Cash #1 Review

Note: I received a copy from one of the creative team to review.

Writer: Chad Halley

Artist: Daniel Caval

Rating: 7 of 8

Cash #1

One of the best things a story can do is surprise you. That's most certainly what Cash #1 did for me, as it delivered a tale with a lighter touch than I expected going in. There were a number of things that made me think it'd be a darker tale, first of which being the cover itself, which indicated a darker tone than the issue ultimately had.

Other things which made me worry I was in for a darker, tenser tale were the setting and art style, the setting being Afghanistan, a country filled with war and terrorism. Meanwhile, Caval's art is reminiscent of that used in Satrapi's Persepolis, a film filled with political tension, revolution and war. 

But thankfully, I was wrong. Halley's writing fills the issue with a noir sensibility, largely thanks to protagonist Cash's narration. It's something that reminds me of a hard boiled detective thriller and though seeing that in this setting surprised me, it works surprisingly well.

Besides that, Wali Jabar's laissez-faire attitude helps alleviate what otherwise could've been a pretty tense situation. For a decent part of the issue, he's Cash's focus. Thanks to him, the issue gets to bring up a not often highlighted issue in Middle-Eastern society, that being the sad fact that homosexuality carries a death sentence. 

It's something I applaud Halley for bringing up. It just goes to show how much worse things can be for gay people in other parts of the world. If there was anything I'd criticize about the issue, it's that I'm sometimes left confused how certain characters survive certain situations, given what happens to those characters.

Other than that, it's a pretty good 1st issue, that I'd happily recommend.