Big Trouble In Little China/Escape From New York #6 Review: Cthulhu Snake

Snake Plissken and Jack Burton have come to the end of the road. Can even a Cthulhu save the day?

Big Trouble In Little China/Escape From New York #6

Writer: Greg Pak

Artist: Daniel Bayliss

Colorist: Triona Farrell

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Six issues of Kurt Russell crossovers have come to this. Snake Plissken and Jack Burton stand between freedom and chaos. BOOM! Studios ambitious and often hilarious combination of John Carpenter franchises comes to a spectacular conclusion. It has a little bit of everything. There’s comedy, action, magical guitars, gun play, evil sorcerers, and even a giant Cthulhu! The finale is just as creatively crazy as the previous five issues were. From start to finish, this has been an utter joy.

Image by BOOM! Studios

The proceedings have gotten so delightfully crazy that even the narrator knows it. Jack Burton has accidentally been zapped from 1987 to an alternate version of 2001. He’s mistaken for Snake Plissken, who the counterpart of his best pal was trying to reach. The ghost wizard Lo Pan was also brought here and summoned alternate dimension versions of Snake as an army. Now Snake’s foe Bob Hauk and what is left of the U.S. army are blasting them with a magic guitar.

Image by BOOM! Studios

This is the Biggest Battle yet for These Two!

As a result, Jack Burton and Lo Pan have struck a deal. In exchange for summoning the most powerful alternate Plissken, Jack will surrender his life force. While this is happening, Sgt. Clarence O’Reilly is using the magic guitar from Blind Apple Mary as a weapon for the President. This last version of Snake is literally a Cthulhu with an eye patch! As the genuine Plissken ducks for cover, Lady Snake, the sole survivor of Lo Pan’s horde, has other ideas for conquest.

Image by BOOM! Studios

This consequently leads to a finale which is as exciting as it is bonkers. It isn’t Snake or even Jack who really save the day—it’s Blind Apple Mary. Jack and Plissken merely facilitate her emerging as a rallying force for the post-apocalypse. Throughout it all, Snake has been an unwilling part of the affair, countering Jack’s incompetent eagerness. Yet when Lo Pan comes to collect on his bargain, Snake is willing to gamble with his own soul to save his unlikely ally.

Image by BOOM! Studios

Throughout this run, Greg Pak has created one of the most creatively nostalgic yarns BOOM! Studios has produced. This team up has plenty of references to the films it’s based and titled after. You can all but imagine Kurt Russell himself voicing the leads (to say nothing of James Hong’s David Lo Pan). The circumstances for Jack and Snake meeting could only work in a comic book, but Pak takes full advantage of this. Each panel oozes with fun and creative ideas.

Image by BOOM! Studios

The Artwork Also Ramps up to Eleven!

Daniel Bayliss and Triona Farrell knock it out of the park on art. Bayliss’ linework has a European flair to it, while Farrell’s colors are vibrant and distinct. For this issue the pair go to town with the Cthulhu and all of the pink energy blasts from the guitar. Blind Apple Mary’s last stand against Lady Snake truly must be seen to be believed. Yet the pair also continue their stride on the physical comedy. Jack’s luck is always his greatest weapon, and Snake’s teeth are always gritted.

Image by BOOM! Studios

Some fans may be critical of the open-ended ending. Rather than resolve everything and send the pair their own ways, Pak sets up a last gag. To me this is not only Pak’s way of avoiding a cliche, but in paying homage to director John Carpenter. He was often a fan of finales which left a promise of more, without tying things up in a neat bow. Both of the above films ended that way, along with his remake of The Thing. Sending the pair to “Burton-Land” was a hilarious endgame.

Image by BOOM! Studios

Most of the series has focused more on Burton’s point of view. It helps that Lo Pan is one of cinema’s best villains, but Big Trouble In Little China did last 25 issues at BOOM! Studios. John Carpenter himself co-wrote a dozen issues of it. Yet this issue puts more focus on Snake Plissken. He may be gruff and tough, but that’s more a consequence of his soldier life than him personally. Ultimately, he will do what he feels is right and stick up for the little people.

Image by BOOM! Studios

Grab This Series Because Good Ol’ Jack Burton Would!

Image by BOOM! Studios

Yet it may be possible that BOOM! Studios may draft a sequel. Thanks to the magic of Loot Crate, the first issue in October sold over 421,000 copies. Subsequent issues sold nowhere near as good, but their sales became academic after such a debut. The series was easily one of BOOM!’s best selling minis as well as one of the industry’s best sellers of 2016. If Greg Pak, Daniel Bayliss and Triona Farrell have another romp in them, it seems very probable we may see it.

Image by BOOM! Studios

Next: See all the madcap wackiness of #5!

In conclusion, Big Trouble In Little China / Escape From New York is everything comic books should be about. There is consistent characterization, a buffet of creative ideas, a lot of heart, and a barrel of laughs. I’ve seen stories just as absurd as this one played with the utmost seriousness—Marvel Comics’ Secret Wars or Spider-Verse come to mind. Jack Burton and Snake Plissken remain massively entertaining characters, and this meeting has seen them at their best.