Titans Of The Gridiron — Reviewing ‘Street Sharks’ #3

What happens when an aquatic themed college homecoming football game is threatened by Dr. Paradigm’s potentially gene-changing poisoned energy drinks? Why, it’s a perfect time for the Street Sharks to head back to school for some slam-tastic crowd saving action.

The animated heroes continue their comic book journey in Street Sharks #3 from Stephanie Williams, Ariel Medel, Valentina Pinto, and Jeff Eckleberry.

I still love what is being put down on these pages. It’s awesome when a series has a lot of fun and doesn’t take itself too seriously. There are bits of this that are serious in the sense of the overall plot and the consequences. Outside of that, though, it’s clear that the crew is just having a good time delivering big action and comedy with these aquatic heroes and their deep-sea foes.

Slick action that just swims across the page is brought to life by Medel issue after issue. He really nails a look that evokes the cartoon these characters were born from, but takes full advantage of the benefits that the comic book medium provides. They bounce well off one another in spaces that are really detailed, dense, and delicately rendered, evoking a whimsical, soft but still sharp and hefty aesthetic through and through.

This is boosted by the color palette from Pinto. The colors lean toward flashier and vibrant, perfect for a superhero series style tones. They also really mix in the darker and natural toned-down elements to create the backdrops and spaces that have familiarity and foundational power in the world.

Williams is really laying it on with the aquatic trappings and puns, and I’m all here for it. Adding Repteel into the mix was great, especially because of how the heroes actually lost this issue. They saved people and did things but, in the end, got played, and that works to make sure that the villains are not just one note easy to beat things. Sometimes, the heroes have to take one on the chin in order to keep the world feeling authentic and dangerous for storytelling.

All those lines and other lettering bits have just as much flair and flavor as the rest thanks to Eckleberry. He gives them the right pushes to bring out the full volume, tone, and emotional resonance with each beat, making sure that the abundance of dialogue is dense but never overwhelming or overpowering in any single panel or page. All the SFX on the page doing their due diligence to really deliver on the fun and atmosphere.

Having the Sharks be able to blend amongst the people because of the homecoming theme was hilarious. People just assuming these perfectly real looking sharks are costumes, until they burst onto the field and everyone instantly knows they are the Street Sharks. This is the kind of stuff that is chef kiss hilarity and I’m all for it.

Street Sharks #3 is now available from IDW Publishing.