Title: Lobster Johnson Vol. 2: The Burning Hand
Author: Mike Mignola, John Arcudi
Illustrator: Tonci Zonjic, Dave Stewart
Series: Lobster Johnson #2
Pages: 144
In this second volume, the crime-fighting hero Lobster Johnson is back, defeating bad guys and leaving his signature mark. This volume focuses on a gangster crime boss and his cronies.
This was another very enjoyable comic. I am really enjoying these pulp-style stories, especially since they are all self contained and you don’t have to have read previous stories to understand what is going on. (Not that I didn’t read the previous comic but its a bonus.) Lobster Johnson is back with his crew trying to take down a mob boss, but that boss has a very smart sidekick who leads the Lobster on a wild goose chase around town. This leads to heavy fights with cannibals, gangster cronies, and a very deadly fight against the Black Flame.
Black Flame was a very interesting villain. I actually read Sledgehammer 44 before reading this volume, so this wasn’t my first introduction to the Black Flame. I found him to be an interesting villain but he didn’t get very much page time. I wish his story had been longer and we had learned some of his backstory because I think it would have been really interesting, and brought more to the story.
Overall, a great follow up to the first volume of the Lobster Johnson series. I can’t wait to jump into volume three and see who the Lobster goes after next.
Previous books and reviews for the series:
Red-Haired Ash Reads 