Fight Club 2 (Comics) Review

Oh Tyler Durden. The rather memorable character from Chuck Palahniuk’s “Fight Club.” Well, he’s back. And back in a big way. Palahniuk, with the illustrative power of artist Cameron Stewart, has brought the fight to the pages of Dark Horse Comics in “Fight Club 2.”

After a short stint at the insane asylum after the events that occurred in Fight Club, the main character, who goes by Sebastian these days, finds himself stuck in a white picketed-fence house. He has a wife and a child and works 10 hour days to provide for his family.

He is the antithesis of what Tyler Durden worked so hard to change with his alter ego, Sebastian.  He lives everyday owned by his possessions. Sebastian is a shell of his former self.

The beginning of Fight Club 2 is a real drag. Palahniuk has taken his reader on a crazy adventure as Tyler Durden in the film, but now the character is kind of wuss. Sebastian did manage to land Marla, his wife, though. But even she lacks any kind of bite. Especially after moving to suburbia and becoming a Stepford Wife.

These two nut cases also decided to have a child, and there is not a worse couple to bring a child into this world. After a decade of playing the house, the façade is starting to fall apart and the real characters begin to climb their way to the surface.

To avoid spoilers I will leave the rest of the story rather vague. But let me tell you, there is a good twist in this comic that I never saw coming, and that is something rare. Palahniuk is a masterful American writer and his style carries over to the pages of comics rather well.

As I mentioned, there were some pacing issues in the beginning of the story, but I actually believe they were intentional. The monotony of Sebastian’s life drags on and on until the middle of the story. After that it is like Palahniuk flipped a switch and instantly takes us back to the psychopath that is Tyler Durden.

Cameron Stewart is the artist for this book and he does a brilliant job in his approach. Stewart’s line work is nice and crisp. The coloring in the book is also really good and is done by David Stewart. In the beginning of the book, the colors are a bit boring, but as the story builds up speed, the colors get brighter and there is more action. There was also a nice little touch to add little bits of art, such as when Marla and Sebastian are arguing about his meds, Cameron places little pills right on the paper and throughout the panels.

Final Thoughts

The first issue of Fight Club 2 is a great starting point for this new chapter in the Tyler Durden adventure. I am officially hooked and cannot wait for the next issue.