Comic Review: Criminal #1 (Image Comics)

Criminal (2019-) #1 by Ed Brubaker

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


(And still no capes yet in 2019...)

I suspect everyone who knows Ed Brubaker knows. Still, I doubt people on the street know him. I doubt people on the street know Bendis, so Brubaker is even more obscure. But, all the cliches are true- "it reads like a movie", "this why adult should read comics" etc.

I have not followed "Criminals" and I feel I have missed about as much recent Brubaker as I have read. In any case, I guess I haven't quite followed "Criminals" releases which have been collected as trades (Maybe they weren't single issues in the first place); but it's being launched as a monthly, so I am not going to miss out.

Sean Phillips is a perfect artist to match Brubaker. It's of the highest caliber (and the colors are equally fantastic). So what can I say? There's a lot of twists and turns. When you think you know where the story is headed, things change (in a good way). The characters and scenes feel like a movie. They're likely to stay with the reader for awhile. The plot is a solid hook.

Heck, let's even get at the size of the books for $4. The fantastic cover. How about an appreciation for the Coens "Blood Simple".?
Not that I don't love them, but it's not exaggerated like Frank Miller, or played for jokes like Bendis. It feels real, and yet, it's as gritty as what you might expect from a Dennis Lehane or a James Ellroy. In any case, if you are not into comics (or rarely buy comics), let this serve as notice to check out Brubaker, if you like any of the above.



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