In 1980, Universal Pictures released a movie capitalizing on two characters created by Saturday Night Live stars Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi. The titular Blues Brothers, “Joliet” Jake and Elwood, would perform blues standards on the show and eventually recorded an album, A Briefcase Full of Blues. Aykroyd developed a backstory for the duo and a movie script which was directed by John Landis. The film, a blend of comedy, action, and concert film, has gone on to become a classic. While there have been attempts to resurrect the Blues Brothers in a number of ways, the results have unfortunately been either lackluster or, in some cases, have not made it to production. The latest attempt is in the form of a graphic novel, Return of the Blue Brothers: The Escape of Joliet Jake, released by Z2 Comics written by Stella Aykroyd, Luke Pisano, and James Werner.
On A New Mission…
The story starts in an Illinois prison in 1997. After the events of the film, Jake and Elwood are near the end of their sentence after their mission from God. Jake Blues is taken from his cell by a mysterious figure. Furthermore, it’s left ambiguous as to whether he was kidnapped or if he escaped. Either way, the disappearance of Jake Blues is considered a dire emergency as their escapades are as historically important to the city as the Great Chicago Fire. The Chicago Police Department has decided to put Detective Zetdelik on the case. However, Zetdelik’s mother has an axe to grind with the missing Blues Brother, but has no clue where he can be. Even his brother, Elwood, thinks there is something strange going on, given that they are a few days from release.
On top of a missing Jake, there’s a missing briefcase that Zetedelik learns can change the past, present, and future of music. A briefcase full of blues, if you will, that has unreleased music in it. Ztdetelick crosses paths with many characters, new and old to the fold, but finds an ally in Wolfie, an orphan and blues player who was close to Elwood. Wolfie may know the location of the briefcase and will more than likely lead them to Jake.
Continuing The Legacy…
The book has numerous running gags, such as no one being able to pronounce Ztedelik’s name, but it also continues the ones established from the film, like car chases resulting in a mountain of police cars piling up. Yet, it also uses tropes common in reboots, particularly using the same formula as the original, à la Star Wars: The Force Awakens, using the template of the original to tell something new. If done right, it works fine and does work here.
While beloved, The Blues Brothers aren’t in the zeitgeist as much as other franchises, let alone ones from Saturday Night Live. Aykroyd, Pisano, and Werner leave enough connective tissue to keep old fans interested and entice newer fans to give the original a watch. The hard-to-translate aspects have nothing to do with either of the writer’s skills. The cameos and music performances are more or less what made the film unique and wouldn’t translate well to the page. Although, in all fairness, an attempt is made and it works for what this book is trying to achieve. Some of the cameos connected to the original movie are there and mostly occupy the same role.
Unfortunately, as the blues music genre moved through the years, it hasn’t expanded as it had when the genre was given a boost by Aykroyd and Belushi. While blues music is still alive in many regions throughout the United States it has remained stagnant in terms of being a popular genre. It’s great when anyone with influence boosts a thing from the past, but it’s also important to recognize its history.
Felipe Sobreiro’s art is a little cartoony, but it sets the tone for the wacky and wild journey. Sobreiro shares coloring duties with Gab Contreras, which jumps between two different schemes as we jump back and forth between past and present. While it definitely feels modern for the present story, the flashbacks have almost a Robert Crumb quality to them, lending credence to the eras, as we see the lineage of the Blues Brothers moniker. It also kind of stays in line with the aforementioned attempts to reboot the franchise previously.
Overall Grade: 8.5 out 10
Overall, this book does what it needs to do. Its faults have nothing to do with the project or the team involved, but the medium chosen for it. The Return of the Blues Brothers: The Escape of Joliet Jake reboots the franchise in a way that is respectful to its source but accessible to newer fans. With Dan Aykroyd getting up in age after a career of hit movies, he has done well in his choices for passing the torch to the newer generations in caring for these franchises he put work and love into. Keeping this franchise in the family was the right choice for a number of reasons, and the end result is proof of that.
You can purchase it directly from Z2 Comics, but as always the best place to buy it is from your local comic store.
Check out Forrest’s interview with Dave Baker about his latest book, Halloween Boy.
