Reviews
HeroSpy
“What can I say about Gator Butch? It’s like a vicious acid trip while watching a low budget 70s exploitation film. Awesome! David Hollenbach’s work is pure, unadulterated brain candy. Each page feels dream-like, or nightmare-like depending on your preference. Gator Butch is upsetting, mesmerizing, and nearly impossible to describe. Believe me, because I’m having some trouble describing it. This comic is a stimulating amalgam of crazy concepts and kooky images designed purely to f*** with your head. Hollenbach’s energy and complete disregard for the norm is refreshingly brilliant.
On the other side of the coin you have Kurt Belchers darkly comical writing which proves to be the perfect complement to this surreal environment. While the illustrations are busy making you feel uneasy, Kurt Belcher is hard at work comforting you, making you laugh, and generally helping you connect to this bizarre anti-hero known as Gator Butch.”
(Shawn Swanson, Hero Spy)
Gianluca Glazer Comic Marketer Extraordinaire
Gator Butch is a new comic book series from Septagon Studios, created and written by Kurt Belcher with artwork provided by David Hollenbach. The setting is Doghole, Kentucky, a remote area that a true Southerner would best describe as “the boonies.” The title character is Gator Butch, a half man, half alligator, that is all redneck justice. The story setup is familiar, hero is hired to find a runaway teenager who has fallen with the wrong crowd, but it’s definitely anything but ordinary.
The first thing that pops out at you is the artwork from David Hollenbach. I really can’t do justice in describing it. It’s almost like a mixture of a Dave McKean style of artwork with the cut & paste style of work that Kody Chamberlain employed in his comic Punks. The town of Doghole, with its colorful characters, take on a Southern culture on the skids, tripping on acid, type of look. It’s beautiful, in a grotesque way, and works perfectly with the writing of Kurt Belcher. For a story like this, a writer’s mistake would be to make it too serious or too goofy/insane. Thankfully Kurt takes the right approach in balancing humorous dialog with a serious story. We first meet Gator Butch as he takes out the white trash and follow him as he attempts to rescue a teenage girl, who is mixed up with a group called the River Children. Imagine hillbilly mutants that even the local police don’t want to mess with and you get a good idea of what the River Children are all about. From the first issue, I can pretty much figure out how this series is going to end, but will enjoy reading it every step thanks to Belcher’s fun writing and Hollenbach surreal artwork. Personally, I hope we will learn a little about the origins of Gator Butch in the future issues. Retailing for only $1.00, I highly recommend this title for anyone looking for something new and fresh to read. Also, the fine folks at Septagon Studios have really worked hard for your dollar by including such bonus material as individual writer/artist interviews, wallpapers, phone skins, music files (to fit the theme of the action), a trailer video and previews for other Septagon Studios titles.
For a fun Kentucky fried action/adventure that visually sizzles, look no further than Gator Butch.
(GianLuca Glazer, Comic Marketer Extraordinaire)
Jazma Online
The backgrounds are gorgeous they are life like and well colored. Gator Butch is not shown clearly unless its a close up. He does seem like a redneck though. Gator is drawn as some sort of aligator/man hybrid. The close ups of Gator are amazing in the detail and realism.The River Children are a hideous looking gang. There is something wrong with them. Gator’s fight is a rough and tumble no holds barred brawl with them. What is most enjoyable about this comic is it is unique.
(Richard Vasseur, For The Full Review Click Here)
Review Fix
“Flannel-Wearing Bad Ass With Potential”
Let’s just say that Gator Butch as a character is pretty cool. A gator guy wearing a cowboy hat and flannel shirt that kicks major amounts of redneck ass? Sign us up.
If you’re still unsure of the character, think “Crocodile Dundee” meets the Southern atmosphere of “True Blood.”However, rather than get us fully used to the character, he’s thrust right into action, robbing the reader of a perfect opportunity of getting comfortable with him. As a result, there’s a level of disconnect with him during his first real battle because we don’t know what his real motivations are.
(Patrick Hickey Jr, For The Full Review Click Here)
3 Million Years
“Review Gator Butch”
Wow! If you want to market a new digital comic, and stand out from the crowd, then this is the way. Septagon Studios have gone all out to make this release of new comic, Gator Butch stand out from the crowd.With 10 additional extras to add to the pack, you certainly get value for money. Added to this an excellent marketing stratagy, a video and a free art pack – you can’t go wrong! Gator Butch is a fever dream of a comic, with an action packed beginning and an excellent cliffhanger ending. The art is amazing. I have to admit, I really didn’t think I was going to enjoy this comic as much as this – turns out I was wrong (don’t tell the wife!) The art just fits with it all – the warped versions of Gator and the River Children are amazing – the River Children themselves were something I really didn’t expect, but then so was most of this comic.
(Michael Nimmo, For The Full Review Click Here)
Broken Frontier
“Think ‘Hellboy’ meets ‘The Trailer Park Boys”
On the surface, Kurt Belcher and David Hollenbach’s story is a simple tale of a mutated alligator-human hybrid, who makes a living as a bonafide licensed monster hunter, clearing the swamps of Louisiana of all manner of freaks and creeps. It’s a unique take on the popular horror-comedy sub-genre, featuring a bizarre, off-kilter world of twisted bayou mutants, racist steroid-monkeys, and freakish white trash. The overall effect is a slightly surreal assault on the senses that’s only amplified by Hollenbach’s distinctive artistic approach.
(Jason Wilkins, For The Full Review Click Here)
Aint it Cool News
“There’s a certain WTF? appeal to this book based on its zany characters and even zanier artwork”
GATOR BUTCH is described as “a tale of a beer drink’n, ass kick’n, half-human, half-alligator country boy and licensed monster fighter.” With that in mind, it’s probably no surprise this story takes place in a small Kentucky town named “Doghole.” Wouldn’t you know it, a local teenage girl has gone missing and the only person qualified to find her is Charles “Gator Butch” Buchinsky. That’s because he does the kind of dirty work the police won’t get involved in, because they’re afraid of crossing paths with the feared local legend of “The River Children.”
(Mr. Pasty, For The Full Review Click Here)
