Review by Frank Plowright
You don’t see many superheroes originating in the UK. Either it’s the case that the British prefer their superheroes to be American, or creators feel Alan Moore had the final word on the subject back in the 1980s. Johnny Cannon begs to differ.
He begins Welcome to the Shitshow with a prologue establishing the United as a long-running super team located in the UK, moving back from the present day to the early 1970s showing glimpses of an awkward past. That’s followed by the United being revived from an existing superhero culture to represent the UK, the 21st century signified by establishment representatives selecting a box ticking line-up. Here Cannon takes his cue from Zenith, featuring superheroes with agents who book them on chat shows, but with the additional layer of shady government manipulation. Artistically Alan Davis is an obvious influence, especially when it comes to storytelling, but Cannon’s his own artist and one who improves throughout the story, gradually learning to let the cast breathe.
When superheroes are seen in the UK it’s rarely outside London, so although drawn generically, it’s pleasing that Cannon namechecks other cities. This is in the course of short chapters efficiently combining brief moments of action with foreshadowing and insights into the personalities of the cast. It’s important to know them, and to pay attention, as Cannon sets a complex story in motion in which allegiances shift and motivations aren’t always clear. There are going to be times when you’re wondering just what the hell is going on, but keep those frustrations in check. Not everything needs to be laid out from the start.
Keep patient and what will unfold is a clever commentary on the way the UK has been since World War II, who benefits from that and how it’s been achieved in a world with superheroes. It’s far from clear cut, and you’ll be distracted by the nods to British comics and animation of the past. Eventually, though, a view of the UK as it actually is falls into place, and how it’s actually anything but a united kingdom.
Telling the story via snippets and then jumping forward is novel, but it requires readers to join the pieces together, and even then not everything is clarified. On the other hand, Welcome to the Shitshow is ambitious, smart, intriguing and has a point to make, while offering a novel look at superheroes in Britain. Some of the cast are seen again in Going Underground, which can be read entirely separately.
The book closes with some pin-up pages and a three way discussion on technique and influences featuring Cannon, Chris Giarrusso and Greg Schigiel.
As the Amazon UK page no longer offers Welcome to the Shitshow, how about getting it directly from Cannon here.
