White Savior

Todd Parker has grown up with his grandfather constantly telling him about the story of Inoki Village.  Where there was a prophecy of an outsider with snow-colored skin who would lead them into the light… but actually got everyone killed instead.  It’s a story he knows by heart, and never thinks will have any greater relevance to his life and career as a history teacher.  THAT IS, until one day when while chasing after the woman who stole his wallet, Todd winds up transported back in time to Feudal Japan and Inoki village.  Now he has the chance to save them all from the arrogant, racist, emotionally unstable, and snow-colored skin mess that is Nathan Garin.  Or, he’ll just get them all killed by the enemy army anyway.

“White Savior” starts out by embracing irreverence in its narration, dialogue and art as no one seems inclined to take what’s happening very seriously.  While this is amusing at first, it quickly becomes tiresome in a way that makes this four-issue miniseries feel much longer than it actually is.  You really feel that co-writers Eric Nguyen and Scott Burman were terrified that their potential audience wouldn’t like them any more if they decided to take this story seriously for a minute.  The end result is a comic where you’re unable to take anything seriously at all – the story, the characters, the jokes, everything.

There’s no denying that the concept which gives this miniseries its title is due for a skewering.  Yet this version of it winds up being one big missed opportunity from the writing to the art.  Nguyen illustrates this decently enough but his work doesn’t enhance the action or the comic timing.  I mean, it feels like Eric the writer was Eric the artist’s worst enemy here as the artist doesn’t get anything that feels like he’s playing to his strengths with this material.  I’ve read worse, but this is still worth leaving on the shelf (or in the half-off bin, which is what I should’ve done).