Comic Book Review - BPM: Beatdowns Per Minute #1

Rob reviews BPM: Beatdowns Per Minute...

Dave Cook is one busy fellow. Not only is the fourth volume in the highly successful Killtopia in the works, but he's also just released the psychological thriller; Deadliner. 

Teaming up with artist Steve Gregson, colourist Matt Herms and letterer Rob Jones, Cook utilises his passion for video games to bring a story that could quite easily be a video game itself. He's even written a book on the subject titled ‘Go Straight: The Ultimate Guide to Side-Scrolling Beat-’Em-Ups’ for Bitmap Books. So with this in mind BPM: Beatdowns Per Minute is the perfect subject for Cook to sink his creative talons into.

BPM: Beatdowns Per Minute is a video game comic through and through. Taking place in the fictional Stone City, two disgruntled cops, and a martial arts expert take the law into their own hands as they battle the city's criminal syndicate. When then follows is a tale of tragedy, loss, and redemption as Officers Rick Diavola, Maya Rickburn, and Maya's friend; Ashby attempt to clean up the streets. 

The whole story is bathed in video game cliché, which does make for a surprisingly good read. Throughout we're treated to knife-wielding punks, chain-whipping bikers, ninjas, and those clichéd boss characters as the protagonists move from fight to fight. While the story does move at a fair pace, Cook manages to cram a lot of exposition and character-building into the narrative. Throughout this opening act, we learn of Maya's recklessness and how her hot-headed temperament has put those around her in danger. On the other side of this coin is the shadowy Syndicate with their unlimited supply of manpower and reach throughout Stone City. There's a lot of work put into this opening act that when coupled with Cook and Gregson's passion for the medium could see BPM go on for quite a few issues. 

Gregson's art does a great job of capturing the heart of Cook's narrative. Characters are big and bold with plenty of strong line work that helps to capture their emotions. Each fight scene is also awash with detail and vibrant colours which gives everything a massive jump to leap straight off the page. Colourist Matt Herms adds to this with a palette that gives everything this explosive energy, whilst retaining a sense of humanity when the script calls for it. 

For anyone who's ever played a side-scrolling beat-em-up BPM: Beatdowns Per Minute is a comic book made for you. Its narrative is one filled with plenty of clichéd moments as Dave Cook takes you into the crime littered streets of Stone City. Even if the video game references aren't your thing, BPM: Beatdowns Per Minute still manages to captivate its readers with rich dialogue and well-developed characters. As the "Violent Storm" brews down in the "Streets of Rage" that is Stone City, the "Final Fight" has begun...

Rating: 8/10

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Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev