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Scud: The Disposable Assassin #1-22
Scud: The Disposable Assassin: The Whole Shebang
'BEGINNING, MIDDLE AND END' Scud is programmed to destroy a basement monster but he will self destruct if he does, so the robotic assassin puts the wounded creature on life support and becomes a freelance assassin to pay for the hospital bills. Collects SCUD #1-24, plus the super-sweet one-shot DRYWALL: UNZIPPED. 794 Pages!
781 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 5, 2008
About the author
Rob Schrab
47 books29 followersFrom Wikipedia: Rob Schrab (pronounced "SHROB") is a comic book creator, actor, comedian, writer, and film and television producer. Schrab grew up in Mayville, Wisconsin. He is known as the creator of the comic book, Scud: The Disposable Assassin, co-writer of the feature film Monster House, the unaired pilot Heat Vision and Jack, competitive film festival Channel 101 and the co-creator of Comedy Central's The Sarah Silverman Program.
He directed on all three seasons of The Sarah Silverman Program and has directed episodes of Childrens Hospital, Blue Mountain State, Community, and Parks and Recreation.
He directed on all three seasons of The Sarah Silverman Program and has directed episodes of Childrens Hospital, Blue Mountain State, Community, and Parks and Recreation.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 129 reviews
April 21, 2010
Holy crap. This might be the coolest comic book ever created. If I had read it at age 14, I think my head would have exploded.
Here is a list of cool things in this book:
- Robot assassins (obv.)
- Robot assassins dressed in gangster tuxes
- Robot assassins that look like Go-Bots (I need to stop listing all the cool robots)
- Zombie dinosaurs
- Zombie zoo animals
- Voo-doo Ben Franklin, leader of a zombie army (see above)
- Thug with dog for a head (an entire dog)
- Giraffe that shoots lasers
- Robot Satan
- Angels revolting against God via robot assassins
- Two guns at once
- Four guns at once
- Gun that shoots ravenous piranhas
- Space werewolf
- Intergalactic rocking horse
- Woman/robot sex
- Low-gravity drag race
- Sentient bull with chainsaw horns
- Gateway to hell, opened via modem and blood sacrifice
- Fun sound effects ("Grab!" "Steal!" "Kick!" "Dead!" "Gross!")
- Swearing
There are some not cool things too, like occasionally it meanders episodically and the story kind of wobbles in the end, but I really like the zombie dinosaurs, so I am giving it 5 stars.
Here is a list of cool things in this book:
- Robot assassins (obv.)
- Robot assassins dressed in gangster tuxes
- Robot assassins that look like Go-Bots (I need to stop listing all the cool robots)
- Zombie dinosaurs
- Zombie zoo animals
- Voo-doo Ben Franklin, leader of a zombie army (see above)
- Thug with dog for a head (an entire dog)
- Giraffe that shoots lasers
- Robot Satan
- Angels revolting against God via robot assassins
- Two guns at once
- Four guns at once
- Gun that shoots ravenous piranhas
- Space werewolf
- Intergalactic rocking horse
- Woman/robot sex
- Low-gravity drag race
- Sentient bull with chainsaw horns
- Gateway to hell, opened via modem and blood sacrifice
- Fun sound effects ("Grab!" "Steal!" "Kick!" "Dead!" "Gross!")
- Swearing
There are some not cool things too, like occasionally it meanders episodically and the story kind of wobbles in the end, but I really like the zombie dinosaurs, so I am giving it 5 stars.
August 24, 2011
On the surface, this is the type of writing I usually hate. Gonzo and surreal for the sake of being weird...until you get to the fourth or fifth chapter and start to notice that all of the things that seemed so random are starting to knit together.
SCUD is, as the title says, a disposable assassin. You buy him from a vending machine, tell him who to kill, and after the job he self-destructs. This model becomes self-aware on his first mission, and opts to keep his victim alive so that he, too, may continue living. What could have easily turned into a sitcom-level trope becomes a key plot point as the story turns from a paint-by-numbers comic plot into epic odyssey. There are too many twists and turns to make sense of without experiencing it directly.
SCUD is easily the archetype for everything an independent comic should be: artistically simple at times, needlessly complex at others (I would have given up as an artist if asked to draw the character Jeff more than once), full of typos, flying by the seat of its pants. And yet it all works. It lampoons comics while placing them on a pedestal.
The characters make the story sing. One of the especially deep backstories revolves around the sidekick. Drywall is perhaps the most lovable second-banana in comics history, and I actually found myself genuinely caring whether or not he'd make it through to the end.
The core theme of lost love and heartbreak and the resilience of the human spirit (which is odd when so very few humans are involved in the story) really resonates without becoming too maudlin or sappy. Do yourself a favor and find a copy of SCUD.
SCUD is, as the title says, a disposable assassin. You buy him from a vending machine, tell him who to kill, and after the job he self-destructs. This model becomes self-aware on his first mission, and opts to keep his victim alive so that he, too, may continue living. What could have easily turned into a sitcom-level trope becomes a key plot point as the story turns from a paint-by-numbers comic plot into epic odyssey. There are too many twists and turns to make sense of without experiencing it directly.
SCUD is easily the archetype for everything an independent comic should be: artistically simple at times, needlessly complex at others (I would have given up as an artist if asked to draw the character Jeff more than once), full of typos, flying by the seat of its pants. And yet it all works. It lampoons comics while placing them on a pedestal.
The characters make the story sing. One of the especially deep backstories revolves around the sidekick. Drywall is perhaps the most lovable second-banana in comics history, and I actually found myself genuinely caring whether or not he'd make it through to the end.
The core theme of lost love and heartbreak and the resilience of the human spirit (which is odd when so very few humans are involved in the story) really resonates without becoming too maudlin or sappy. Do yourself a favor and find a copy of SCUD.
September 24, 2024
Worth at least a whole full year of art school for me. Every single page taught me something. Unique aesthetic, incredible gesture, simple yet varied, simple to study and replicate and absorb.
Oh, and the story and characters and all that stuff, also great. Plenty other reviewers already have gone on about that. I agree. But man, did I learn.
Oh, and the story and characters and all that stuff, also great. Plenty other reviewers already have gone on about that. I agree. But man, did I learn.
December 6, 2008
Scud: The Disposable Assassin was an independent comic book that came out when I was in high school. The series ran for 20 issues, had a 9 issues spin off called "La Cosa Nostroid," a one off on the back story to Drywall (Scud's side-kick), a 2 issue story of Drywall and Oswald, and a 4 issue series about other disposable assassins. There were 2 video games, and rumors of movies. The thing is, the franchise, despite being a relatively successful series, just ended out of nowhere. Scud's girlfriend had just been chopped up and left to die, and Scud instructed to kill the earth.
This was an epic cliffhanger that was one of my first real experiences with disappointment. I was left wondering what the hell happened to this comic and the guys who made it. They also had a comedy group, "the dead alewives" that did the skit, now a famous internet meme of a bunch of kids hanging around playing dungeons and dragons and getting side tracked on stuff like snacks.
Over the years, I saw news of these guys. Rob Schrab had made the movie "Monster House." They also got involved with Jack Black, and made the TV show pilot for "Heat Vision and Jack" (also now a famous internet meme.) And when that got shot down they made the excellent Channel 101, a website/internet community of online shows where the users/community vote on which series they want to see continued. The last I had heard from Rob Schrab, was when I noticed his name as a producer credit on "The Sarah Silverman Show." While all this stuff (save The Sarah Silverman Show) was high quality stupidness, I didn't like any of it as much as Scud. And while I was still disappointed that he never finished his original project, I understood that Schrab had moved on, and I had to respect that.
Then I heard that not only was Schrab going to wrap it all up, he was going to re-release the whole series as one huge graphic novel. This is that huge graphic novel.
This is what it says it is "The Whole Shebang" of Scud. The original 20 episodes, plus the 4 that end the series, as well as the one off "Drywall: Unzipped" spin off.
Scud takes place in a surreal future, that is somehow perpetually experiencing the biblical rapture. High technology mixes with sorcery, and hilarity ensues. The world has grown completely insane: there are alien invasions, mutations on a large scale, technology advances extremely rapidly, there are cults that worship testosterone, capitalism runs rampant, crime and violence are out of control. In this world, disposable robot assassins can be purchased from vending machines on the corner. These robots self destruct when they kill their targets, destroying the evidence of who ordered the hit. The most popular brand is "Scud Co." Our story begins when a manager at a mannequin factory purchases our protagonist to kill a she-monster named "Jeff," who speaks only in media clips, and has been killing the workers at the factory. While battling the monster, Scud sees the warning on his back that he will self destruct after terminating his target. His self-defense programming kicks in and instead of killing the target he blows off all her arms and legs and puts her on life support. He then becomes a hit man to make money to pay the hospital bills. He ties in with the robot mafia who are locked in battle with Voodoo Ben, a reincarnation of Ben Franklin who mixes science a sorcery to create his own cybernetic zombie mafia. The book follows Scud as he just tries to keep on living.
Along the way, scud ties in with several friends: Tony Tastey, the leader of the robot mafia. Drywall, a bag of carpet that holds an extra-dimensional pocket containing a vast grid of 12x12 square rooms (with walls made of drywall) where he stores stuff he pilfers from around him. Oswald, one of the previous models of Scud Co disposable assassins. and Sussidio, a femme fatale sent to kill Scud, who instead falls in love with him.
Now, I do not want to sound pretentious, but Scud is an excellent piece of literature. This whole comic series, despite being science fiction parody, touches on many different themes. Scud is a the ultimate nobody. He is literally disposable, one of many other, just like him, meant for one other purpose and nothing beyond that. Yet, against all odds, and even exact copies of himself and more advanced later models, he wins time and time again. He is the ultimate triumph over his own station in life. He is an anti-hero, his only goal is to make enough money to keep his target alive so he won't die. Yet, despite himself, he always keeps doing the right thing in the situations he gets himself into. Exceptional beyond expectations, and moral and good in the face of all opposition, Scud represents the triumph of the everyman against insurmountable obstacles to the contrary.
While rereading the old issues of Scud, I was struck by how "90s" it was. It reminded me of a quote my uncle Charles once made "that is what fashion is, something that looks exceptionally cool for one period of time and looks totally stupid at any other time." Scud didn't look stupid, but it was a little corny. However, the themes of media sampling, and media recycling show up time and time again. The characters out-right quote other media. Jeff speaks only in media clips. The story references other plots though out. The whole comic is a big game of lets combine all this cool stuff from pop culture: robots, zombies, mafia, hit-men, giant robots, dinosaurs, aliens, and mutants. Voodoo Ben even out right says that they are living in a world where everything has already been invented. The 90s were a time when samples and media recycling was the hot thing in art and music. Scud reflects this in both form and content.
There are also a whole bunch of religious themes that I'm not going to get into.
I do not think that the influence of Scud should be overlooked. While reading this, I realized that the world portrayed in Scud, is like an ultraviolent version of the future in Matt Groening's "Futurama." I'm not saying that "Futurama" is a Scud rip off. I am saying that they are tapping the same zeitgeist, and Scud got there a little bit sooner. I honestly think that Scud paved the way for the likes of futurama, as well as the whole hyper surreal, chock full of attitude cartoons that they show on adult swim, and other such media outlets.
The art in this, while not exceptional in its technical aspects, is very stylized and works very well for the story. The pop-art style nicely reflects the themes of media recycling and reference, that repeatedly come up in the comic. This is a great example of the form of media echoing the theme/message (my GF tells me that this is some sort of state of the art in French Literature, but as a Math/CS dude, I don't really know much about that.)
I read this book because I loved Scud: The Disposable Assassin Comics when I was a teenager. I really wanted to know how the story ends.
I am happy with how it all ends up.
This was an epic cliffhanger that was one of my first real experiences with disappointment. I was left wondering what the hell happened to this comic and the guys who made it. They also had a comedy group, "the dead alewives" that did the skit, now a famous internet meme of a bunch of kids hanging around playing dungeons and dragons and getting side tracked on stuff like snacks.
Over the years, I saw news of these guys. Rob Schrab had made the movie "Monster House." They also got involved with Jack Black, and made the TV show pilot for "Heat Vision and Jack" (also now a famous internet meme.) And when that got shot down they made the excellent Channel 101, a website/internet community of online shows where the users/community vote on which series they want to see continued. The last I had heard from Rob Schrab, was when I noticed his name as a producer credit on "The Sarah Silverman Show." While all this stuff (save The Sarah Silverman Show) was high quality stupidness, I didn't like any of it as much as Scud. And while I was still disappointed that he never finished his original project, I understood that Schrab had moved on, and I had to respect that.
Then I heard that not only was Schrab going to wrap it all up, he was going to re-release the whole series as one huge graphic novel. This is that huge graphic novel.
This is what it says it is "The Whole Shebang" of Scud. The original 20 episodes, plus the 4 that end the series, as well as the one off "Drywall: Unzipped" spin off.
Scud takes place in a surreal future, that is somehow perpetually experiencing the biblical rapture. High technology mixes with sorcery, and hilarity ensues. The world has grown completely insane: there are alien invasions, mutations on a large scale, technology advances extremely rapidly, there are cults that worship testosterone, capitalism runs rampant, crime and violence are out of control. In this world, disposable robot assassins can be purchased from vending machines on the corner. These robots self destruct when they kill their targets, destroying the evidence of who ordered the hit. The most popular brand is "Scud Co." Our story begins when a manager at a mannequin factory purchases our protagonist to kill a she-monster named "Jeff," who speaks only in media clips, and has been killing the workers at the factory. While battling the monster, Scud sees the warning on his back that he will self destruct after terminating his target. His self-defense programming kicks in and instead of killing the target he blows off all her arms and legs and puts her on life support. He then becomes a hit man to make money to pay the hospital bills. He ties in with the robot mafia who are locked in battle with Voodoo Ben, a reincarnation of Ben Franklin who mixes science a sorcery to create his own cybernetic zombie mafia. The book follows Scud as he just tries to keep on living.
Along the way, scud ties in with several friends: Tony Tastey, the leader of the robot mafia. Drywall, a bag of carpet that holds an extra-dimensional pocket containing a vast grid of 12x12 square rooms (with walls made of drywall) where he stores stuff he pilfers from around him. Oswald, one of the previous models of Scud Co disposable assassins. and Sussidio, a femme fatale sent to kill Scud, who instead falls in love with him.
Now, I do not want to sound pretentious, but Scud is an excellent piece of literature. This whole comic series, despite being science fiction parody, touches on many different themes. Scud is a the ultimate nobody. He is literally disposable, one of many other, just like him, meant for one other purpose and nothing beyond that. Yet, against all odds, and even exact copies of himself and more advanced later models, he wins time and time again. He is the ultimate triumph over his own station in life. He is an anti-hero, his only goal is to make enough money to keep his target alive so he won't die. Yet, despite himself, he always keeps doing the right thing in the situations he gets himself into. Exceptional beyond expectations, and moral and good in the face of all opposition, Scud represents the triumph of the everyman against insurmountable obstacles to the contrary.
While rereading the old issues of Scud, I was struck by how "90s" it was. It reminded me of a quote my uncle Charles once made "that is what fashion is, something that looks exceptionally cool for one period of time and looks totally stupid at any other time." Scud didn't look stupid, but it was a little corny. However, the themes of media sampling, and media recycling show up time and time again. The characters out-right quote other media. Jeff speaks only in media clips. The story references other plots though out. The whole comic is a big game of lets combine all this cool stuff from pop culture: robots, zombies, mafia, hit-men, giant robots, dinosaurs, aliens, and mutants. Voodoo Ben even out right says that they are living in a world where everything has already been invented. The 90s were a time when samples and media recycling was the hot thing in art and music. Scud reflects this in both form and content.
There are also a whole bunch of religious themes that I'm not going to get into.
I do not think that the influence of Scud should be overlooked. While reading this, I realized that the world portrayed in Scud, is like an ultraviolent version of the future in Matt Groening's "Futurama." I'm not saying that "Futurama" is a Scud rip off. I am saying that they are tapping the same zeitgeist, and Scud got there a little bit sooner. I honestly think that Scud paved the way for the likes of futurama, as well as the whole hyper surreal, chock full of attitude cartoons that they show on adult swim, and other such media outlets.
The art in this, while not exceptional in its technical aspects, is very stylized and works very well for the story. The pop-art style nicely reflects the themes of media recycling and reference, that repeatedly come up in the comic. This is a great example of the form of media echoing the theme/message (my GF tells me that this is some sort of state of the art in French Literature, but as a Math/CS dude, I don't really know much about that.)
I read this book because I loved Scud: The Disposable Assassin Comics when I was a teenager. I really wanted to know how the story ends.
I am happy with how it all ends up.
January 14, 2025
Wild, wacky and overall somewhat fun. The panels were surprisingly difficult to follow at time, but the action, art and solid ending made up for it all. A fun read but not one I’d recommend to just anyone.
September 17, 2021
Perhaps the most meta, unique and totally bat**** comic you'll ever read, set in a world where people can purchase assassin robots through vending machines which self-destruct upon killing their target. Zombie dinosaurs, immortal werewolves in space, voodoo Ben Franklin, a dimension traveling horse and a hot robosexual bounty hunter. That's just scaping the surface, though. Scud is chockfull of craziness. Total frenetic madness; an absolute ball to read.
July 24, 2013
To best recreate the feeling of reading the entirety of SCUD in one sitting, I suggest snorting one of those wacky giant pixie sticks and chasing it with one of those disgusting Mountain-Dew-brand energy drinks.
It's an indie comic in a way that many indie comics really aren't. It's genuinely a story that would never pass a mainstream editor. Partly its unwillingness of Schrab to ever really slow down and explain the incredibly elaborate scenarios, and partly the unpleasantness of some of the situations.
At times it comes off as a bit sophomoric or amateurish. There are elements of SCUD that could have composed an entire series in their own right, but many concepts don't extend past a single issue before Schrab gets bored and moves on. And at times the dialogue comes off as weird personal diatribes rather than something the character would actually say, as though the creator is chatting with you through the pages. The worst embodiment of these tendencies is the chief antagonist, Jeff, who speaks almost entirely through obnoxious catch phrases.
It also extends to the artwork, which at times feels rushed, and other times hyperactively detailed in a way that makes it hard to know where to focus the eye or how to proceed through the page.
But the breathless energy is hard to deny. Its a long reckless odyssey that's hard to compare to few things beyond Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, mostly because it goes to similar ridiculous extremes, with the character traveling through time and into Heaven and Hell, though SCUD does so in a much more abbreviated fashion.
If there's a way to read SCUD, it's definitely this edition. It truly does feel like a graphic novel, a long, zany adventure. It's by no means a brilliant work, but the audacity kept me reading.
It's an indie comic in a way that many indie comics really aren't. It's genuinely a story that would never pass a mainstream editor. Partly its unwillingness of Schrab to ever really slow down and explain the incredibly elaborate scenarios, and partly the unpleasantness of some of the situations.
At times it comes off as a bit sophomoric or amateurish. There are elements of SCUD that could have composed an entire series in their own right, but many concepts don't extend past a single issue before Schrab gets bored and moves on. And at times the dialogue comes off as weird personal diatribes rather than something the character would actually say, as though the creator is chatting with you through the pages. The worst embodiment of these tendencies is the chief antagonist, Jeff, who speaks almost entirely through obnoxious catch phrases.
It also extends to the artwork, which at times feels rushed, and other times hyperactively detailed in a way that makes it hard to know where to focus the eye or how to proceed through the page.
But the breathless energy is hard to deny. Its a long reckless odyssey that's hard to compare to few things beyond Johnny the Homicidal Maniac, mostly because it goes to similar ridiculous extremes, with the character traveling through time and into Heaven and Hell, though SCUD does so in a much more abbreviated fashion.
If there's a way to read SCUD, it's definitely this edition. It truly does feel like a graphic novel, a long, zany adventure. It's by no means a brilliant work, but the audacity kept me reading.
December 31, 2009
I started reading this comic back in the 90's. I loved this collected omnibus, not only because I loved the story, but because it now has the end of the storyarc that was left hanging so long ago....
January 11, 2020
This book definitely grew on it as I read it. Also I would die for Drywall
July 8, 2019
Hodně šílená série Roba Schraba, kde si občas nějakou tu část napsal Dan Harmon.
A je to právě jméno Dana Harmona, které mě k tomuhle přitáhlo. Hned, co jsem překonal počáteční zklamání z toho, že napsal jenom občas některý díl a jenom, co jsem se přenesl přes občas značně nepřehlednou kresbu, tak jsem se do tohohle špalku mohl ponořit naplno.
A že je to špalek poctivý. Na skoro 800 stránkách tu dostaneme kompletní příběh Scuda - jednorázového zabijáka. Scud je robot z automatu na zabijácké roboty na jedno použití. Ukážete mu, kdo je cíl a jenom, co je cíl zničen, tak se i Scud sám zničí. Ale to by si nesměl sám této informace všimnout na svých zádech. Protože pak se dost dobře může stát, že místo zabití svůj cíl jenom zmrzačí a zavře do nemocnice a začne dlouhá a značně šílená jízda, na které nechybí Ben Franklin oživující armádu zombie dinosaurů anebo zachrána světa před jeho kompletním zničením.
Co se musí Robu Schrabovi nechat, tak to, jak hezky to do sebe všechno nakonec zapadlo. Když rozečtete podobnou knížku, tak vlastně ani nečekáte, že to bude mít hlavu a patu. Prostě si jenom užíváte ten zážítek a doufáte, že se to vyvrbí. Tady tohle je ale jedna z těch sérií, kde se ukáže, že spousta charakterů měla nějaký smysl a celé to nějak dokupy krásně funguje.
Pokud tedy hledáte zběsilou akci s charaktery, které vypadají jako výsledek slušného drogového tripu (Voodoo Ben Franklin je tam jedna z nejnormálnějších postav), tak s klidem doporučuju. Jenom se smiřte s tím, že tohle je čtení na jedno hodně dlouhé odpoledne nebo několik zábavných večerů.
Mohlo by se vám líbit, pokud:
- máte rádi šílenou vyšinutou akci a trocha nepřehlednosti vás nezastraší
- chcete vidět roboty, zombie dinosaury, padouchy co mají jako hlavu psa (komplet psa) nebo býka s motorovými pilami místo rohů
Spíš vás zklame, pokud:
- vám to celé zní jako jeden velký drogový trip a na ty vy nejste
- ke kvalitnímu zážitku potřebujete barvu a realistickou kresbu (která by tu upřímně byla fakt děsivá)
A je to právě jméno Dana Harmona, které mě k tomuhle přitáhlo. Hned, co jsem překonal počáteční zklamání z toho, že napsal jenom občas některý díl a jenom, co jsem se přenesl přes občas značně nepřehlednou kresbu, tak jsem se do tohohle špalku mohl ponořit naplno.
A že je to špalek poctivý. Na skoro 800 stránkách tu dostaneme kompletní příběh Scuda - jednorázového zabijáka. Scud je robot z automatu na zabijácké roboty na jedno použití. Ukážete mu, kdo je cíl a jenom, co je cíl zničen, tak se i Scud sám zničí. Ale to by si nesměl sám této informace všimnout na svých zádech. Protože pak se dost dobře může stát, že místo zabití svůj cíl jenom zmrzačí a zavře do nemocnice a začne dlouhá a značně šílená jízda, na které nechybí Ben Franklin oživující armádu zombie dinosaurů anebo zachrána světa před jeho kompletním zničením.
Co se musí Robu Schrabovi nechat, tak to, jak hezky to do sebe všechno nakonec zapadlo. Když rozečtete podobnou knížku, tak vlastně ani nečekáte, že to bude mít hlavu a patu. Prostě si jenom užíváte ten zážítek a doufáte, že se to vyvrbí. Tady tohle je ale jedna z těch sérií, kde se ukáže, že spousta charakterů měla nějaký smysl a celé to nějak dokupy krásně funguje.
Pokud tedy hledáte zběsilou akci s charaktery, které vypadají jako výsledek slušného drogového tripu (Voodoo Ben Franklin je tam jedna z nejnormálnějších postav), tak s klidem doporučuju. Jenom se smiřte s tím, že tohle je čtení na jedno hodně dlouhé odpoledne nebo několik zábavných večerů.
Mohlo by se vám líbit, pokud:
- máte rádi šílenou vyšinutou akci a trocha nepřehlednosti vás nezastraší
- chcete vidět roboty, zombie dinosaury, padouchy co mají jako hlavu psa (komplet psa) nebo býka s motorovými pilami místo rohů
Spíš vás zklame, pokud:
- vám to celé zní jako jeden velký drogový trip a na ty vy nejste
- ke kvalitnímu zážitku potřebujete barvu a realistickou kresbu (která by tu upřímně byla fakt děsivá)
October 30, 2024
I really liked this book for what it was. Maybe it's a bit of nostalgia for that 90s storytelling but this book felt nice to read. It had insane action set pieces, borderline incoherent and silly plotlines, and an emotional depth that sneaks up on you out of nowhere. A lot of it feels made up as they go along which is what I mean by 90s storytelling. With monthly comics often the creators were just doing whatever they wanted and made it work later. This is even referenced in the book! Scud just dives in and makes it work. By the end of the book it's honestly impressive how everything wraps up. Fun read!
September 29, 2025
Scud predates Deadpool and it is clear that this graphic novel had more than a subtle influence on the "merc with a mouth" although Scud lacks one.
Initially the story meanders but eventually explores issues of consciousness, identity, religion, and werewolves? So glad I picked this up on a whim!
Initially the story meanders but eventually explores issues of consciousness, identity, religion, and werewolves? So glad I picked this up on a whim!
July 9, 2018
As I’m currently reading only black and white comics I wanted to revisit one of my favorites. Even better than I remember. The story goes a little off the rails sometimes but Rob Schrab is such a brilliant artist and imaginative writer I couldn’t care less. I won’t wait 5+ years to revisit again.
August 2, 2017
Ridiculous, exciting, baffling, endearing. The whole collection finally came back in print so I could get one.
May 25, 2026
Easily my favorite book ever. If you want to make the perfect 1st issue of a comic, look at scud. Drywalls the GOAT.
July 20, 2026
Boy, did I stall on this one for a long time. I enjoyed most of it, but the front half of the book didn't feel very cohesive to me and I got bogged down. The four-chapter ending created a decade after the rest of the book was great, IMO.
Overall, a fun read, but I wish the whole thing was as tight as the ending.
Overall, a fun read, but I wish the whole thing was as tight as the ending.
August 6, 2016
“Why won’t you just let me die?” --Scud
Heartbreak. Struggle. Abandonment. Sacrifice.
The quote above says it all without giving away spoilers for Scud: The Disposable Assassin but still teases light of the damp, heavy curtain of metaphor that this masterpiece represents.
Growing up in a sheltered home I’m only just now getting to know who Scud and Rob Schrab are thanks to my twin who found out about the comic on a very early and hilarious version of Rick and Morty (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gL1kL...). I couldn’t understand why my twin was begging me to read the comic since the art and imagination of the concept is flat out obscure and kind of demented. After reading the first 6 or so issues I had trouble keeping interest since the strangeness of Schrab’s creativity is far from my cup of tea. But I sucked it up one sleepless night and continued to read where I left off. Once I hit the halfway point (Drywall Unzipped arc)...
I could not put it down.
The backstory for the character of Drywall put me in tears--especially when it was brought full circle in the finale. But the metaphor for what Scud is and what his journey represents just shocks me to my core. I’ve never read anything that was connected to the author’s/artitst’s soul so strongly. According to the forward of this particular edition, Schrab’s wife, Kate, explains the story behind Scud the robot assassin revealing that Schrab started the series after getting rejected by a girl he fancied. The story and characters soon consumed his life and he forgot about her until a second love interest came into play. When that woman dumped him (for reasons unsaid) Schrab lost all creativity and went on a 13 year hiatus. Then he met Kate and finished the series. It may not sound like the usual woes of finding the one when dealing with relationships, but once you actually get into the plot and characters of Scud you’ll understand the beauty behind the bizarre.
Yes, Scud: The Disposable Assassin is strange and violent and even crude at times, but behind all the robo-sex, insanity, and bloody action this piece of heartache from the soul of a heart-broken artist represents why all creatives do what they do. We write, draw, paint, sing, dance, and build to express our emotions in a way that justifies our heart’s projection in an attempt to get the world to understand the same way we do. I dropped a star because I don’t really see myself reading this again and I was weirded-out multiple times during the adventure. But that doesn’t phase out my understanding of such broken emotions that Rob Schrab had to go through.
Give it a chance. You WILL be surprised and possibly brought to tears like I was.
Heartbreak. Struggle. Abandonment. Sacrifice.
The quote above says it all without giving away spoilers for Scud: The Disposable Assassin but still teases light of the damp, heavy curtain of metaphor that this masterpiece represents.
Growing up in a sheltered home I’m only just now getting to know who Scud and Rob Schrab are thanks to my twin who found out about the comic on a very early and hilarious version of Rick and Morty (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gL1kL...). I couldn’t understand why my twin was begging me to read the comic since the art and imagination of the concept is flat out obscure and kind of demented. After reading the first 6 or so issues I had trouble keeping interest since the strangeness of Schrab’s creativity is far from my cup of tea. But I sucked it up one sleepless night and continued to read where I left off. Once I hit the halfway point (Drywall Unzipped arc)...
I could not put it down.
The backstory for the character of Drywall put me in tears--especially when it was brought full circle in the finale. But the metaphor for what Scud is and what his journey represents just shocks me to my core. I’ve never read anything that was connected to the author’s/artitst’s soul so strongly. According to the forward of this particular edition, Schrab’s wife, Kate, explains the story behind Scud the robot assassin revealing that Schrab started the series after getting rejected by a girl he fancied. The story and characters soon consumed his life and he forgot about her until a second love interest came into play. When that woman dumped him (for reasons unsaid) Schrab lost all creativity and went on a 13 year hiatus. Then he met Kate and finished the series. It may not sound like the usual woes of finding the one when dealing with relationships, but once you actually get into the plot and characters of Scud you’ll understand the beauty behind the bizarre.
Yes, Scud: The Disposable Assassin is strange and violent and even crude at times, but behind all the robo-sex, insanity, and bloody action this piece of heartache from the soul of a heart-broken artist represents why all creatives do what they do. We write, draw, paint, sing, dance, and build to express our emotions in a way that justifies our heart’s projection in an attempt to get the world to understand the same way we do. I dropped a star because I don’t really see myself reading this again and I was weirded-out multiple times during the adventure. But that doesn’t phase out my understanding of such broken emotions that Rob Schrab had to go through.
Give it a chance. You WILL be surprised and possibly brought to tears like I was.
January 12, 2020
What it's about: In a dystopian future world, assassins are automated and can be purchased from vending machines. When the Marvin's Manakins factory has a monster infesting it, the middle manager charged with solving the problem purchases Scud, the Disposable Assassin for a few tokens. Scud is designed to complete his mission, then expire as soon as his victim dies. But Scud realizes that if he doesn't kill his victim, he doesn't need to die; so he decides to disable the monster (named Jeff) on life support. Unfortunately, that's expensive, so Scud sets off to find work so he can keep Jeff - and therefore himself - alive.
Of course, things don't go smoothly, and Scud is living in a weird, weird world. His journey takes him to prison, to outer space, to the Tough Guy Olympics, to the past, and even to Heaven. Along the way, he makes friends, meets foes, and learns that the most important thing is to just keep trying, and figure it out as you go.
What I thought: What the hell did I just read? The first half of this book is just bonkers. Stylistically, it looks a lot like those old Donruss Odd Rods and Fiends and Machines images that I never found to be interesting, just weird and a bit scary. The world-building is all over the place. There is one thread, Jeff, that keeps this whole thing from feeling like it was just completely made up as it went along (and certainly Jeff could have been modified as the series went to fit the evolving story).
I didn't like the first quarter of this collected work, but kept plowing because people insisted it was an important graphic novel work. Even after the first half, I was still not sold. In the beginning of the second half, things seemed to be pulling together a little bit. And I was surprised by the emotion that is channeled at the end.
Don't get me wrong; there's a TON of utter nonsense throughout this entire collection. I really prefer a story that makes sense, or at least has some internal consistency. Scud does not have that. This is rough work. There are dangling threads left all over - this is more like a patchwork quilt done by a first-timer than a fully realized comic book world. But if it has nothing else, it has heart (and possibly a circular creation story).
Why I rated it like I did: There's so much just absolutely bananas nonsense in the first half of this book that i almost just gave up on it and tossed it. The second half starts to pull together a semi-coherent story, and the end pulled off a surprisingly heartfelt finale.
Of course, things don't go smoothly, and Scud is living in a weird, weird world. His journey takes him to prison, to outer space, to the Tough Guy Olympics, to the past, and even to Heaven. Along the way, he makes friends, meets foes, and learns that the most important thing is to just keep trying, and figure it out as you go.
What I thought: What the hell did I just read? The first half of this book is just bonkers. Stylistically, it looks a lot like those old Donruss Odd Rods and Fiends and Machines images that I never found to be interesting, just weird and a bit scary. The world-building is all over the place. There is one thread, Jeff, that keeps this whole thing from feeling like it was just completely made up as it went along (and certainly Jeff could have been modified as the series went to fit the evolving story).
I didn't like the first quarter of this collected work, but kept plowing because people insisted it was an important graphic novel work. Even after the first half, I was still not sold. In the beginning of the second half, things seemed to be pulling together a little bit. And I was surprised by the emotion that is channeled at the end.
Don't get me wrong; there's a TON of utter nonsense throughout this entire collection. I really prefer a story that makes sense, or at least has some internal consistency. Scud does not have that. This is rough work. There are dangling threads left all over - this is more like a patchwork quilt done by a first-timer than a fully realized comic book world. But if it has nothing else, it has heart (and possibly a circular creation story).
Why I rated it like I did: There's so much just absolutely bananas nonsense in the first half of this book that i almost just gave up on it and tossed it. The second half starts to pull together a semi-coherent story, and the end pulled off a surprisingly heartfelt finale.
August 24, 2012
Scud really took me by surprise. I picked it up on a whim based on my love of two things: the rough, anything-goes attitude of late 80s/90s indie comics (reference point: Love & Rockets remains one of my all-time favorites), and my affinity for the writing of Dan Harmon (who co-wrote Scud along with series creator and artist Rob Schrab). I'm glad I did, because it turned out to be one of the funniest, most inventive, daring comics I've read in quite a while.
The basic idea is this: In the future, people can hire a Scud robot (from a vending machine, no less) as a hired hitman to kill the person/creature/alien of their choice. After the target is destroyed, the Scud self-destructs...no muss, no fuss. Unless, of course, the Scud finds out about that whole self-destruction thing before it kills its target...
The titular Scud discovering this fact about itself (and subsequent efforts to cripple its target while carefully keeping it on life support) is really just the jumping off point for a stream-of-consciousness joyride that involves zombie T-Rexs, Ben Franklin as a menacing witch doctor villain, the four horsemen of the apocalypse, Mafia robots, robot-human sex, bionic giraffes, and a sidekick that has every item in existence contained within his zippered body named Drywall. What's amazing is that the series (which consists of the original 20 issue run, plus a 4 issue finale done 10 or so years later) contains all of these insane ideas and still manages to not only make sense, but be transcendently hilarious and, at times, heartfelt. It also looks fantastic - i'd say 75% of the book is action set pieces, and they never get old thanks in large part to Schrab's never-ending arsenal of really cool ideas for fight scenes.
One warning: This is a "rough around the edges" kind of story - be prepared for a bunch of typos and some really wild jumping around in the plot in the last few issues of the original run. I actually found it to be part of the charm, but I recognize that it isn't for everyone. But if that doesn't scare you off...give it a try. It's the most fun I've had reading a book so far this year.
The basic idea is this: In the future, people can hire a Scud robot (from a vending machine, no less) as a hired hitman to kill the person/creature/alien of their choice. After the target is destroyed, the Scud self-destructs...no muss, no fuss. Unless, of course, the Scud finds out about that whole self-destruction thing before it kills its target...
The titular Scud discovering this fact about itself (and subsequent efforts to cripple its target while carefully keeping it on life support) is really just the jumping off point for a stream-of-consciousness joyride that involves zombie T-Rexs, Ben Franklin as a menacing witch doctor villain, the four horsemen of the apocalypse, Mafia robots, robot-human sex, bionic giraffes, and a sidekick that has every item in existence contained within his zippered body named Drywall. What's amazing is that the series (which consists of the original 20 issue run, plus a 4 issue finale done 10 or so years later) contains all of these insane ideas and still manages to not only make sense, but be transcendently hilarious and, at times, heartfelt. It also looks fantastic - i'd say 75% of the book is action set pieces, and they never get old thanks in large part to Schrab's never-ending arsenal of really cool ideas for fight scenes.
One warning: This is a "rough around the edges" kind of story - be prepared for a bunch of typos and some really wild jumping around in the plot in the last few issues of the original run. I actually found it to be part of the charm, but I recognize that it isn't for everyone. But if that doesn't scare you off...give it a try. It's the most fun I've had reading a book so far this year.
April 20, 2015
2008 review: Scud was teenage Mike's favorite comic. I'm happy to discover that it still ranks pretty high in the opinion of 32-year-old Mike.
The book is basically pure attitude, snappy one-liners, crazy action, lots of pop culture references (but more of a timeless, yet slightly snotty film-lovers references than fleeting, 15-minutes-of-fame references) and relentless action. I love the fast-moving, high-adventure feel of the series, with just enough irreverence to prevent it from being serious. I can't take zombies seriously, so having the zombies answer to an evil, resurrected Ben Franklin is just brilliant.
The book does spin its wheels briefly, just after the big endgame comes into focus, Schrab elects to have Scud and his girlfriend Sussudio live out homages to various movie genres. The stories are effective at building their relationship and allow Schrab to have fun with, and poke fun at, D&D fantasy, slasher movies, mobster stuff, though it does seem peculiar to have all these one-off stories just when the story has otherwise reached a big climax. Still, they're really fun stories.
Even with a ten-year hiatus between issues 20 and 21, Schrab kept the tone of the series pretty consistent and his cartooning (which probably hasn't been practiced terribly often) doesn't seem to have evolved too much so as to look like a completely different artist.
It's a really, really fun book, and I hope some people will track it down.
+++++++++++++++++++
2015 review: Comixology/Digital - This book is an absolute blast, chock full of attitude, zinging one-liners and crazy comic book characters and scenarios. Schrab's visual storytelling lacks clarity in some of the early issues, and the story wanders on occasion, but when everything hits home (Drywall's family issues always tugged the heartstrings, but even more so now that I'm a dad), there's nothing more deliriously comic book bonzo than Scud.
The book is basically pure attitude, snappy one-liners, crazy action, lots of pop culture references (but more of a timeless, yet slightly snotty film-lovers references than fleeting, 15-minutes-of-fame references) and relentless action. I love the fast-moving, high-adventure feel of the series, with just enough irreverence to prevent it from being serious. I can't take zombies seriously, so having the zombies answer to an evil, resurrected Ben Franklin is just brilliant.
The book does spin its wheels briefly, just after the big endgame comes into focus, Schrab elects to have Scud and his girlfriend Sussudio live out homages to various movie genres. The stories are effective at building their relationship and allow Schrab to have fun with, and poke fun at, D&D fantasy, slasher movies, mobster stuff, though it does seem peculiar to have all these one-off stories just when the story has otherwise reached a big climax. Still, they're really fun stories.
Even with a ten-year hiatus between issues 20 and 21, Schrab kept the tone of the series pretty consistent and his cartooning (which probably hasn't been practiced terribly often) doesn't seem to have evolved too much so as to look like a completely different artist.
It's a really, really fun book, and I hope some people will track it down.
+++++++++++++++++++
2015 review: Comixology/Digital - This book is an absolute blast, chock full of attitude, zinging one-liners and crazy comic book characters and scenarios. Schrab's visual storytelling lacks clarity in some of the early issues, and the story wanders on occasion, but when everything hits home (Drywall's family issues always tugged the heartstrings, but even more so now that I'm a dad), there's nothing more deliriously comic book bonzo than Scud.
November 2, 2008
I had a weird middle of the night insomnia last night, and since I couldn't concentrate on anything requiring more the 30% of my normal energy, I decided to wrap up this complete comic saga. The series began in 1993-4, then took a 10 year break in 1998 before returning for a 4 issue wrap up last year. I didn't follow the series back then, but found this reasonably priced collected of all the issues after getting a recommendation from the Onion AV Club.
While the plot is completely wild and takes surreal and unexpected twists and turns, the art of Scud is incredibly... well the best word for it is f*cked up. I have never had a comic book come close to giving me a headache after reading it, but Scud leans on the side of explosions more explosion, and frames that emphasize kinetic energy more than being legible.
But there is a heart to this story, about a robot assassin who comes from a vending machine and is designed to self-destruct once his primary target has been destroyed. Only Scud decides he doesn't want to die, so he keeps his nearly-dead target alive while doing mercenary work to pay for his targets hospital bills.
But don't worry too much about the story... what's important is that every page you turn will be a drawing of some creature or crazy world that you have no past context to visually comprehend. Even by the standards of fantastical comic books, the jarring and creative imagery really kept this book riveting. Highly recommended, as a graphic novel and as art.
While the plot is completely wild and takes surreal and unexpected twists and turns, the art of Scud is incredibly... well the best word for it is f*cked up. I have never had a comic book come close to giving me a headache after reading it, but Scud leans on the side of explosions more explosion, and frames that emphasize kinetic energy more than being legible.
But there is a heart to this story, about a robot assassin who comes from a vending machine and is designed to self-destruct once his primary target has been destroyed. Only Scud decides he doesn't want to die, so he keeps his nearly-dead target alive while doing mercenary work to pay for his targets hospital bills.
But don't worry too much about the story... what's important is that every page you turn will be a drawing of some creature or crazy world that you have no past context to visually comprehend. Even by the standards of fantastical comic books, the jarring and creative imagery really kept this book riveting. Highly recommended, as a graphic novel and as art.
May 6, 2011
Put simply, the words "batshit insane" are not batshit insane enough to describe Scud: The Disposable Assassin. I always thought I was missing out by not following these comics in their original run, but it's nice to have them all in one volume. I was familiar with the basic premise - a robot assassin programmed to self-destruct when he kills his target instead decides to keep his first victim alive to prolong his own existence - but I had no idea that the world Scud inhabits was so incredibly weird that a computerized killbot would be the everyman character.
There's the crime boss giraffe with the flying saucer for a head. There's the arch-nemesis with mouths in her knees, a giant electric plug for a head, and a fully articulate giant squid grafted to her torso. And Benjamin Franklin, resurrected as an evil necromancer.
The problem in the early chapters is that Rob Schrab's creations are so bizarre it's not entirely clear what you're looking at from one panel to the next. As the comic progresses, either Schrab got better as a cartoonist or I just went a little off-kilter from filling my mind with this stuff. Either way, what shocked me most was that by the huge apocalyptic battle at the end (which is huge and apocalyptic in a way no mainstream comic except for Savage Dragon would have the guts to pull off) I actually cared about all these crazy characters. Who'da thunk?
Word of advice: when you read this, tap into your inner Mel Blanc. You'll want him doing the voices.
There's the crime boss giraffe with the flying saucer for a head. There's the arch-nemesis with mouths in her knees, a giant electric plug for a head, and a fully articulate giant squid grafted to her torso. And Benjamin Franklin, resurrected as an evil necromancer.
The problem in the early chapters is that Rob Schrab's creations are so bizarre it's not entirely clear what you're looking at from one panel to the next. As the comic progresses, either Schrab got better as a cartoonist or I just went a little off-kilter from filling my mind with this stuff. Either way, what shocked me most was that by the huge apocalyptic battle at the end (which is huge and apocalyptic in a way no mainstream comic except for Savage Dragon would have the guts to pull off) I actually cared about all these crazy characters. Who'da thunk?
Word of advice: when you read this, tap into your inner Mel Blanc. You'll want him doing the voices.
August 18, 2009
This was great totally irreverent and funny. The story is incredibly entertaining. Scud is a robot designed to wreak revenge for you and then blow up upon completion of said revenge, so there is no evidence. The only thing is that Scud is very self aware and he doesn't want to blow up. So you follow his adventures as he tries to earn money and keep his target alive. My only complaint is that action scenes can be very busy and tend to be difficult to follow.
July 27, 2015
I used to know of Scud as an old video game, this is my first encounter with Rob Schrab's comic work; and this book is an epic comic collection. The art and lettering have a lot of variety; the story ranges from comedic, to action packed, to profound, and has a tendency to use a combination of these elements at times. Great book. Favs of this book: zombie cyborg dinosaurs, Mess and Drywall to name few.
March 12, 2018
Well, that was weird.
It was interesting seeing the differences in the story as it was written in three large blocks. The overall concept was pretty great and unique and it's interesting seeing a young Dan Harmon's early writing.
It was a weird and unique journey, but I did enjoy it, although the artwork was a little difficult to follow in some of the earlier chapters, it all came together by the end.
It was interesting seeing the differences in the story as it was written in three large blocks. The overall concept was pretty great and unique and it's interesting seeing a young Dan Harmon's early writing.
It was a weird and unique journey, but I did enjoy it, although the artwork was a little difficult to follow in some of the earlier chapters, it all came together by the end.
June 10, 2019
Personal 5-star.
Gonna agree with some other reviews and point out that I usually don't care for this kind of writing; Too scatter-shot and too weird for the sake of being weird. It ended up being pretty good...still a bit off, but I think I know what the authors were trying to do.
Excellent art. The sense of motion is one of the best I've seen and as far as "action" comics go, this is at the apex of the form.
Gonna agree with some other reviews and point out that I usually don't care for this kind of writing; Too scatter-shot and too weird for the sake of being weird. It ended up being pretty good...still a bit off, but I think I know what the authors were trying to do.
Excellent art. The sense of motion is one of the best I've seen and as far as "action" comics go, this is at the apex of the form.
June 25, 2020
This is utterly impossible to describe with words. It is something that has to be experienced directly. But if you like things that are darkly humorous in a strange way...check it out. The only thing I can think of that would be remotely similar is 'Superjail!'
September 5, 2011
I borrowed it from my friend Zach. It was awesome.
June 24, 2020
Scud is an interesting little series that starts out rough but ultimately evolves into something complex and interesting. Scud takes place in an absurdist sci-fi future where you can buy robot assassins from vending machines, and they self-destruct upon killing their target. If that sounds a lot like Mr. Meeseeks from Rick and Morty, you shouldn't be surprised to find out that Dan Harmon actually wrote a number of issues early on.
The first four or five issues are a bit rough. There's a lot of "random for the sake of random" going on and while you can get the general gist of what's going on, the early issues are a little too dense to follow and it feels like it tries a little too hard at first. But around issue six, the series pulls back a little and things really take off. The action stays intricate, but becomes easier to follow, the plot gives itself a little more time to breathe, and in trying less hard to be funny it becomes a lot funnier and more endearing. The art is great from the start, but also becomes noticeably cleaner and more expressive around this time as well. Schrab's character designs are consistently excellent and I loved looking at every page of this series. Ultimately, the story grows into something huge and the ending is pretty much a perfect send-off for the series, making for a great ride that won't let you down.
What surprised me the most however, is how much every seemingly random or one-off bit from those early issues actually does come up and start to make sense in retrospect and I expect I'll appreciate them more if I ever re-read the series. Scud's universe, for all the weird anything-goes bizareness that goes on, becomes very tangible. Aside from the people getting assassinated, almost every character becomes a recurring element, and I really grew to love Scud's supporting cast. I think Drywall might be my new favorite sidekick in comics now. Each side character is given a fleshed out, complex life and it's surprising how much depth we get out of them in the 25 or so issues, in addition to Scud's own journey.
While this collection is titled The Whole Shebang, it's not quite every bit of Scud material out there, and Rob Schrab actually includes a note on this being due to printing limitations. Dan Harmon wrote a spinoff about some of the Mafia characters called La Cosa Nostroid and while this series never finished, Issue 6 happens concurrently with Issue 18, and I highly recommend hunting down the issues (The real issues are hard to get but .pdfs are floating out there if you don't mind that). Cosa Nostroid is a fascinating character study, showing how Scud's mafia friend goes from being an eager young upstart to a vicious monster, and it truly feels like a multiyear epic. Even though it ends on a cliffhanger, it's an excellent read and in some ways tells a cleaner tale than the main book. While Nostroid is the only spinoff that affects the main storyline in any way, I'd be remiss not to mention Tales from the Vending Machine, which is a fun series of one-shots each telling about other Scuds taking their targets. Lastly, there was a two-issue series called The Drywall and Oswald Show, which unfortunately never seemed to get to whatever it was building to. It has some fantastic art, but the story you do get isn't that interesting and it's pretty inconsequential.
I actually found out about this series while researching Sega Saturn Light Gun games, and while I never got around to buying the game, I'm glad it gave me the recognition to pick this up. I'd imagine with Dan Harmon having become really popular over the past decade fans may pick this up due to his involvement, and I really hope Schrab does something with Scud in the future. I don't think I'd want more comics, the ending is just too perfect, but I loved my time in this world and I think it would lend brilliantly to an animated series. If you want to get into Scud, this collection will definitely give you what you need to enjoy the story, but definitely check out some of the spinoffs as well. Scud really develops into something intricate and beautiful while maintaining a clear sense of fun throughout. Word of warning though, despite the bright colors on the cover and cute robots, it's not for kids.
The first four or five issues are a bit rough. There's a lot of "random for the sake of random" going on and while you can get the general gist of what's going on, the early issues are a little too dense to follow and it feels like it tries a little too hard at first. But around issue six, the series pulls back a little and things really take off. The action stays intricate, but becomes easier to follow, the plot gives itself a little more time to breathe, and in trying less hard to be funny it becomes a lot funnier and more endearing. The art is great from the start, but also becomes noticeably cleaner and more expressive around this time as well. Schrab's character designs are consistently excellent and I loved looking at every page of this series. Ultimately, the story grows into something huge and the ending is pretty much a perfect send-off for the series, making for a great ride that won't let you down.
What surprised me the most however, is how much every seemingly random or one-off bit from those early issues actually does come up and start to make sense in retrospect and I expect I'll appreciate them more if I ever re-read the series. Scud's universe, for all the weird anything-goes bizareness that goes on, becomes very tangible. Aside from the people getting assassinated, almost every character becomes a recurring element, and I really grew to love Scud's supporting cast. I think Drywall might be my new favorite sidekick in comics now. Each side character is given a fleshed out, complex life and it's surprising how much depth we get out of them in the 25 or so issues, in addition to Scud's own journey.
While this collection is titled The Whole Shebang, it's not quite every bit of Scud material out there, and Rob Schrab actually includes a note on this being due to printing limitations. Dan Harmon wrote a spinoff about some of the Mafia characters called La Cosa Nostroid and while this series never finished, Issue 6 happens concurrently with Issue 18, and I highly recommend hunting down the issues (The real issues are hard to get but .pdfs are floating out there if you don't mind that). Cosa Nostroid is a fascinating character study, showing how Scud's mafia friend goes from being an eager young upstart to a vicious monster, and it truly feels like a multiyear epic. Even though it ends on a cliffhanger, it's an excellent read and in some ways tells a cleaner tale than the main book. While Nostroid is the only spinoff that affects the main storyline in any way, I'd be remiss not to mention Tales from the Vending Machine, which is a fun series of one-shots each telling about other Scuds taking their targets. Lastly, there was a two-issue series called The Drywall and Oswald Show, which unfortunately never seemed to get to whatever it was building to. It has some fantastic art, but the story you do get isn't that interesting and it's pretty inconsequential.
I actually found out about this series while researching Sega Saturn Light Gun games, and while I never got around to buying the game, I'm glad it gave me the recognition to pick this up. I'd imagine with Dan Harmon having become really popular over the past decade fans may pick this up due to his involvement, and I really hope Schrab does something with Scud in the future. I don't think I'd want more comics, the ending is just too perfect, but I loved my time in this world and I think it would lend brilliantly to an animated series. If you want to get into Scud, this collection will definitely give you what you need to enjoy the story, but definitely check out some of the spinoffs as well. Scud really develops into something intricate and beautiful while maintaining a clear sense of fun throughout. Word of warning though, despite the bright colors on the cover and cute robots, it's not for kids.
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