Frantic Fun And Vaudevillian Violence: ‘Spawn Kills Every Spawn!’ #1 Advance Review

If the cover doesn’t tell you exactly what you’re letting yourself in for the first few pages certainly will as L’il Spawn takes great pleasure in wiping out every goddamn Spawn in existence in Spawn Kills Every Spawn! #1 by writer/letterer John Layman and artist Rob ‘Sketchcraft’ Duenas. Even if, as revealed by our fourth-wall-breaking L’il Spawn, the over-the-top violence of the opening pages is just a convenient hook to draw readers in. And it works. So when our diminutive anti-hero regals his reasons for wanting to eradicate every Sapwn ever, I’m all in.

The script, and the scintillating, kinetic, comical art of Duenas, all help reel the reader in, glued to every page that’s often crammed with in-jokes and sight gags. A comic that makes the reader work is okay by me. Identifying the many, many references to the Spawn mythos and other pop cultural references scattered across the whole issue is all part of the fun of these types of satirical comics. The double-page spread set in a comic-con alone will have you pouring over it for hours. Well, a long time at least. It’s. comic difficult to out down.

The con is also the setting in which we learn exactly why L’il Spawn has such a huge problem with all the other Spawns too. Much like other villains – even cute ones like L’il Spawn – he has something of an ego problem. And it’s this ego that will fuel the rest of the series. 

And so, brought up to speed on his origin story (of sorts), the tone and style of the series is well and truly established. Devilishly delightful and dark humour with a gonzo art style to match the gonzo script. This is a comic that doesn’t require you to be a die-hard Spawn fan to enjoy it. It helps, or course, but it’s not a requirement. A mindlessly violent and darkly mirthful comic perfect for the summer vacation.  

Spawn Kills Every Spawn! #1 is out on Wednesday 24th July from Image Comics