this is sexist and why I'm wrong in the comments, I will gladly hear you out. Seriously. We are civilized adults, we can surely get to the bottom of this simian oral sex thing together. Anyway, this is a short little scene that I don’t think is worth all this brouhaha. Don’t let it turn you off getting the comic. “The Humans” #1 is a very promising first issue and it seems Image has yet another great title in their catalogue, further cementing their position as the best major comic publisher nowadays. Keller, Neely and Collantes all put a lot of good work into this comic, and I have high hopes for the future issues being just as good. There’s certainly a lot of potential here. Make sure to pick this up if you’re looking for a good new comic that’s unlike anything else out now. 
Bobby feels things.
Have you read “The Humans” #1? What did you think of it? Do you agree with Editor’s enthusiastic take on it? Where do you stand on the ape oral sex topic? Can you school our writer on why he’s wrong? Please do so in the comments section below! 
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