Chum #1-3 Review: Surf Noir For Mature Readers
By Alex Widen
A pulp mystery on a surfers’ paradise! A crooked cop, a drug kingpin, a reporter, and a sultry dame. Does Chum reinvent the genre?
Chum #1-3
Writer: Ryan K. Lindsay
Artist: Sami Kivela
Colorist: Mark Dale
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If any independent comic book publisher offers a variety, it’s ComixTribe. Their titles include horror, science fiction, and even superheroes. Now it includes a genre they’ve lovingly dubbed “surf noir.” It’s a unique way to sell a wholly unique pulp style mystery tale. In Chum, readers get a well executed seedy drama in the style of “golden age” cinema, only set in a modern day surfer’s paradise. It’s definitely not for kids, but offers plenty of suspense, sex, and violence.
Image from ComixTribe
The three-issue tale takes place on Kingsford Island, host to an annual Bombora surfing competition. Yet beneath the waves and away from the sand, a very grimy human drama is coming to a head. All of it centers around the femme fatale of the piece, Summer Stanwyck. A vivacious red head who runs her own bistro, she serves up more than eggs or alcohol to the locals. Summer’s ability to twist men to her will sparks the entire brutal affair of the piece.
Image from ComixTribe
Chum Has All the Great Noir Elements!
Her soon-to-be ex husband is Ed Standard, Kingsford’s local cop. A blissful married life on the island long since a memory, both seem to stay to irk the other. A bitter and broken man, the last case that Standard got to the bottom of was a case of beer. If it wasn’t bad enough that Summer keeps postponing their divorce, Standard’s endlessly needled by a local reporter. Her name’s Hannah Balaz and she’s set to unravel the mystery that Standard is too drunk or hapless to solve.
Image from ComixTribe
That mystery involves the island’s resident crime boss. Known only as Penny, he’s a man who feeds enemies to the sharks so often, the predators literally recognize his voice. Rarely seen without his shades or tacky shorts, he’s also Summer’s “friend with benefits.” Same as the lawman, Penny seems to revolve around Summer’s every word or touch. Penny may be all smiles around her, but he controls every racket on Kingsford and nobody can move in on his watch.
Image from ComixTribe
So, we have the vixen, the mobster, the reporter, and the cop. Something, or someone, always has to set the wheels in motion for stories such as this. In this case, it’s Gus, a burly surfer who longs to move in on Penny’s territory of both drugs and women. After dispatching with one of Penny’s goons, Summer goads him into murdering another almost on a whim. Realizing too late that the man, “Swampy,” was Standard’s informant, Summer plots a way to escape the island forever.
Image from ComixTribe
It Isn’t Just the Surf That’s Tricky!
What follows is a series of twists, turns, murders, and betrayals. Anyone who underestimates Summer as a leggy red head usually pays in blood for it. Penny may run the island, but Summer runs Penny. When Standard is too drunk or nostalgic to see the truth, he winds up engaged in his last patrol. In a struggle to the death, will Summer escape, or will Standard drag her below? In the end, the only winners on Kingsford Island may be the sharks, who are always kept full.
Image from ComixTribe
From the suspenseful story to the consistently gritty narration, Ryan K Lindsay showcases his noir chops. He’s aware of all of the tropes and elements of the genre and knows how to supplant them from Prohibition era films to a modern tropical setting. His characters are primal and complicated, with more than one layer to unravel behind them. It’s no surprise that he was chosen for DC Comics’ Writers Workshop this fall. Lindsay’s clearly going places as a writer from here.
Image from ComixTribe
Sami Kivela‘s artwork is another key draw for the series. The Finnish artist is best known for work for publishers such as Zenescope Entertainment and Moonstone Books. He captures realistic figures as well as lush background very vividly. The violence and gore is as brutal as expected without being exaggerated or exploitative. From the surf to the sharks to the lovely Summer and gritty Standard, its a visual feast for the eyes. Mark Dale’s colors match it perfectly as well.
Image from ComixTribe
Next: Check out Sink, another cool ComixTribe comic!
Always Bet on the Sharks!
Chum isn’t just something Adam West said a lot in 1966’s Batman series. It’s a term for bait used to lure fish, sharks in particular, with blood and flesh from other animals. Sharks are the ultimate predator, unchanged in millions of years. When people are reduced to base instincts or desires, they often act little better. All noir stories tend to be parables about human nature, and this is Chum’s ultimate success. At only three issues, it’s an easy choice for fans to sink their teeth into.