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Published by: Image Comics
Released on: Apr. 2, 2014
Writer: Mark Kidwell
Artist: Jeff Zornov
Cover artist: Nat Jones
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Kindle edition
Image Comics continues with its moist and gooey series '68, with this latest four issue series. For those unfamiliar with the title, '68 is a bunch of mini-series and one-shots chronicling a zombie apocalypse that started in 1968, at the height of the American involvement in the Vietnam War (and the same year George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead was first released onto an unsuspecting public). It tells various stories taking place with American soldiers in the new living hell they need to endure: the war has ended, but no one told the zombies.'68 also tells of tales stories happening stateside, as the apocalypse is of course global. The focus is on the social turmoil in America involving attitudes and opinions of the public: arguments at home, protest rallies, and yes, hippie violence.
Rule of War follows the exploits of CIA agent Lieutenant Declan Rule and his dog Nero, as they make their way into Cambodia in search of a man (as yet unnamed), dealing with enemy combatants still fighting the war as well as the zombies (called demons by the locals). He arrived in-country under the guise of being part of security for a Hanoi Jane type (Google it) and went rogue to find the man who killed his son.
Meanwhile, another story takes place in Saigon, as a group of soldiers are at the airport making their way out of the city, and in the midst of an intense battle with the flesh-starved, rotting corpses. They manage to get a big plane started, but the Viet Cong aren't going to make it easy for them to get out of Dodge. The characters should seem familiar, as they were the focus of the series '68: Scars, published in early 2013.
Pages one and two of Rule of War take place a couple of months before the outbreak, and sets up the quest of Lt. Rule with a wicked little tidbit of info he doesn't have. All he knows is that his son was killed, and when his body was found there were reports of his son fighting on the side of the enemy and able to leap a 10-foot barrier. You'll quickly understand what happened to his son, and if Lt. Rule finds out what that man he is looking for did to his son, then God help that man.
Those familiar with the '68 series will know what to expect from the creators: war violence of an extremely nasty nature, and lots of F-bombs. But the stories are fun reads, and this one is no exception. Creators Mark Kidwell and Jeff Zornov continue to deliver an intense collection of tales and pull no punches. No one is safe, no one is above killing off, and there is no telling where things will go in one of their story arcs.
