Tank Girl is so punk. It’s not difficult to understand why America’s restless youth of the seventies and eighties were drawn to punk music. Young malleable minds looking to rebel against authority only had so many options. The funny thing is, Tank Girl is the equivalent to anti-establishment lyrics and up-tempo, aggressive rhythms of punk groups. From the dirty pencil work, FU demeanor of its characters and heavy drug use, one can’t avoid the punk undertones Tank Girl imbues. And I love it.
Written by Tank Girl co-creator Alan C. Martin and drawn by Jim Mahfood, a new book has hit the shelves collecting the first three issues of Everybody Loves Tank Girl. To better breakdown why Martin And Mahfood’s Everybody Loves Tank Girl succeeds, I’ve formulated the—from the heavens it was sayeth—the top 6 Punk Truths! This list also serves as a “how to be punk” list to live by. Tank Girl sure does!
Punk Truth #1: Be yourself and don’t give a fuck what people think or say about you.
Littered throughout Everybody Loves Tank Girl are poems speaking to Tank Girl’s beliefs or her general mood. Judging by the page above we should all shut our mouths and avoid being judgmental; unless, of course, you want your ass kicked. Or in the case of the comic, some brutal beat downs in the weirdest way. In one case, Tank Girl’s buddy Booga dropping some urine-turned-ice through their enemies.
Punk Truth #2: Personal expression and uniqueness is a must. Customize, customize, customize!
Tank Girl always looks the part no matter the mission at hand. We’re talking any situation, from being cornered by the Weewee Brothers to filming a bonafide Tank Girl movie, she looks stylish and downright badass always. Thankfully Martin gives us a handy guide to help us dress just like Tank Girl:
Punk Truth #3: Refute social attitudes that are willfully ignorant.
There are a lot of narcs and otherwise frumpy folk in this comic who usually end up being the enemy. One of the best examples of Tank Girl sticking it to the man is during a swear contest. She may not have won said contest, but she did her darnedest. It’s not her fault her good friend is a sore loser.
Clearly this book is informing us that profanity is not a crime and should be rewarded!
Punk Truth #4: Social evolution every day of the week.
No matter the content of each story, Tank Girl always has a helping hand from friends. Typically, said help requires violence or at the very least rude behavior, but it’s important to note she’s never left behind. Whether you’re in a drug haze or just hung over you’re going to help Tank Girl. Believe that!
That includes fighting samurai while tripping on shrooms…
Punk Truth #5: Truth is how things are, not prescriptions about how things should be.
Okay fine, so Tank Girl doesn’t always win, but that doesn’t stop her from being a badass. So the kid below got his brains blown out. So what? Move on, there isn’t anything to cry about here. Life goes on.
That even includes trashing your tank. No matter what, the good vibes associated with living the punk lifestyle require you to not follow any script.
Punk Truth #6: Avoid consumerism.
If there’s one thing Tank Girl consume a lot of in this comic it’s drugs. That said we don’t actually see her purchase it. Instead we just see her tripping balls and figure the drugs were magicked to her. In the page below however, there is consumerism on display in every inch, but Tank Girl decides to avoid it all. Live by the punk truth and die by the punk truth.
And hell, if you can’t afford it steal it, amirite?
To top off all these great absolute truths the series has a titillating sense of humor. Any narc knows stress is a killer; fortunately for Tank Girl she avoids all that by applying a good sense of humor to everything she does. Or in this case, Martin applies it to the stories Tank Girl is involved in. It’s not all drugs, violence and drug use kiddies! There are also Poo-Poo Sisters!
Believe me when I say the entire book is as weirdly and hilariously inappropriate as the panel above.
That concludes the six punk truths and our review of Everybody Loves Tank Girl. The comic is just as loud, proud and in your face as any true punk follower. Follows these rules and pick up Everybody Loves Tank Girl on Amazon!
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