Junction Jones and the Corduroy Conspiracy review - A Genre‑Bending Detective Tale Across Time

How about a mixed media conspiracy theory self actualised story that's like going down a King built Knossos scale rabbit hole centered on a murder mystery with a future, past train crash starring an expired clone and definitely don't call them what they look like P.I. detective duo in Cyberpunk-E.T-noir trans time and space setting in art that manages to bring all this to life and make it make sense? It could only be Junction Jones and The Corduroy Conspiracy from TC Pescatore and Locogonzales.

TC Pescatore is an American punk ex-hobo poet with a keen heart and a devious, inquisitive, fervent mind. His previous works include published poetry books Go, On Breath Freely. Plus, the interconnected to this book, The Boxcar Bop. As well as This Oil Puddle World, Hobo Stove and his previous comic, The All-New Union.

Locogonzales, aka Locomotion Gonzales or Luciano Crazardo, is an Argentinian Comic Book Artist, Illustrator and designer. Loco's previous works include The End Of The Universe, Historieta Revolver 14, and Heridas Abiertas 2. All with a distinct and distinguished fine-line style.

Jazz Miranda, aka Dangerjazz, is a professional artist from Brazil. Jazz's previous works include Faceripper, Street Worms (inspired by the awesome Viagra Boys), Hell-Xixe, "Nirvana, the band, the show, the comic", and Bottomless Lake.

Industrious innovators introduced no more dilly-dallying. Let's get to jammering on with a review.

So, let's start with the art. Locogonzales distributes sci-fi cyberpunk noir art full of unique and talented utilisation of the medium. There's a "Ligne Claire" approach to the line work with echoes of Moebius or Frank Quitely. Yet still very individualistic in its delivery. There's also a really cool punk/outsider/underground art aesthetic edge I really appreciate. Loco also brings beautifully busy art. It's as rich in detail as the crazy narrative behind it throughout this book. The unflinching, graphic depictions that jump up in moments oozes macabre magnificence, punctuating already marvellous art.

The character designs of JCMP5 Jones and Mr. Niblets cut striking silhouettes and offer disarming, charming qualities to the likable protagonists. The character work throughout has ridiculous variety with a smorgasbord, hot bed of stylish creations encompassing a busy cityscape in the Avenue between the worlds of space, reality, dimension and time. This is beyond multiculturalism and delivers a study in multi-extraterrestrial-ism.

There are ridiculous levels of detail in every panel, creating a sense of busy order in the chaos on offer, which is so enjoyable. The composition of this art is delightfully playful, offering often remarkable art that routinely pushes the boundaries of good taste into the realms of deliciousness. This story is bonkers and demands not just special art but a special artist and Locogonzales is just that.

Another holder of this ability and feature of the art on offer comes courtesy of a zine break in "Weird Wells is Burning" by Dangerjazz. It presents in wonderful black and white Xerox-style art with a Disney by way of Pulp-horror edge to it, which is awesome. Dangerjazz's style holds this exceptional dualistic quality that is really interesting. With a sweetness and polished outline being played against a grimy darkness in its heart, which I really enjoy. Special mention goes to Tom McKnight, James Edward Clark, Lisa Pevey and Chiara Iacobelli, who, between them, are responsible for the plethora of multimedia materials that further flesh out the art on offer. They transcend the experience of this story into other realms, even extending to musical endeavours for those readers willing to dig in. A remarkably rewarding experience visually. Now, narrative notions to navigate.

TC Pescature invites readers into an experience of unconscionable, tangential meanderings that goes so far off the reservation in places it'll push even cursory readers into questioning their grasp on narrative structures. This is a Gobekli Temple sand castle built on the shifting sands of a turtle's back, so to speak. What starts as an atypical Detective Noir murder mystery teases at its unhinged brilliance with the reveal of Mr Niblets or Nibs, along with some other sci-fi endorsed curve balls and a healthy dose of graphic content. From here, things take a turn for the weirder. The "Meta" tangents and multimedia aspects come thick and fast, weaving a web of intrigue so elaborate even Charlotte couldn't express it.

On its surface, a detective duo will be put on a murder case with far-reaching monumental consequences. Most importantly, the who, why, how, and, most significantly, when of a train crash. This one isn't a leisurely walk in the park, structure-wise. More of a tail spin through the ether while digesting Tiramisu levels of rich storyness, but it's beautiful for those reasons. This one had me so invested that I was using web search engines to check if parts were inspired by real events, so desperate was I to connect this to an established reality.

The experience this story offers, its journey, I imagine, is akin to how one of the ten thousand who followed Jeff Hull around San-Francisco must have felt. There's that level of wonder, of exploration, of rewarding results and interaction. It's a story that offers a lot to readers, but does require an element of asking. Namely, that you pull the threads together. At times, maybe even more often than not, the narrative is what can feel like deliberately incoherent. But like all good things, at least enough comes together in the end as to feel magical and revelatory. Moments like a QR code launching musical interval or the Hobo sigil left in the wake of the cumulative demise are small snippets of a larger, fulfilling whole of delight. The tapestry of storytelling on offer would make the French blush. This comic shows so much, often uninclined to tell, as to feel like you're treading water in a soup of lore desperately flailing for the preserver of the initial buddy cop procedural noir, only to be slapped with moments like sci-fi induced colour that are never explained explicitly, but given the context, it can be stabbed at. I mean, sure, a venue between space, reality, dimension and time could be Noir in spectrum, I guess. Regardless, this is a deep dive, an encouraging experience for those who love sci-fi that is pushing the "fi". Just be prepared to take the plunge. It is worth it.

For fans of sci-fi, cyberpunk, UFOs, train crashes, detectives, noir, 5th-dimensional holidaying entities occupying Felis Catus shells buddying with an expired clone worker and running a P.I. firm with questionable avenues of revenue, dicking around in time, graphic violence and coarse language in art as brilliantly bonkers as its story. It's best to investigate and invest in Junction Jones and The Corduroy Conspiracy.

To get your hands on the complete volume of over 200 pages, click here to go through the publisher and damn excellent people, Markosia.

Review: 5/5.