Z-View: “Gravedigger: The Scavengers”

Gravedigger: The Scavengers #1 of 1

Original comic published by Rorschach Entertainment

Free Web Comic published by Christopher Mills at GravediggerComic.com

Script, Tones, Letters: Christopher Mills

Pencils and Inks: Rick Burchett

Cover A (shown): Rick Burchett

In his world, there are only two kinds of men: the Dead and the Deadly.

Gravedigger: The Scavengers  is available in two forms: a one shot comic published by Rorschach Entertainment and as an ongoing free web-comic.  The paper comic is worth tracking down, but if you can’t get your mitts on a copy, the web-comic contains the original one shot and more.  The comic is printed as you see it online in a widescreen format.

Gravedigger McCrae (Digger to his  friends) just got out of prison after serving three years of a five-year bit. Digger’s feeling old and looking for that one final score that he can use to coast into retirement.  He may have found his golden ticket when a crime associate that he’d worked with one time before brings him in on a $800 thousand caper.  All they have to do is hijack a gunrunner’s deal.  Digger and the crew can keep all the guns and the cash… of course they’ll have to kill everyone not in their crew to get away clean.

Digger is not sure who he can trust.  Bunny was brought in by Digger, so he should be okay, but how good is okay with 800 large on the line?  B.T. is good with a gun, but looks more like a punk than a shooter.  Goodis is the pilot that’ll fly them out of there, but will he stick around if things go sideways?  Red is the one who set things up.  He seems a bit jumpy… perhaps because he’s brought Angel, his hot looking wife, in on the deal.  That doesn’t sit well with Digger.  He knows a sure way to queer a deal is to bring in a dame.

Digger’s worries about Red’s wife screwing things up take a turn when she comes on to Digger. Three years in prison, a hot young babe and opportunity make Digger’s decision easy.  Angel offers Digger a plan that will leave the two of them with the cash and a smooth getaway together.  Sure, Digger will have to kill Red and maybe a few members of the crew, but isn’t she and $800 k worth it?  Digger is in deep.  He needs the deal and the money it will bring.  He’s enjoying Angel, but knows she can’t be trusted… no one can be trusted.  The cards are dealt, so he might as well play out the hand and see who wins.

Chris Mills and Rick Burchett have created a crime comic that is a treat to read.  Gravedigger: The Scavengers is like a love letter to fans of Lee Marvin, Richard Stark Parker novels, crime movies, crime novels and crime comics.   This is one of the best one-shot comics of any genre that I’ve ever read.

Chris Mills has created a unique character in  Gravedigger.  Digger’s not a good guy.  He knows and accepts this.  Mills has a feel for all the characters, a love of the crime genre and a way with words.  I hope someday to read a Gravedigger novel or book of short stories by Mills.

Rick Burchett is the perfect artist for this comic.  His art compliments Mill’s prose.  Burchett is truly amazing in that he knows where to focus the readers eyes for the most impact. Should anyone ever do a Gravedigger: The Scavengers movie, the storyboards are done thanks to Burchett.

I am glad that Mills and Burchett are deep into their second Gravedigger story –  Gravedigger: The Predators.  My hope is that the two Gravedigger stories will lead to a Kickstarter so that we’ll get a hardcover worthy of showcasing these stories.

Gravedigger: The Scavengers is a comic for mature audiences due to adult language and situations.

Rating: 5 out of 5