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Kyle Baker is one of the funniest cartoonists working in comics today. A rather grand statement perhaps but one I genuinely believe. Cowboy Wally, Why I Hate Saturn, You Are Here – all incredible, funny books. Even his slightly more serious works (King David) or his work on other people’s material (Plastic Man) are well worth picking up to see a unique talent at play (you can read some of Richard’s previous reviews on Kyle’s work here – Joe). But his recent work has been a wonder; giving us a gag cartooning tour de force with The Bakers (the latest volume, Babies and Kittens, has just been released) and a hard hitting dramatisation of the slave trade in Nat Turner that showed he was more than capable of producing serious work.

His latest is Special Forces; a six issue series from Image Comics. Baker’s putting the social commentary right alongside the comedy here, producing a work of immediate frivolity that holds a far more serious investigation within its pages. To take Baker’s own copy:

“Special Forces follows a small-town autistic teen from his recruitment, through basic training, and then off to war in Iraq. With violent felons, mental patients, a violent mental hot chick felon and at least one “Don’t ask don’t tell”, his unit is composed of the military’s last line of defense. The very last line! What happens when desperate army recruiters fall below quota at the same time the President calls for additional troops? Find out in Special Forces!”