Down, Set, Fight!

by Chad Bowers, Chris Sims, Scott Kowalchuk (Illustrator)

One man versus every mascot in professional sports—THEY WILL ALL BE PUNCHED! It’s kick-off time for this year’s most action-packed and hilarious comic! "Fearless" Chuck Fairlane was football’s fastest rising star, but his career came to a screeching halt when he was expelled from the league after goin’ HAM and causing the biggest brawl in the history of sports. Years later, Chuck has found peace as a high school football coach, until costumed mascots begin attacking him for seemingly no reason. Before long, Chuck's going to discover that you can't run away from the past—but you CAN punch it square in the face!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction, Sports, Humor, Young Adult, Football

152 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2014

About the author

Freelance comics writer. Country song come to life. SNAKE EYES: DEADGAME, X-MEN '92, SLEEPWALKER, PBS Comics, and plenty of other stuff

Reviews

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Fearless” Chuck Fairlane is a promising young football player, the best in his team, destined to become one of the all-time greats. Except his degenerate gambling father, Al, who pushed him to be the best, goes one step too far after a match, taunting his son and reminding him who made him what he is, and Chuck snaps. He hauls one off on one of the team’s mascots and then begins swinging at everyone. The incident becomes infamous and fighting team mascots becomes known as “fairlaning”. For Chuck, it ended his football career, though he was able to bring his dad down, sending him away to prison for running a gambling syndicate. 10 years later and Chuck’s a high school football coach - and suddenly mascots are showing up in his life again, demanding he fight them, coincidentally just as his dad is released from prison…

Down Set Fight is an original story in that I haven’t read a comic, or seen a movie, TV show, or anything - about a guy punching mascots, but you quickly realise while reading it why that is: it’s really boring to read. A guy punching mascots is not an interesting story, and trying to present it as something that has the entire United States mesmerised, to the point where they lose interest in the football itself, is stretching belief too far because when you see the fights themselves, they’re extremely underwhelming to read.

The story then switches from Chuck punching mascots to him suddenly going on the run and somehow evading a nationwide police search for months! Yeah… no. We’re supposed to believe this guy’s somehow Batman or someone? He’s a high school coach who’s good at football, not the Punisher! Also, defending yourself against a lunatic with knives coming at you in a restaurant does not mean you have to go on the lam.

Nonsensical story aside, the book is filled with cliches. Remember in Jerry Maguire those cutscenes of Dicky Fox’s soundbites? In Down Set Fight, instead of Dicky, you’ve got Vince Lombardi quotes at the beginning of each chapter. Think he’ll show up in some kind of hallucinatory scene later on? You betcha! Remember that George Clooney movie, Out of Sight, where he went on the run and was chased by hot agent Jennifer Lopez? We’ve got the same character here with Agent Molly Harrison. How about a sad scene where there’s rain at a funeral? Yup, there’s one of those scenes here as well. Need to a character to explain themselves? Have an FBI Agent show up to make you spout exposition! Also that subplot about Molly thinking Chuck was running an underground gambling ring was so half-assed, you could tell it was there purely to put Chuck and Molly together, not because it made any sense. How about having the bad guy show up at the end and explain his diabolical plot? Check! Where’s the imagination or the effort to come up with something different?

I’m not sure what the tone of the book is. Chuck and Al’s relationship is supposed to be taken seriously, I think, because Chuck finally standing up to his dad is presented as this big moment in the character’s life, but the whole story is written as a joke that this “serious” scene sits very awkwardly among more blatantly comic scenes. Al himself is a difficult character to take seriously because he’s so one-dimensional. This is a guy who sets bear traps on his lawn for his son to lift his knees up running, rather than use tires like other coaches. Or blindfolding his son and making him run across traffic. And then when his wife dies, he doesn’t go to the funeral and forces his son to train instead. He couldn’t be written as more cartoonishly evil! Realistically, Chuck would’ve stood up to him years before but doesn’t because that’s not in the script, because that’s the big “emotional” finale.

Down Set Fight’s premise is really too thin to work as a full length graphic novel. A disgraced football player punching mascots and then punching his one-dimensional evil dad is not enough to fill 150 pages, it’s more like a B-plot to a larger story - what that story would be (maybe a satire on modern America?), I’m not entirely sure, but by itself? A total snoozefest. None of the characters seem remotely real and the story is tedious most of the time. By the way, Chris Sims AND Chad Bowers, really? It took 2 guys to write this drek? Scott Kowalchuk’s art is definitely the highlight of the book, he does his best to make Sims/Bowers’ clunky script work and many of the mascot designs were good. Maybe if you’re a wrestling fan, Down Set Fight is for you - it’s about a man punching multiple men in silly costumes - but generally I wouldn’t recommend this forgettable book to anyone, it’s simply not a good comic.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

You'd think this would be hilarious. Fight Club with mascots. Instead it has this dark tone with hardly any jokes. I was just bored with it.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is dumb. It's not worth the effort to say anything else.

[Justine Cucchi-Dietlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not gonna lie, I actually enjoyed this.

[Peter Derk · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've discovered something important about myself. Something that redeems my manhood.

Uh, if you're interested in the book review, it was alright. I THINK it was supposed to be funny, but the tone was dark and not really cartoonish enough for that. It came off more as just..not unfunny. The PREMISE is funny, punching out mascots, but there aren't a lot of laughs in between, and there's a sort of supervillain character that doesn't even make enough sense for a book where nothing makes sense.

Okay, back to my manhood.

I don't like sports. At all. I mean, I don't like watching sports. I don't follow sports. While I stay in shape and enjoy doing sporty stuff here and there, nothing is more unexciting to me than sports fandom.

Can I tell you something I saw tonight?

I walked home from the coffee shop, and it was dark. In the neighborhood, there was a guy sitting on his stoop. He was in a chair, but the chair faced into his living room. The TV was on, and he was watching baseball. At his feet was a wine bottle and a glass of red wine, and a small, portable TV with the same baseball game. The sound was low, and I couldn't figure out what the fuck was going on until I smelled cigar.

So this guy is enough of a sports fan that he sets up this whole situation so he can enjoy a cigar and red wine and watch a game. It was when I saw how far this man went that I realized how I'm not willing to go any distance at all for sports. Even if there were wine and cigars involved.

However, the good news, I really like sports movies. How this can be, I don't know. But in case you wanted a list of sports movies in a review of a graphic novel (I've really become expansive and gross on here, haven't I?), here we go:

-You Don't Know Bo
Awesome documentary on Bo Jackson. Bonus appearance by Chuck Klosterman. It's a solid movie, and it's one where a real-life athlete's behavior actually leaves you feeling good, but not in a sappy, overly-inspirational way.

-Warrior
I know, MMA is for douchey people. And I know, I shouldn't say "douchey." That's THEIR word they use for each other, not one I'm supposed to use. But it's great. Trust me, it's great.

-Rocky
So good. Slow, but not bloated.

-Bigger, Stronger, Faster
A doc about steroid use. It asks a question about whether or not steroids are really as bad as we've been told. I have to say, it made me ask some questions.

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Down. Set. Fight!' took what I thought would be a one note joke (mainly based on the cover) and actually turned it into an interesting story. It's about athletes and athlete parents. It's also about the bonds we have as family, and how unhealthy those can be.

When "Fearless" Chuck Fairlane is told to throw a game by his father for a bet, the consequences lead to Chuck beating up a mouthy mascot on the field, as well as all other comers to the fight, like the opposing team and his own. He walks away from the game and ten years later, we catch up with him as a high school football coach. Unbeknownst to him, there is a phenomenon called "fairlaning" that has team mascots starting fights. When one comes after Chuck, it starts him on a mission to find out what's behind it. Fortunately, the kind of cruel training regimen his father put him through has toughened Chuck to the point of superhuman strength.

It's funny and oddly touching. Chuck just wants to live his life and his father continually interferes. There is dark humor about parents of athletes here. The mascots are larger than life and comical. The art feels like a throwback to an earlier era in comic art and I liked it.

I was given a review copy of this graphic novel by Diamond Book Distributors and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Taylor Hohulin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, here's the deal. If you look at the cover of Down. Set. Fight!, you pretty much know what you're getting into. I'm surprised at the number of people who give this book bad ratings when the cover is A FOOTBALL PLAYER PUNCHING A MASCOT IN THE FACE. I don't know what else you'd expect.

The first half of the book plays things as straight-faced as you can when your story is about a retired football player being hunted down by mascots for various pro sports teams, but at the halfway point, the book really hits its stride.

I'm a big fan of action stories that don't take themselves too seriously and make things over-the-top for the sake of being over-the-top, and that's certainly what you get in Down. Set. Fight!

[Matt Brady · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always wanted to punch a mascot, just to see how it feels. According to this book, it feels pretty damn fun. Cool kinetic art style that reminded me a bit of 70's exploitation films an an entertaining story of a retired champion football player being hunted by every sports team mascot in North America. There's a small homage The Warriors and it's pretty apt, as it very much has that kind of feel, so if you like stuff like that, definitely check this out.

[Jack Lloyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about how sportsmanship is very important in sports and giving out life lessons about what happens when you don't be a fair athlete, But turned into a fiction comic book. I liked this book because i'm a athlete and it made be think about how it's wrong to be a sore loser and no one likes that. I also liked it because i like reading sports books. If you like reading sports books you would like this because it's teaching you a life lesson of what not to do while you in a game.

[Rex Hurst · Rating 2 out of 5]

he story of “Fearless” Chuck Fairlane, a once famous football star turned high-school coach. Thrown out of football because he clocked a beloved mascot in the kisser, Chuck is now being mysteriously attacked by mascots left and right. Despite the book’s ridiculous and often sidesplitting premise, the writers sneak in a surprisingly heartfelt story beats as Chuck knocks fuzzy teeth out of a mascot’s forever grin

[Ryan Papaserge · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, this was certainly a book I read. Felt like the plot was pretty sloppy and the resolution wasn't really earned. The premise was fun and I actually think a film adaptation would be quite good in the right hands -- think an R-rated, "Deadpool" style action comedy poking fun at the absurdity of the plot.

[Bryson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book! It allowed me to look into a fictional world and to see unrealistic scenarios. It was fun to read and there was an extremely large amount of drama, from football teams fighting to people getting arrested and being sent to jail. This book was a really nice fit for me because i love books that look like comic books with the pictures and how they're worded.

[Jake Tobber · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not what I expected, essentially this book teaches the wrong lessons about bullying. It feels like an extended fight scene of Peter and the Chicken from Family Guy. If you like that sort of churlish behavior in your books, you make enjoy this.

[Terri London Mabel · Rating 3 out of 5]

DRC recieved via NetGalley.

Might have to chalk this up to "I'm not the reader for this book." It's mostly fight scenes which isn't really my thing unless they're very interesting. But I did like the flashbacks and his weird father--it was what kept me reading.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5.

[Adrian Bloxham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed that violent stupid big story

[Brendan Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

[Mark Argent · Rating 3 out of 5]

sometimes you just want to read a comic about a retired pro football player punching hardened criminals in mascot suits. Down. Set. Fight! is almost that book. all the expected character and plot beats are there, there are no surprises on that front, and that's fine; much like the low-budget 70s/80s exploitation/action flicks this book is a callback to, you're here for the fights, not the story.

and that makes the decision to move much of the late-story action into an off-panel "audio" montage disappointing, though not book-ruining. still an enjoyable, inconsequential read. three stars: for those of you who like this sort of thing, and who doesn't?, you'll find that this is the sort of thing you like.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Big fan of Chris Sims and Chad Bowers, and their current "X-Men '92" series at Marvel is fantastic, so I was itching to read "Down Set Fight." The concept was pretty great - a disgraced pro-footballer has to fight different team mascots in an almost "The Warriors" way - but the actual story didn't hook me so well. I thought having Chuck Fairlane's father be a degenerate gambler was good, and the flashbacks of his twisted workout routines to make his son the best were great. But too much of this story focuses on the past instead of what's happening right now. It's six issues long, the first issue is entirely prologue about Chuck's pro ball days and the fourth issue is entirely flashback about Chuck's father. That's only four issues of "guy fights mascots" which is the hook of the book. Some changes in pacing and plotting could have helped the complete story immensely.

It's also more goofy than funny. I expected a few more laugh out loud moments from this creative team, and aside from a background Hootie and the Blowfish reference, I didn't get any. I'd never seen art by Scott Kowalchuk before and I did like his style a lot. Keep an eye on all three creators, I think they're going to do great things.

[Annie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has the kind of truly bizarre premise that you're only going to find in an odd-ball graphic novel. It's about sports mascots. Sports mascots who attack people. For money.

Chuck Fairlane was a huge NFL star whose career ended in an instant when he viciously attacked the other team's mascot after a game, causing a stadium-wide brawl that went down in history books and created a new craze called Fairlaning (you know, beating up mascots for sport). Chuck could have beaten the rap, but instead he decides to retreat to a quiet life as a high school football coach ... a life that is, indeed, quiet, until one day a random mascot runs onto the field during a practice and tries to pummel Chuck. Pretty soon it seems like every mascot in the country is stalking Chuck, trying to get revenge, perhaps? Or something more sinister? Chuck decides to go on an epic road trip to find out.

This book is just strange enough to be enjoyable. But there are some plot jumps that were so extreme I actually thought pages were ripped out of my book (sadly, not so), and, you know, it's pretty violent, which isn't really my thing.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

What is this lunacy? Vince Lombardi quotes heading every chapter. Darius Rucker high school. An inveterate gambler dad who trained his son with bear traps, alligators, and angry bikers.

Fearless Fairlaine is ex football pro thrown out of the league after he went nuts on both teams when learning his dad set him up for a gambling payout. First to get knocked out is a mascot teasing him after the game--attacks on mascots come to be known as getting Fairlained. But gambler dad goes to jail for twenty years on Fearless' testimony. A decade later at the high school where he teaches and coaches, a mascot tracks him down and tries to fight him. More mascots show up to fight. Are they taking revenge for the now common practice of Fairlaining? Or does dad's early release have something to do with this.

This really is about a big ex football hero punching out mascots of all sorts, from lumberjacks, to wizards, to elephants. It's really silly. But it's got heart. I thought it was great! You'll probably think it was dumb. I kinda do too.

[Ethan S · Rating 4 out of 5]

A graphic novel about an ex-football star, kicked out of the league ten years ago for a massive brawl where he took on his own team and the opposing team after the rival teams mascot mouthed off to him, who finds himself being randomly attacked by mascots and must fight his way through all of them.
Down, Set, Fight! is a funny and entertaining book although it feels a bit insubstantial. Sims and Bowers cover a lot of ground and it feels like they could have used an extra 20 pages or so to really flush out more of the story or the world. Scott Kowalchuk's art is great and fits the story well, his design's for the mascots are all excellent. If a comic about a dude straight punching out professional costumed mascots for 144 pages sounds like it might be up your ally, Down Set Fight! will not disappoint.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

He punched out a mascot? With the felt suit and the comically huge foam head? All they do is backflips and run the bases against giggling kids and let them win and throw buckets of confetti that you think is really water and do really weak pushups for every point your team scores and take pictures with the cheerleaders with their hands in places they would never get away with if they weren't anonymous behind their masks and dance to bad 80's pop music on top of dugouts and get to bounce on those cool trampolines and do amazing slam dunks and get to see every game from the sidelines when they never scored a point in their miserable lives and... and... and... yeah, he deserved it.
For more great comics for teen guys, see: http://www.talestoldtall.com/B4BHVIS....

[Sean Kottke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Educators looking for a text to engage their NFL- or WWE-minded reluctant readers in active literacy need look no further than "Down Set Fight." The premise is priceless, and the story is executed with equal parts wit and hard-knuckled action. Among the many tales attempting to explain how our world could evolve into one populated by costumed criminals and heroes duking it out in the streets, this satirical vision is ironically the most plausible (SPOILER ALERT: criminals & ex-cons recruited to dress as mascots and fight star athletes in an underground gambling). I hope future volumes are forthcoming.

[Cale · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book has no business being as enjoyable as it is. A football star gets kicked out of the league over fighting and his father's gambling. 10 years later, mascots start attacking sports figures. And it just gets weirder from there. It manages to be both straight-laced and seriously silly, and all kinds of fun. The art works well for the tone; the sheer variety of mascots is impressive. The story manages to ratchet up the tension and impact throughout, and is just a very fun funny read.

[Sarah]

....

Ever read something and after you read it, you just stare at it because you have NO idea what the hell you just read? Yeah, that was my experience with this one. I just.... I don't even know what to say. It's a sports story about fighting mascots. The idea is certainly original but just odd as hell. And the ending was super deus ex machina. Just... weird.

[P. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's so nice to come across a comic that doesn't really fit a genre. I guess this is sports adventure fighting mystery. You can tell the team had a lot of fun thinking up the mascots. I was very aware of my disbelief being suspended, but it wasn't distracting.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely for fans of Scott Pilgrim. Lots of little jokes are tucked away here and there (i.e., Darius Rucker HS, Home of the Blowfish) that make this bizarre and entertaining story just that much more so.

[Katy Jean Vance · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ridiculous. I'll see pass it along to some kids to see what they think, but it's a weird graphic novel about mascots, gambling and American football. It's one big beat 'em up fight. I'm at a loss for the redeeming qualities in it, other then the fact that it's a book and books are good.

[Nathalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Footballer Chuck Fairlane lashed out one night after a big win and as a consequence lost his sponsors and his lucrative and aspiring career. It's about honor and loyalty and doing the "right" (violent at times) thing. Many Vince Lombardi quotes and reference throughout (most lost on me).