You’ve Been Cancelled from Mad Cave Studios brings Judge Dredd style action-satire to comic stores on June 7, 2023.
You’ve Been Cancelled Synopsis
From the official press release:
In the near future, cancel culture means more than just losing your job…it could mean your life. The world’s premier entertainment event is CANCELLED – a live-streamed program where elite bounty hunters called cancellers kill individuals who society has voted to “cancel” following heinous actions or offenses. Our story follows Roland Endo, the world’s #1 ranked Canceller. Because of this status, Roland lives in a constant state of paranoia with a target on his back…
It’s Cable Meets Judge Dredd
The You’ve Been Canceled writer Curt Pires embraces comics’ satirical nature. The first issue alone is full of over-the-top scenarios that are so ridiculous it’s too hard to take seriously. It gives readers the feeling on what cancel culture has become. That it’s just another addicting social media trend people follow for a dopamine rush. Nowhere is that more apparent than with the protagonist who takes the job and payment to ignore his troubles. Rather than fixing the systemic or personal problems, this live-streaming show is just another fix.
To make matters worse, Roland’s competitors are ready to hurt him more than their targets for those 15 minutes of fame.
But by that same token, our protagonist Roland is kind of a boring character. With only the first chapter as reference, he’s a hedonist mercenary who got where he is because he killed a kid in his military days. I’ve seen this character so many times it’s become a cliche. With this, Roland doesn’t feel like a character, just a plot element.
Don’t Cancel This Art
The artwork by Kevin Castaniero is probably the best part of You’ve Been Canceled. Not only does the stylized cartoony art sell the satire, it provides smooth and expressive transitions. The best is probably in a page’s brawl scene starting with two simple panels between Roland and another bounty hunter. A lack of flashy gadgets or guns and an increasing amount of brutally simple moves makes it more intense. Never mind how the lack of backgrounds in these scenes evoke how focused Roland is. When a background does appear, he’s thrown off guard leading to his opponent making exaggerated cuts, showing how much of it is taking Roland’s focus.
That same scene has some great aesthetics from the colorist Jason Wordie especially how the yellows clash with the warmer and cold colors. They demonstrate deadly weapons in use before transitioning to reds where first blood is drawn. In juxtaposition to the serious stakes at risk, some captions by Micah Myers have a humorous undertone.
You’ve Been Cancelled, But This Doesn’t Need To Be
You’ve Been Cancelled is not something to take seriously for its commentary, but it doesn’t need to be. The characters might not be that interesting, but the ever stimulating mayhem they cause is well presented. Sometimes you gotta laugh at a parody of real life to throw yourself out of it. So for now this gets 8/10 for its flashiness.
Thanks for coming to the end and as always, remember to look between the panels.