Evan Hunter’s short story The Last Spin is a cold summary about gang wars. The plot begins when two men from different gangs meet each other. The two men Danny and Tigo are told to settle the gangs´ relations because of last night’s shootings. The cruel fact is that Danny and Tigo need to play Russian roulette until the end.
First they both are very tough guys and they see each other only as enemies. The Russian roulette starts with only one cartridge in the revolver’s cylinder. Odds are five-to-one. Gangsters are lucky, again and again they target the weapon towards their own heads and pull the trigger coldbloodedly. Without noticing it themselves Danny and Tigo begin talking. The men realize how much they have in common. They speak about their girlfriends, families, and dream about joining the army one day. Gangsters from different gangs decide to be friends. They even notice that the real conflict between the two gangs concerns the gang leaders’ greed of power, it’s not between them. But the game goes on and they must add another cartridge inside the cylinder. Quitting is not an option.
Both of the men are young because they can’t join the army without their parents permission. They are also newcomers in their gangs. In my opinion they are insecure and vulnerable young men trying to find approval and social cohesion from their gangs. As the story goes forward Danny and Tigo slowly take off their masks of tough guys and the real humanity increases in these two ordinary fellows.
Though The Last Spin is only a short story it ties its reader firmly in his or hers seat. Evan Hunter uses colloquial language in the men’s dialogue. It has its own influence on building the atmosphere. Actually without slang language the feeling would be far from what it should be. The story forces the reader to think about chains set up by the surrounding community. Can you be what you want to be or are you just playing a role? Or how hard is it to take off the mask?
