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Sep 28, 2017 Web Exclusive By Jeremy Nisen

Rock Candy Mountain is, simply put, goddamned delightful. Kyle Starks, who both wrote and drew the book, introduces us to a world that invokes certain classic tropes-a deal with the devil, the honorable hobo, the impossible quest-but with a fresh eye and engaging cartooning style that’s worthy of, say, E.C. Segar (Popeye) or perhaps is best cross compared with Kevin Cannon’s Far Arden and Crater XV (two of our favorite books of the past 10 years).

Jackson, the hobo we mentioned above, is the perhaps deluded protagonist, a hobo’s hobo and a fighter’s fighter, whose quest is to literally find the Rock Candy Mountain immortalized in the song of the same name. The reader’s entry point is Jackson’s new-to-the-hobo-life sidekick, a man rechristened “Pomona Slim,” whose bad luck is both a major catalyst for both story points and comedy. The period details are visually pleasing and give a sense of time and place; the invocation of hobo history and railcar culture are informative and at time hilarious (such as when Jackson explains to Slim the difference between hobos and tramps after encountering a skeezy pair of the latter).

This book is really among the finest balances of humor, action, and visuals we’ve seen in a long time. Our only complaint is that this first volume only holds four issues’ worth of the series, and we want more. Now. Perhaps even more than that mythical lake of stew, and of whiskey too. (www.imagecomics.com)

Author rating: 8.5/10