by Michael J. Foy

The stage has been set for a great battle in Little China! Big Trouble number eight is here and I’m excited to get to the action! Wang and Jack, now backed by an unlikely group, are heading back to the den of the evil Lo Pan in hopes of banishing him once again, to the hell of those killed by idiots. Who will prevail this time around? Does Jack have enough dumb luck left to get them through the fight?!

There are as always possible spoilers ahead!

I want to first point out the positive. The artwork continues to be colorful and fun to look at. The characters have remained true to their film counterparts and I’ve really enjoyed getting to continue to the adventure with them. Also, the dialogue has has been silly/half serious in true Big Trouble fashion.

Now to my concerns. Although I find this issue a bit of a retread, of itself and also of the film, it is by no means bad. This issue also took a turn toward the end I did not see coming. Don’t get the impression that I’m starting to hate the comic by any means, but I do have a few issues. The missing characters from the original film still nag at me, despite getting an explanation for the whereabouts of one of them.

Usually I would be more critical of the story itself, but overall, the universe presented here is so silly and fun, it tends to distract me. I will say though, that I am a bit disappointed with the return of the three storms most of all. Although none of them said much during the film, they were a big presence and to keep them in the background this time around seems like an odd choice. I am all for introducing new characters to fill the void, but not much of that has really happened either. Another example would be the evil Qiang Wu. I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen, but he quickly becomes a background character, just another servant to Lo Pan.

Sorry, but this paragraph is SPOILER HEAVY!

I’m also sorry if this is a bit of a nit pick, but I can’t wrap my head around it. At the end of the film, Lo Pan’s evil empire is crushed and the building he owned falls apart at the seams and bursts into green flame. Yet, in this issue, during the epic battle, Lo Pan is holding his ceremony in the SAME PLACE. When/how did they find the time to reconstruct? Was it ancient Chinese magic? If so, why not show us the rebuild? This seems like a bit of a screw up in my opinion.

Regardless of where the Pork Chop Express is going, I’m in it for the long haul. Each issue still makes me laugh out loud and the most important thing is I’m still having fun reading it. With the twist at the end of this issue, I’m excited to see where the story will take me next!

Score: 4 Burning Blades Out of 5