Maybe it’s a British thing, but I just don’t “get” Tank Girl. (And this comes from someone who hasn’t seen the supposedly dreadful movie.) This became painfully evident when reading the rather crudely titled THE CREAM OF TANK GIRL, a hardcover retrospective put together by the comic book character’s creators, Alan C. Martin and Jamie Hewlett.
Following a fanzine birth, Tank Girl was a regular, late-’80s feature in the pages of DEADLINE, a UK publication that — from the looks of the many color covers reprinted here — looked like a cool mix of comics and music, occasionally with a free cassette tape glued to the front.
DEADLINE had a counterculture, F-you feel to it, which made it the perfect home for Tank Girl’s punk-rock sensibilities. The character sports a shaved head; wears little up top, save for a bra; and has a mutant kangaroo for a boyfriend. Martin’s writing is sly and purposely unpolished; Hewlett’s art exhibits a manic rush of anarchy. Whether the jokes and scenarios make sense to you is purely subjective. To me, they don’t, but I lived half a world away from their references and surroundings.
That’s not to say CREAM is a bad book. For one thing, it’s not a compilation of the Tank Girl comics. Several examples are there, yes (along with a bawdy pirate parody), but this volume is a look back at the origins and evolution of the character, from underground and indie success to mainstream co-op, and back again. From that aspect — and given that Martin and Hewlett are steering the boat — it should be a no-brainer for the strip’s considerable cult following. —Rod Lott
Related posts:
- Showcase Presents The Haunted Tank: Volume 1
- Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her
- Girl Trouble: The True Saga of Superstar Gloria Trevi and the Secret Teenage Sex Cult That Stunned the World
- Odd Girl Out
- Serpent Girl
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
“Greasing the Pinata” also sounds vaguely crude.