KIDS WITH GUNS: GORILLAZ AND ‘TANK GIRL’ BLAST BACK

Good news Gorillaz fans, not only are Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett back with a new album this week, ‘Humanz’, Tank Girl is also back with a brand new series, World War Tank Girl, written and drawn by Alan Martin and Brett Parson.

Originally created by Jamie Hewlett, of Gorillaz fame, and Alan Martin, Tank Girl has become an icon of female empowerment in punk rock culture. Her unique hairstyle and liberal use of violence have made her memorable and her sadistic nature and affinity for causing trouble in a chaotic, Mad-Maxian Australian outback solidified her standing as the–as the rather less than successful 1995 film adaptation tagline reads–”poster girl for the Apocalypse.”

Rebecca Buck–aka Tank Girl–begins the original series as an anarchist in a tank. Although she works for some sort of military organization, her desire to follow orders is minimal at best. She’s given orders which she may or may not choose to obey and when she ignores them, her employers set out to kill her. She’s also got some sort of issue with wearing clothes. Tank Girl is an incredible fighter when she has to be but prefers the element of surprise.

Just over 25 years since first publication, the evolution of Tank Girl is a unique look into the punk movement over time. The character began as a fringe, counterculture Riot Grrrl and slowly worked her way into the cultural zeitgeist, building on a fundamental lack of compelling, confident female characters in comics.

Challenging the patriarchy and subverting gender norms, Tank Girl has been seen as positive queer representation, and although there is some debate as to whether or not Tank Girl is a paragon of feminism, it’s easy to say that she is a shining beacon of female visibility. She never lets anyone tell her what to do or how to look or how to dress (except when she’s stolen some Nazi threads and the Allied boys are worried about accidentally shooting her). When her enemies make the mistake of underestimating her because she’s a woman, Tank Girl makes them sorely regret it. She’s vicious and unflappable and always gets the last word.

The cause for debate in her role as a feminist icon is primarily centered around her body. Although never used against her, there does seem to be an uncomfortable fixation on her state of undress. Captions mentioning her “bra thats too tight, (and knickers that need a good wash)”, not to mention a strange arc with supernatural plastic surgery that distends Tank Girl’s body in all kinds of ways never quite lets the audience forget that Tank Girl is most definitely a woman. In general, this could be seen as a good thing, after all, what’s the point of having a female character that’s never seen that way? She might as well be Tank Boy. However, there are times that it feels like an unnecessary reminder for the audience when, quite often, Tank Girl’s enemies remember who she is with or without seeing her naked.

But it’s important to remember that impossible body standards are nothing new in comics, for men or women. Both male and female figures are idolized and drawn to what is typically recognized as “ideal” but would in actuality be highly dangerous to maintain if not lethal–typically much more so for women than men. Although somewhat more realistic, Tank Girl is no exception, only instead of being subjected to clothing that can only be described as fashionably uncomfortable spandex and latex paint, she wears grungy underwear and ragged crop tops.

Queer, feminist, or simply counterculture, Tank Girl is a hard character to strictly define, which goes back to the nature of her origin. Between the eclectically disorganized speech bubbles and the often abstract background art, not to mention the Aussie slang, the original Tank Girl can sometimes be a little hard to follow. The comic itself actually reads like a zine, with all the self-assured bravado of a story that knows what it is and where it’s going whether the reader likes–or understands–it or not.

This loosely defined narrative structure is a common thread until more recent comics gave the series more of a cohesive plot, making Tank Girl: Two Girls One Tank–the 2016 series published by Titan Comics–a good jumping on point for people who are interested in the character but find the classic series hard to follow–but be warned, all Tank Girl titles are pretty weird, not least of all because her significant other is a mutant kangaroo.

Nudity and gratuitous violence aside, art styles of the more recent series are mostly inoffensive, having become much more standardized over time and with the addition of color. The panels, speech bubbles, and linework in general feel less hand drawn, a newfound uniformity that works against the comic’s original punk aesthetic but provides some much-needed readability.

In the latest series, this departure from style is actually done with specific intent. World War Tank Girl is done in classic Ben-Day dots style, aiming for more of a 1940s pulp which fits well with the time period the characters have been sent into.

Despite the variety of art styles, the tone of Tank Girl has never changed. Always violent, always foul-mouthed, Tank Girl’s alternative fashion sensibilities and brash personality are always worn openly and unapologetically. Her attitude pairs nicely with her ability to break the fourth wall, which she does infrequently but to great effect.

The occasional metatextual nature of the comic shouldn’t surprise anyone with a basic familiarity of Gorillaz discography and music videos. What started as a fake band soon became a virtual reality. Hewlett designed the characters to front for the music with the intention of creating blank slates for fans to imagine their backstories and personalities any way they like. Damon and Hewlett’s intention was to create a counter to what they perceived as the fakeness of pop icons at the time. “…when the members of the group aren’t “real”, you can make up histories for them that are as ridiculous and outrageous as you like, and then suddenly it becomes interesting.” (read more)

The videos themselves are usually a blend of live footage and Hewlett’s animations, although they seem to be primarily animated for ‘Humanz.’ For the most part, his style doesn’t seem to have changed much over time. His work on 21st Century Tank Girl–a Kickstarter published project spearheaded by Martin and the most recent Tank Girl that Hewlett has done–definitely feels fresh and updated, having cleaner lines and a bit more structure and maturity than his original work.

For the most part, however, Hewlett’s style from his first work on Tank Girl and Gorillaz to the most recent Gorillaz art hasn’t changed all that much. A few elements, such as the Gorillaz cover art are vastly different, but in a way that continues to add to the illusion that the members of the band might be real.

Clearly, Hewlett is still as invested in his characters and his craft, which bodes well for the futures of both projects.