Okay, so first up let’s talk a little about the people behind the comic. Sarah Beattie, is a writer and comedian, originally from Hawaii. She first came to my attention back in 2019 after some of her tweets regarding Trump and MAGA went viral. I found that her social media identity was fun, and I went ahead and followed her. I was excited when she first began discussing Money Shot, and now that we have this brand spanking new comic book review section I felt the time was ripe to review it. Speaking of which, this isn’t Beattie’s only foray into comic book writing, she is one of the contributing writers to Superman vs Lobo, a limited series published by DC Black Label (a DC Comics imprint, which focuses on unique, controversial and otherwise provocative material) which debuted in October 2021. You can follow Beattie on Twitter and Instagram.
Tim Seeley, the other writer for Money Shot is an established comic book writer and artist from Chicago. He has drawn for established series such as G.I Joe and Wildcats, and for writing for Hack/Slash, Nightwing and Green Lantern. He is also another contributing writer to the Superman vs Lobo series I discussed above. He works for Four Star Studios, a comic book publisher, also based in Chicago. You can visit his website, or follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
Art for the comic is done by Rebekah Isaacs, a comic book artist and illustrator from New York, who is most well known for her illustration work on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Reaver and Angel & Faith. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram. Kurt Michael Russell, an artist and colourist who is based in Long Beach, Mississippi and whose credits include Glitterbomb, Postal #13-25, Hack/Slash: Son of Samhain and Judge Dredd. You can visit his website or follow him on Twitter and Instagram. And rounding off the team of artists who bring Money Shot to life we have Caroline Leigh Layne, an illustrator and designer from Houston, Texas. She is noted for her webcomic Mimosa Memoirs and You can visit her website, or follow her on Twitter and Instagram.
Now for a quick bit about the comic in question, Money Shot, is a sci-fi romp through space, heavy on the comedy and adult situations. It follows a team of scientists, who boldly go where no man has gone before, and boldly cum as well. And with that terrible attempt at comedy over, I’ll add that the series debuted in October 2019 and has had 15 issues published to date. I own all but the most recent issue, which I’ll be purchasing after Christmas, so enjoy my thoughts on the first issue, and I will be back to update this with the subsequent issues after the holidays. Also before I forget, Money Shot was published by Vault Comics, a publisher which focuses on creator owned science fiction, fantasy, and horror comics and graphic novels, from both emerging and established creators and you should check out some of their other titles.
Issue #1
SO I came in expecting it to be explicit and I wasn’t disappointed, it opens with a sexy fish man being propositioned, and it becomes clear that they will be filming the entire thing. I like the energy of the whole thing, it could easily be cringey, but it’s self aware and has fun with itself. It’s funny and things are immediately brought to life. I also like the juxtaposition between the upfront sex stuff, and then the backstory, we see the group as scientists, tired of begging for money. Instead they decide to earn it a different way. I also like that despite the risque subject matter, it’s not one track, it fleshes out the world around it, and provides a plausible backstory for how we end up where the story picks up. I wasn’t even halfway through the issue when I knew I was hooked. It’s just got a certain charm to it, that makes it funny and enjoyable. I think it easily has the potential to be entertaining enough to sustain itself for many issues and I look forward to reading more soon.
The artwork is awesome, it has personality, and fine detail that adds to the whole thing without detracting from the story. The character design was beautiful, there’s a cohesive overall design to them, but they also manage to be clear and distinct, running the gambit of physical representation. I’ve seen plenty of comics where characters, especially background or secondary characters get a bit homogenous in their design, Money Shot avoids this. I also like that it plays with the sexual nature of the subject matter, the dialogue can be as course as it likes, but the artwork maintains just enough ambiguity to render it titillating rather than out and out pornography. It’s a thin line, but it’s one that’s well measured.
Overall, the first issue of Money Shot is fun, creates a rich backdrop for development, has some interesting characters and some fabulous design work that brings it to life. I give it a 5/5.
First Published on: https://offtherecordblog.org/
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