Review – Jacked TP (Vertigo Comics)

June 1, 2016

3–4 minutes

Publisher: Vertigo Comics
Writer: Eric Kripke
Artwork: John Higgins
Release Date: 1st June, 2016

With great power comes great responsibility, right? Well… kinda.

Meet Josh Jaffe, a neurotic, porn-addicted, hemorrhoid and acid reflux-plagued family man going through one hell of a midlife crisis. After spending a lonely night Googling himself (so to speak), only to discover that he hasn’t made any significant impact on the wold, Josh decides that he needs a little extra boost, so he turns to online smart pill “Jacked” in the vain hope that it will help snap him out of his funk. As it turns out, the pill does a hell of a lot more than that, giving Josh ridiculous – but temporary – super-strength, and sending his world spiraling downwards into a parade of violence, addiction and the dizzying highs and crippling lows of being both a “hero” and an addict.

Kripke does a fantastic job throughout this volume with his narrative flourishes, such as ending each chapter with a brief flash-forward to a shocking event which takes place in the next issue alongside the words “but THIS shit… is coming soon”. Josh’s inner narration is also a thing of beauty, tackling his deep-rooted inner neurosis as well as rollercoaster of emotions he experiences as the Jacked “powers” rapidly come and go with each pill he pops. Judging from Kripke’s foreword to this collected volume, there’s something of an autobiographical aspect to Josh Jaffe, so it should come no surprise that the “Supernatural” creator displays such a firm, confident hand with the characterisation of his somewhat unfortunate leading man.

As the series progresses, it’s difficult not to find yourself being drawn into Jaffe’s story, rooting for this poor schmuck who only really wants to make his mark on the world and become somebody that his wife and kids can look up to. There’s humour along the way, such as the sequence where Josh has a fairly bad trip (to say the least) after taking some expired Jacked, or the moment where his family trip to “General Mayhem’s Public Pizza Emporium” is cut short when his withdrawals lead to him puking on a man in a bear costume, but for the most part this is a fairly dark, violent and tense affair.

Vertigo regular John Higgins’ artwork is brash, loud and in-your-face from the very beginning. The frequent violent moments are embraced with gusto, with every face-caving punch and blood-splattering impact being rendered in glorious detail. No “wham!” or “pow!” sound effects here, folks. This is the real deal. While Higgins is perhaps best known for his work as a colourist, this volume proves unequivocally that he has some major artistic chops, and the amount of emotion he manages to pack into Josh’s face as his story unfolds is truly commendable. The action sequences are fluid and kinetic, and the quieter, character-based beats are packed with expression and detail. This is a fantastic looking book, and when you couple Higgins’ stellar interiors with fellow Vertigo stalwart Glenn Fabry’s covers, you have an eye-catching visual package that fully complements Kripke’s razor-sharp script.

This series is classic Vertigo through and through; a brilliantly creative concept executed with flair, attitude and an irreverent sensibility that cuts right to its core. By turns funny, shocking, moving and ultimately satisfying, JACKED is a wonderfully self-contained story that takes a decidedly offbeat look at what it would really be like to have super powers. Highly recommended.

Rating: 4.5/5.

PREVIEW ARTWORK
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