The Recount #4 - Scout Comics

THE RECOUNT No. 4, April 2021

There’s a definite sense of Jonathan Hedrick ‘closing in for the kill’ with his narrative for Issue Four of “The Recount” as the American author basically boils down his United States wide uprising to a somewhat self-contained, action-packed assault upon the White House by a team of mask-wearing assassins. Happily however, that doesn’t mean for an instant that this mini-series’ final chapter lacks the sense-shattering surprises of its earlier instalments, courtesy of Special Agent Barto’s desperate attempt to ward off the President’s would-be killers with any household compliance which comes to hand, and the brains behind America’s so-called revolution finally revealing his true identity to Meredith McDearmon.

Furthermore, this twenty-eight page periodical does occasionally manage to throw a brief spotlight upon the rioting in Downtown Macon, Georgia, and show that despite the current Chief of Police’s traitorous behaviour, your average member of the public thankfully won’t “point those weapons at each other” and irrationally commit cold-blooded murder. Indeed, despite being highly emotional and armed with automatic weapons, Hedrick illustrates through the compassionate behaviour of ex-Vietnam veteran Abe, that the American people can not only tell the difference between right and right, but also make a stand against those in authority who would either try to blur or cross those lines; “All my mistakes are in the past, Seth. I’ve moved forward. While you’re crawling into the bottomless pit.”

Easily this comic’s biggest draw though, is Barto’s aforementioned battle against a cadre of colourfully-costumed weapon-wielding contractors who prove utterly merciless in their mission to execute President McDearmon. Garfield, Teddy, Lady Bird and Kanaan’s fight sequences are as pulse-pounding as they are bloody, and certainly make for a plethora of memorable moments - not least of which concerns Meredith gunning down the “modern-day sneak thief in the mold of Nezumi Kozo” as the skull-faced hitman attempts to saw his way through the Oval Office’s unprotected ceiling.

Perhaps therefore this book’s sole disappointment lies in Joe Bocardo taking over the artistic duties of Gabriel Ibarra-Nunez. Admittedly, there isn’t anything actually wrong with the illustrator’s proficient pencilling, especially when it comes to such bouts of pugilism as Barto going hand-to-hand with Teddy underwater in a swimming pool. Yet, the discernible difference in technical style to their predecessor is debatably a little disconcerting, and as a result takes some reading time to acclimatise to some of the slightly different looking leading cast members.

Writer: Jonathan Hedrick, Artist: Joe Bocardo, and Colorist: Sunil Ghagre

The Recount #3 - Scout Comics

THE RECOUNT No. 3, March 2021

Pitilessly playing upon the paranoia of the reader in his earnest endeavour to ensure that none of this comic’s cast are wholly trusted to keep Meredith McDearmon safe and well, Jonathan Hedrick’s script for Issue Three of “The Recount” initially seems more focused with undermining the loyalty of the American President’s personal protectors through a string of interrogation-based panels than depicting the disconcerting violence seen inside the mini-series’ previous instalments. But this approach soon changes once the publication turns its attention to “a standoff between the Police Department and armed citizens in the town of Macon, Georgia.”

Indeed, the Florida-born writer’s decision to suddenly throw this book’s audience a savagely violent curveball straight after such sedentary scenes in which Special Agent Barto and her boss are shown munching away on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, genuinely seems to add an extra layer of brutally to the cold-blooded execution of Public Order Team A when they are ordered to about face and have their heads literally blown off by their shotgun-wielding work colleagues; “This is yours now. Use it. Let them know you won’t be threatened.”

Equally as entertaining, though somewhat less physically vicious, is Hedrick’s well-penned meeting between the clown-faced ghoul behind America’s barbaric uprising and the White House’s former resident. The surprisingly intimate familiarity between the two characters smacks of just how well-planned and deeply rooted the bloody revolution actually is, as well as showing just what a truly deranged, yet dedicated, killer the rebellion’s mysterious leader is when the previous president is suddenly assassinated towards the end of their friendly conversation, courtesy of a poisonous “bottle of whiskey from Woodrow Wilson’s own supply.”

Adding plenty of emotion and raw action to this publication’s proceedings is Gabriel Ibarra-Nunez’s prodigious pencilling. The freelance illustrator’s double-splash showing off the specialist skills Kanaan’s hand-picked team of murderers is suitably reminiscent to something seen in a super-hero comic book when an arch-villain summarises the nefarious attributes of their latest criminal gang. Whilst the shockingly sad demise of Public Order Team A somehow manages to capture the stunned surprise of both the victims and onlookers as the ‘loyalist’ police officers are mercilessly gunned down.

Writer: Jonathan Hedrick, Artist: Gabriel Ibarra-Nunez, and Colorist: Sunil Ghagre

The Recount #2 - Scout Comics

THE RECOUNT No. 2, February 2021

Dripping with suspense, terror and outright treachery, Jonathan Hedrick’s narrative for Issue Two of “The Recount” disconcertingly depicts a modern-day America where literally no-one is safe from a gun-toting maniac, not even the recently sworn in President of the United States. Yet whilst some lesser authors might have used this scary situation as an opportunity to simply depict the enormity of the nation’s large scale unrest with some sweepingly grand scenes of unruly rioting in the streets, the American author instead cleverly focuses upon a few personal moments of murder, which both brings a truly emotional aspect to this comic’s storytelling, as well as gives its victims an all-too believable vulnerability; “Eighteen and a soldier. Now he’s dead. That masked guy on TV is right. You voted for Christensen… And you should be punished.”

Of course, the main thrust of this twenty-four page periodical’s plot is Special Agent Barto’s desperate attempt to get her Commander-In-Chief safely back to the White House, and their pulse-pounding drive towards Pennsylvania Avenue doesn’t disappoint as their car quickly comes under attack from a jeep packed full of heavily-armed lunatics. However, this desperate dash for survival is made all the more impactive as it follows directly on from a truly harrowing sequence of well-meaning Americans being cold-bloodedly gunned down by fanatics whilst they are simply going about their day-to-day business.

In addition, Hedrick doesn’t seemingly fall into the trap of turning Meredith McDearmon’s sole saviour into some sort of omnipotent super-cop either, but simply pens the woman as being proficient at her job. Indeed, one of this publication’s highlights is the somewhat antagonistic relationship the bodyguard and Madame President quickly develop, with Barto’s boss being far from happy just to silently cower from her enemies in the back of an armoured vehicle. Let alone take ‘orders’ from the “badass secret service agent.”

Just as enjoyable as this book’s script are Gabriel Ibarra-Nunez’s excellent layouts, which do a first-rate job of imbuing his figures with plenty of personality and sentiment. The action scenes are as dynamic as any reader could surely want, whilst the Santiago-born artist’s ability to etch the sheer terror on the face of Abe as his neighbour guns him down in his own flat is gut-wrenchingly graphic.

Writer: Jonathan Hedrick, Artist: Gabriel Ibarra-Nunez, and Colorist: Sunil Ghagre

The Recount #1 - Scout Comics

THE RECOUNT No. 1, November 2020

Absolutely packed full of political intrigue, gruesome assassinations, and a ton of treachery, Jonathan Hedrick’s script for Issue One of “The Recount” must surely have caused this comic’s readership to be constantly second-guessing just who the Vice President of the United States of America could actually trust during his narrative’s distinctly trying times. Indeed, the script for this twenty-four page periodical arguably conveys such a disconcerting sense of governmental sedition and suspicion, that it is hard not to draw an analogy for this modern-day storyline with that of the ambiguity surrounding the deaths of John F. Kennedy, Lee Harvey Oswald and Jack Ruby back in the early Sixties.

For starters, impeached President Anthony Christensen’s cold-blooded murder just as the Commander-in-Chief was publically resigning from his great office, is immediately followed by both the killing of the vacating leader’s hit man and his would-be saviour’s instant arrest for shooting the traitorous Agent Ischy “instead of tackling him.” Such a flurry of deaths, allegations and insinuations immediately brings every character’s motivations into question, and even implies that the interrogator interviewing Agent Simon Kanaan believes that his prisoner only shot his target so quickly because he knew beforehand what the rogue secret service operative was about to do.

Likewise, the Vice President is very quick to question both the loyalty and competence of her entire circle of closest advisors. This atmosphere of distrust is genuinely palpable, and increasingly builds throughout the publication as more murders follow. In fact, by the time the sheer scale of the mass conspiracy is finally revealed “by a group calling themselves The Masses”, it would be blatantly clear to all but the most naively-minded perusing bibliophile that, with the possible exception of quick-drawing bodyguard Bree Barto, no-one within the White House should probably be  trusted; “Christensen wasn’t alone in his crimes. He may have given the order to send young men and women overseas to an unnecessary war. But that was with the people whispering in his ear. They pushed their own agendas and used him like a puppet. Those who could gain from his position orchestrated the corruption.”  

Helpfully stoking the fires of Hedrick’s disconcerting national nightmare are Gabriel Ibarra-Nunez’s excellent layouts, which go a long way to adding plenty of pace to some shockingly violent scenes and harrowingly tense confrontations. The Chilean artist’s sense of timing with the frequency and shape of his panels is perfect for conveying the mistrust pervading from this comic’s considerably-sized cast, with Kanaan’s bloody rescue from "an undisclosed location" proving especially well-plotted and pencilled.

Writer: Jonathan Hedrick, Artist: Gabriel Ibarra-Nunez, and Colorist: Sunil Ghagre