It Could Always Be Worse is the worst Reckless Life story.
What a great way to start an introduction!
If I was in a bit of romantic chill when I wrote Hit Me Baby One More Time, I was definitely in an arctic cold spell when this story was written, and you can tell by the self-indulgent monologue that’s trying to act as a Dinner and a Robbery epilogue.
We also get an in-story explanation of Locke's new jacket, which no one needs. Just like we don't need that extra piping on Locke's design in the first place.
If all that isn’t enough, this story also features a Blacksploitation-style character in Mayor McBling. That name still inspires a chuckle for me, but that’s about it. Bad choices abound.
Regrettably, the whole point of this story was to allow Locke to go on a nihilist rant. (Everyone’s favorite part of a fun comic.) This was definitely me trying to emulate the Joe Kelly/Ed McGuiness run of Deadpool that I loved, and this sort of “woe is me“ stuff was a major part of that. Those Deadpool stories were much better.
To top it all off, the high-res version of the last page, in which I cameo in my own comic, has been lost, so the quality is a bit less. You’re not missing anything.
I promise the stories after this one start getting really good. You’re only one click away from the fun that is Locke and the Las Vegas Ninjas!