Book of the Month

Who is Jake Ellis?, Vol. 1

What did the
iFanboy
community think?

story NATHAN EDMONDSON
art & cover TONCI ZONJIC

Size: 136 pages
Price: 16.99

Just who the hell is Jake Ellis?

I love me a good mystery story. If there is action, suspense, and a protagonist constantly on the verge of being in over his head in that mystery story then you can sign me right up, mister. I also really like when a story doesn’t aim low and insult my intelligence. I like when a story drops you in the middle of the action and gives you enough credit to figure out what’s going on along the way. Those are a lot of things to like and it’s not often that a comic book story scratches all of those itches. Who is Jake Ellis? does all of that, and more.

When it comes down to it, the plot of Who is Jake Ellis? is not overly complex or intricate. We open in Barcelona, Spain where an American mercenary spy named Jon Moore is in the midst of an operation gone bad. It’s your standard action hero spy fare: he’s outnumbered and outgunned but he uses his wits, skill, and just a bit of luck to escape the situation unharmed. But just as Jon Moore escapes it’s as if someone hits rewind on the story and we circle back around to the beginning of the scene where we find out what was really going on.

It would seem that the whole time that we watched Jon Moore expertly take down his adversaries and then escape while dodging a hail of bullets he was being guided by a mysterious voice.

The mysterious voice, as we would come to learn, of Jake Ellis.

Just who the hell this Jake Ellis is, and why he appears to Jon Moore, first as a ghostly voice and then black and white apparition, is the central mystery of Who is Jake Ellis?, so I’m not going to spoil that here. The other mystery that consumes the first volume is: who is the shadowy organization sending waves of gunmen after Jon Moore, and are they in anyway related to the fact that Moore, who is an ex-CIA analyst but not a field operative, is being guided to mercenary spy heights by the ghostly Jake Ellis?

There isn’t a whole lot of time for Jon Moore to ponder these mysteries in-depth because he’s too busy breathlessly running from one set of gunmen in one country to another set of gunmen in a neighboring country. (This story takes place in Europe and North Africa.)

The reader doesn’t get much time to ponder those questions either. Who is Jake Ellis? is a non-stop action thrill ride and writer Nathan Edmondson (currently writing Grifter for DC in the New 52) does a wonderful job of pacing and structuring this book. Every time we get a new mystery or clue to ponder, we are thrown into an action set piece. Jon Moore doesn’t really get a minute to breathe and neither do we.

I really, really enjoyed Who is Jake Ellis?. It pushed so many of my buttons and in new and interesting combinations. But there’s another element of this collection that I need to heap praise on, and that is the art from Tonči Zonjić.

Wow.

I mean, wow.

I have experienced Tonči Zonjić’s art just once before in the excellent miniseries Marvel Divas from, naturally, Marvel Comics. I remember at the time praising his art on the Pick of the Week show for its clean and gritty style that recalled Batman: Year One era David Mazzucchelli. Well, two years later, drawing the kind of gritty street-level story that his art is wonderfully appropriate for, and Zonjić has gotten even better. Every page of Who is Jake Ellis? was a wonder of storytelling and character acting. Sure, Zonjić’s art was great on Marvel Divas — a superhero story that was mostly about super people doing normal things. But here his art really has a chance to shine. These are the kind of books that Zonjić is absolutely meant to draw: real people (and their possible ghost advisors) in real situations facing real dangers. And throw in the fact that as a Croatian artist he lends a ton of authenticity to the European backdrop and you’ve got one hell of a gorgeous book.

If you want to talk about a guy whose style is firmly in my wheelhouse, it’s Tonči Zonjić. (As if you couldn’t tell.) The guy is now on my list of artists to watch out for. If I was putting together a list of the top artists of 2011, he’d be on it.

After hearing so many great things from people I trust, Who is Jake Ellis? was one of my most anticipated trade paperbacks of 2011. Not only did it deliver on my expectations, it exceeded them. I couldn’t put it down.

The end of Who is Jake Ellis?, Vol. 1 leaves us with some answers but also some new questions. Nathan Edmondson does a great job of crafting an ending that both works if we never get any more Who is Jake Ellis? and also if we do. Personally, I do hope we do get more Who is Jake Ellis? because I haven’t flown through a trade paperback like this one in a long while. (And I mean that in the best possible way.) It’s a thrilling and gorgeously drawn action spy story and we don’t get enough of those these days. I need more comic books like this in my life.

Conor Kilpatrick
I need a ghostly super podcasting advisor.
conor@ifanboy.com

If you want to pick up Who is Jake Ellis?, Vol. 1 you can find it on Amazon or InStockTrades.

Comments

  1. Yes! Yes! And a thousand times YES!

  2. i picked the whole series up digitally on comixology for a $1.99 an issue was a great read!

  3. For weeks, every time I go into my LCS, this book has ‘winked’ and given me ‘come hither’ looks and every single time I’ve turned ‘red cheek’ and bashful. This is the week I make my move!

    @Conor – Your comparison of Zonjic’s style to David Mazzucchelli is spot on.

  4. I picked this up at the NC Comicon a week before it was on store shelves and even got it signed by Nathan Edmondson. I felt a great sense of winning after finishing it.

  5. Great pick for book of the month, awesome espionage action with a great twist.

  6. Reviewed covered this title well. A smart mystery, beautifully drawn.

  7. I think Zonic is joining the ranks of excellent artists on the Mignola-verse books with the next Lobster Johnson mini.

  8. I have about 20 trades in my stack before I get to this but Conor has convinced me to allow it to jump to the top of the pile.

  9. This book is awesome. Great pic, Conor.

    And thanks to Ron for suggesting it back when it first started.

  10. I enjoyed this, and wouldn’t have known about if not for Ron’s recommendation. But then, I imagine Ron can identify with the plight of a man haunted by a bald all-knowing presence he can never escape.

    Just kiddin’, great book, great review.

  11. I completely agree with every point in your review. This was one of the first books I tried out as a monthly, and I was hooked from the first issue. My LCS has this book to thank for starting my Wednesday addiction that has only grown with each successive month. Also, if you liked this I would definitely check out Nathans new book “The Activity” for more espionage-filled fun. I think it starts this month.

  12. I read the issues. Great book.

  13. It was a really great story, the art was awesome, I could REALLY see this as a movie (please), had a lot of fun reading it, fingers crossed for a v2

  14. This must be the 6 or 7th Trade or Book you guys have recommended that I have loved. Thank you! you rarely disappoint.

  15. All 5 issues are currently on sale at Comixology for 99 cents each!