The Beef

The Beef #1-5

by Richard Starkings (Story), Tyler Shainline, Shaky Kane (Artist)

Chuck Carter is a mild mannered slaughterer of cows at The Beef meat processing plant. When the object of his affections is pursued across a strawberry patch by a mad cow, Chuck takes on the mantle of The Beef and vegetarians break loose; ketchup everywhere.

Collects THE BEEF #1-5

Genres: Comics, Satire, Graphic Novels Comics, Graphic Novels

120 pages, Paperback

First published July 18, 2018

About the author

Richard Starkings is a British comics professional, known for writing the hit sci-fi series ELEPHANTMEN and specializing in lettering, thanks to his award-winning Comicraft lettering studio.

Reviews

[Alex Sarll]

In a cattle town roughly as salubrious as the one from Preacher, one beaten-down schmuck has finally had enough - enough of the boss and his thuggish family, and enough dubious nutrition that he turns into a sort of raw meat Hulk with the power to do something about them. It could easily have come across as a preachy vegan screed were it not for the flat grotesquerie of Shaky Kane's art, which instead makes it all feel like some nightmarish memory of a public information film watched during a childhood illness. Prescience points, too, for the asshole cop who talks in Morrissey quotes - that issue is prefaced with an apology to the singer, but as things turned out, it was pretty much on the nose.

(Edelweiss ARC)

[Paul Allard · Rating 3 out of 5]

An amusing indictment of the meat industry as a “superhero” comic

For us non-Americans, this series perpetuates our opinion of their industrial agricultural practices. Deeply moralising about the meat industry and featuring an unlikely hero (and Gandhi!), this series is amusing and interesting.
With simple artwork, the plot moves along well and this is worth a look, especially if you’re sceptical about the food industry.

[K De · Rating 4 out of 5]

Starkings, Shainline and Kane are creators of "The Beef" comic book collection. There is heady and surreal settings that they create with Mexican immigrants and good ol' boy factory meat processing owners. It is fact based tour de force about meat and the men who are turned into robots along the slaughter line. There is romance, fisticuffs, and Ghandi in the brew that shows what a world we live in. Take a read for those with a cast iron eye and sense of humor about the human condition.

[David Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A confused book, as are many of my favourites, but the clash between the slow, traditional superhero storytelling of the first three issues and the pop art didactics of the concluding episodes just makes for messy reading.

Too much offal, not enough of a sense of where it came from or what to do with it.

[Theediscerning · Rating 2 out of 5]

Highly repetitive, this book aims to collide superhero spoofing of old with modern, social sensibilities. So there is a lot of trite talk about the American beef and milk industry whose politics seem to have been borrowed from Morrissey, and a lot of talk about the side-issue of Mexican workers in the US (clearly not taken from the politics of Morrissey, ie it's on their side). I have no idea why they couldn't deign to translate a lot of it from the Spanish, but even without that I didn't really feel the love. It's not dreadful, but it's of passing interest only. Oh, and did I say, it was very repetitive? Two and a half stars.

[Alex · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have thoroughly enjoyed almost everything I've picked up from Image Comics. So when I saw this, I thought it sounded like it might be a rather fun and warped adventure through some particularly unsavory topics but no.... This turned out to be the worst comic I've read in quite awhile. The art was great actually, but the story was just a poorly veiled preachy mess. Not fun with some good information thrown in but rather a "Hey you! If you eat meat or dairy you must be an A-hole." attitude throughout.

[Zack! Empire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really love the art and the color, but man, this is one bizarre comic. I'm not even sure how to describe it. It's kind of a Superhero story, but not really. It's mostly about how animals are mistreated in order to provide people with meat and milk. Honestly it felt a bit preachy at times. Still, it didn't make me pause and wonder about where my hamburgers are coming from and maybe that is the point?
I would definitely read more work with this same artist, but probably not the writer.

[David Intramuros · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Fast Food Nation" meets "Hulk". Brutal y desvergonzado panfleto animalista que te deja con el estómago revuelto. La verdad, no me esperaba esta sacudida del mal gusto underground en un tebeo de Image.

Agradable sorpresa en su desagradabilidad. Me levanté con pocas ganas de tomar leche hoy, la verdad...

[Babs · Rating 2 out of 5]

Funky pop art feel, but not my thing in the end. Is this a story about a meaty superhero dealing with racist rednecks with a harsh message about beef and dairy farming? Or mostly just a harsh message about beef and dairy farming with a few peripheral characters thrown in to make a narrative?

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of my guilty pleasure reads because of the art and absurd premise. You can tell that this was created by some UK peeps mad at not just the industrial food complex but America too. It's interesting, educational in parts, and artistically quirky.

[Grace Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seems to me that it’s the lovechild of Southern Bastards and Chew. Beautiful colours, mind blowing creativity, some of the writing and panels are nuts, in the best way possible.

[Moon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never write reviews for books. But I highly recommend this book. Maybe the weirdest thing I have ever read. Super fun.

[Sophia K · Rating 2 out of 5]

The wtf book I read this year. Weird can begin to discribe it.

[Rod DiManna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is gonna stay with me a long, long time. Brilliant, wretched and thought provoking.

[Andy Haddon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hugely enjoyable gonzo critique of inhumane beef and dairy farming practices.
Like King Of The Hill meets silver age Incredible Hulk meets 2000AD weird.

[Callum Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

An obscure premise, but one I thoroughly enjoyed

[Newly Wardell · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is vegetarian propaganda at its finest.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish there was more Beef

[Clover Gislason · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cool cover art. Concerning story. I wasn’t expecting homophobia, sexism, AND racism in a story called The Beef but goddamn they did a lot in a handful of pages

[catnipthief · Rating 4 out of 5]

Na, hát ennyire agyahagyott cuccot…
Őszintén bevallom, hogy The Beef-et kizárólag a rajzolásért felelős Shaky Kane miatt vettem meg, mert egyszerűen bomlok a csávó grafikáiért, legyen az bármelyik könyve. Többször beszéltem már róla az értékeléseim közt, de ha lemaradtál volna, akkor nagyon dióhéjban, Shaky Kane olyan, mint egy nagy marék varázsgombán trippelő Jack Kirby.
A The Beef eredetisége mindenképp ötöst érdemel, én legalábbis nem találkoztam még agrikulturális szuperhőssel azelőtt. Nem, Poison Ivy nem számít, meg Swamp Thing sem.
Szóval Chuck Carter egy hamburger/tehéntej diétán tengődő, jószándékú mészáros, aki napi szinten gyilkol le vágásra ítélt marhákat. Tetszik neki a mészárszék körül dolgozó mexikói lányka, aki emigráns családjával próbál boldogulni a nagy büdös Amerikában.
Egy nap a mészárszék szörnyetegforma tulajdonosának hasonlóan szörnyetegforma fiai zaklatni kezdik a mexikói lánykát, ezen meg aztán az amúgy szintén lábtörlőnek használt Chuck csak bedühödik, és a szituációs stressz meg egy megkergült marha miatt Chuckből egy nagy, nyershús-mintázatú hamburger-Hulk lesz. Magyar neve lehetne A Löncs, vagy mittudomén.
Mondanom sem kell, hogy ez természetesen nem csak egy kurva elszabott szuperhős-sztori, de egyben vegán tanmese is, méghozzá elég direkt módon.
Ebbe én már nem is mászok bele, mert ugyan én magam is csak növényi dolgokat fogyasztok durván 7 éve, vagy egy kicsit talán már több, de ennek ellenére nem férnék bele a vegán társadalomba, meg nem is akarnék, mert nem érzem szívügyemnek, hogy erről bárkit meggyőzzek, egész egyszerűen nem érdekel már a mások gyomra. Illetve egy kicsit kontraproduktívnak is érzem a túlságosan erőltetett propagandát. Na, ez a könyv megteszi helyettem. Hozzátenném, számomra jóval szimpatikusabb és emészthetőbb módon, mint teszik azt az olyan filmek, mint az Earthlings vagy a Cowspiracy, vagy az a sok féleszű aktivista, akit a neten szoktam látni, de minden szimpatikussága ellenére is meglehetősen direkten nevel a cucc. Nem tudom, lehet, hogy ez tökjó, lehet, hogy túl sok. Engem már nem kell ebbe az irányba lökni, úgyhogy én igazából azt hiszem, nem is tudom megítélni. Igen, tudom, senkit sem KELL ebbe az irányba lökni.
Csak a vegánfóboknak mondom, mielőtt belevágnának, hogy itt azért sok minden van, ami aztán vagy elgondolkodtat, vagy csak fel fog idegelni.
Kár lenne emiatt széttépni, mert minden ilyesmi ellenérzésem ellenére egy totálisan szórakoztató kuriózum, ha csak a képi világot és az alapötletet nézem.

[beau · Rating 1 out of 5]

2.5/10

Just pick up a pamphlet on why u should be vegan instead