GUN HONEY: COLLISION COURSE #2, by Titan Comics on 6/19/24, sends Joanna and Brook on a race to save Hiroshi before he’s tortured for the location of his secret vault.
Credits:
- Writer: Charles Ardai
- Artist: Ang Hor Kheng
- Colorist: João Rodri
- Letterer: David Leach
- Cover Artist: Kendrick Lim (cover A)
- Publisher: Titan Comics
- Release Date: June 19, 2024
- Comic Rating: Mature
- Cover Price: $3.99
- Page Count: 36
- Format: Single Issue
Covers:
Analysis of GUN HONEY: COLLISION COURSE #2:
Plot Analysis:
Things are heating up as the action moves from Yokohama, Japan to the Mongolian desert in Gun Honey: Collision Course #2 by Charles Ardai and Ang Hor Kheng. How far will Joanna Tan go to save Hiroshi and keep his vault of secrets out of enemy hands? Let’s find out.
When last we left Joanna Tan in Gun Honey: Collision Course #1, she and her partner left the jungles of Borneo to save an information merchant named Hiroshi from losing control of deadly secrets, including files on Joanna Tan. Hiroshi’s son, Kyosuke, had already been kidnapped by their mutual enemies, so Tan infiltrated a co-ed bathhouse au natural to save Kyosuke’s life.
In Gun Honey: Collision Course #2, Tan storms into the room where Kyosuke is interrogated and starts shooting away. She kills at least one guard and injures Tiny Yoshida’s brother, but her efforts are in vain. Kyosuke is already dead.
When the room is stormed by additional men, Tan tries to cut a deal, but Tiny insists on killing Tan to make an example of her. He tells two of his masked men to take Tan to the nearby woods and kill her painfully. The guards drive Tan out to a location of a shallow grave, but before the deed is done, one guard shoots the other. It’s Brook in disguise!
Later, Tan and Brook bring Kyosuke’s body back to the casino to inform Hiroshi about what happened. They presume Kyosuke talked and divulged their father’s location. Now that secrecy is pointless, Tan and Brook head to Hiroshi’s location to stop his death and protect the vault.
Hirisohi runs his empire from an abandoned factory in a sparsely-populated corner of Mongolia. Tan and Brook reach their destination as fast as they can and split up to search the factory. Tan unlocks a hidden door that leads to a posh apartment where one of Hiroshi’s mistresses is waiting to attack. Brook hears noises coming from a ventilation shaft and follows the sounds to its point of origin.
Brook soon finds himself in the crosshairs of competing groups who all want Hiroshi and the contents of his vault. Tan joins the fight with Hiroshi’s mistress in tow. Our heroes kill most of the competition, but two men get away with Hiroshi as their hostage.
The issue concludes with Hiroshi’s mistress, Amgalan, helping Tan and Brook locate the vault before Hiroshi’s kidnappers do. If not, deadly secrets contained in the files will be sold to the highest bidder and Amgalan’s sister, who resides in the vault, will be killed.
Character Development:
The unflappable and completely immodest Joanna Tan has two new moments of character development in this issue that could portend changes in the future.
First, Tan never loses her cool in the first scene when it appears she is about to be killed because she recognizes Brook as the second masked guard from his scent. Although Tan has lived with Brook for nearly a year in Borneo, this is the first time we can recall the two having a physical connection beyond basic animal attraction.
Second, Tan acknowledges that she’s never been a killer in her life a s gun smuggler. The opening scene changes her relationship with weapons, which could cause her worldview to tilt in new directions.
Artwork and Presentation:
If it wasn’t obvious from the descriptions, variant covers, and sample pages, this issue is very NSFW for full-on nudity. There’s nothing wrong with nudity, but now you’re aware.
Therefore, Ang Hor Kheng’s artwork is gritty, salacious, titillating, and action-packed. Imagine the best of the best Andy Sidaris films for the 1980s and 1990s but updated with better writing, and that’s the visual experience you get. For fans of that material, Ang Hor Kheng’s art is an absolute win.
Art Samples:
Pacing and Structure:
Charles Ardai’s script puts readers on a journey from one tension-filled scene to the next without stopping to take a breath. The pace is steady but high, and the action scenes are on point.
The plot structure in issue #2 makes a little more sense than in issue #1 in terms of Tan and Brook’s goals to save Hiroshi. We were slightly down on the previous issue because it wasn’t clear why Hiroshi was attacked at just this moment or how Tan knew he would be in danger. Those gaps in the narrative still exist, but the short-term goal of saving Hiroshi and the vault makes up for them at the moment.
Thematic Exploration:
Thematically, Tan and Brooks are in a true blue rescue story. Every step they take is geared toward saving Hiroshi, his vault, and anyone associated with them.
The Bigger Picture:
Series Continuity:
If you’re picking up this series and haven’t read any of the prior Gun Honey stories, you don’t need to have all the background information to enjoy this story for what it is, but it helps. In particular, the references to Kruger and Gorman are meaningless unless you understand how and why they’re enemies to Tan.
Final Thoughts:
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GUN HONEY: COLLISION COURSE #2 delivers another spicy issue with gritty gun fights, a globetrotting rescue mission, and a race against the clock. Ardai’s script delivers action and intrigue in equal measure, and Ang Hor Kheng’s titillating art is fantastic.
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