She’s Running on Fumes Issues #5 & #6 Review
Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Story so far: Jeannie is sick of letting her husband Jodie ruin their lives with his impromptu criminal activities – like stealing a police car while carrying stolen cocaine. A lot of bad people are after Jeannie for the missing cocaine and money. She needs to figure out a way to get herself and her children out of the constant chaos Jodie’s rash behavior lands them in.
“My dad would do almost any stupid thing to prove there’s nobody better than him. In this case, grand theft auto on a Tuesday afternoon… because he heard Mom might be good at stealing cars.”
Issue 5 of the comic book series “She Is Running on Fumes” by Dennis Hopeless, Hilary Jenkins, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou starts with a cop trying to catch Jodie in his stolen car. Which might not be such a tough ask in broad daylight, especially when the stolen vehicle is running on flashy red wheels. Thanks to her idiotic husband, not only is Jeannie in danger of being killed off by a biker gang, she also faces a threat from an armed Patti. (Patti is a hooligan woman duping and extorting Jeannie for money).
Also Read: She’s Running on Fumes Issues #3 & #4 Review
I’ve been pretty ambivalent about this crime series so far, and Issue #5 was pure chaos. Although Jodie’s stupidity can be chuckle-worthy, it’s mostly infuriating. It’s a miracle the guy isn’t dead yet. The best aspect of “She Is Running on Fumes” is the narration by Jeannie’s kid, who too can’t grasp why their mother is attracted to a jerk like their father. For example, the narrator had this to say about Jodie-Jeannie at the beginning of issue #6 – “Surely the boss-ass bitch who raised me could look around at this shit here and see Dad for what he was. Why did she put up with this? Before us? Before kids?”
Creator Dennis Hopeless does his best to explain why a street-smart woman like Jeannie endures a douche-bag like her husband. Hint: it’s young love. Nothing traps people like the allure of easy affection, and few things attract the attention of a teenage girl like the charms of a ‘big bad boy’ who is popular with his friends, no matter how impulsively dumb.
The retro colorful art style still hasn’t grown on me, but it manages to capture the noir-like mood of Jeannie’s messed up life. Issue #6, the finale, gives her the ending she deserves, especially after all the shit she goes through, and it was my favorite installment in the comic book series. The climax, of course, feels “too good to be true,” but well, it’s a good closing chapter. Now that “She Is Running on Fumes” is over, I’d say it’s a decent one-time read for those looking for an old-school American crime caper, sort of like “Bonny and Clyde” gone wrong!
Rating: 3.5 on 5. The series is also available on Kindle Unlimited.
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