Publisher: Titan Comics (Hard Case Crime)
Writer: Charles Ardai
Penciller: Ace Continuado
Inker: Jose Zapata
Colourist: Asifur Rahman
Letterer: David Leach
Release Date: 27th February 2024

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Titan Comics recently expanded their Gun Honey universe by introducing an intriguing new character to the proceedings in the form of Dahlia Racers, a professional “fixer” who steps in to help femme fatale weapon smuggler (and one of her exes) Joanna Tan and her partner in crime Brook Barrow escape from the intelligence agents who are hot on their tail by elaborately faking their deaths.  Next week sees the release of the collected trade paperback of the four-part limited series, and we’re here to let you know whether it’s worth picking up while you’re waiting for the next “main” Gun Honey series to be released.

Series writer Charles Ardai is clearly having an absolute blast with his new creation in Dalhia Racers, and wears his inspirations proudly on his sleeve here, from Modesty Blaise to Mission Impossible. Racers herself is an fascinating addition to the mythos, oozing sexuality and confidence while always making sure to stay two steps ahead (sometimes even three!) of her opposition, although I’ve never personally been a huge fan of the “master of disguise” trope where she can make people (and herself) look like other people, particularly in the comic book medium when things can sometimes become unnecessarily confusing.

Thankfully, Adrai keeps things throwing relatively smoothly here, delivering plenty of twists and turns alongside an brilliant new villain in the form of Claride, an eccentric, slightly twisted female assassin tasked with tracking Joanna and Brook down. For my money, and as interesting as Racers clearly is, it’s this new adversary who hooked me the most here, always keeping her white lace gloves immaculately clean as she utilises every weapon at her disposal to track our two fugitives down.

The pencil-and-ink team of Ace Continuado and Jose Zapata deliver a slightly more realistic aesthetic than the first two Gun Honey series’, but still manage to pack the pages with plenty of the familiar thrills, spills and, yes, nudity that fans will have come to expect by now. Despite Joanna herself taking a bit of a back seat here, the sexuality is still very much front and center, and whether it’s Racers herself or any of the other femme fatale supporting cast… well, let’s just say that I’m surprised Titan managed to find four pages completely devoid of nudity for the preview below. I mean, the final issue features a shootout at a nudist retreat for god’s sakes!

The conclusion is immensely satisfying on a lot of different levels, and sets the scene for Tan and Barrow to pick things up again when the next volume of Gun Honey hits the shelves, hopefully later this year.  And ultimately, while it’s perhaps not quite as strong as the main series, and is maybe a tad convoluted in places, this spinoff story is well worth a look if sexy, twist-and-turny espionage fun is your thing.

Rating: 3.5/5.

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[PREVIEW ARTWORK – CLICK TO ENLARGE]

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The writer of this piece was: Craig Neilson-Adams (aka Ceej)
Article Archive: Ceej Says
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