“Yesterday’s” Comic> Crusher Joe #3

Alfin was so bored she made a giant mural of Joe.

Crusher Joe #3

Ironcat (March, 1999)

The first story finishes the arc, but there isn’t enough left for a full review thanks to the placement of the story. Joe, Ricky, and Alfin are in trouble with the pirates until the pirate ship takes control of itself and crashes into the St. Germi. That’s good for the insurance money but it’s unclear if the captain really knew about the illegal ore or not, although Joe is going to make sure he pays the fine anyway. The crew is fun but they can be jerks sometime and if he’s innocent they’re ruining a good man. If he’s guilty then they’re in the right but it’s unclear what is the actual case.

The next case begins when the Minerva receives a distress call from a scientist trying to escape a terrorist group called the Space-Free Battle Line. While our heroes get away from one of the group’s battleships, the scientist dies, asking the Crusher to find something called Pandora II, with the only clue they have being the scientist’s daughter, Elina. However, the leader of the organization knows where they’re headed.

What they got right: Honestly there’s not much to say here, since this chapter is only setup for the rest of the story. It’s one of the curses of translated the digest-form manga to a typical Western periodical format.

What they got wrong: Why did the artist now decide to put all of these shaded line things in Alfin’s hair? Looks like she’s wearing a river. Taros looks even more like the Frankenstein monster and Dongo doesn’t look the same, either. Plus the dialog still needs more than just a translation because people talk funny in both stories.

Recommendation: Dialog issues aside the comic is still interesting. We’ll see how things go.

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