Shocking, right? Here’s Neb, again, with yet another review of Criminal. It seems that each time this book comes out, I tend to review it. I’m not really sure how or why it happens, but I guess that each time it comes out, I feel the desperate need to review it, to get the word out about it. You see, I just don’t think enough people are reading this book. I’m sure the sales numbers are strong, but like Scalped, this is a book that no comic fan should ignore. It captures everything that’s great and pure about the medium while dressing it in a dark, noir book filled with crime, murder, and deceit. I love every second of it. This issue is no different in what it brings to the table. We find our hero (…er, anti-hero…protagonist?) working his way out of the frying pan and watch as he slowly spirals into the fire, as any good noir book should do. The way the story plays out is surprising, as always, and Brubaker keeps us guessing with each turn of the page. If you look back at the first issue, it’s pretty amazing just how much these characters have changed since those opening pages. There’s obvious growth here, and it’s simply stunning and elegant the way that Brubaker writes this comic.

Sean Phillips brings the funk, the noise, and a big brass band on art duties. This man can seriously draw a comic book, and his pencils shine in the panels. The faces, the pacing of the story all mesh to tell a dramatic story. I’m a huge fan of the way that he lays out a book. He is a master of space, and keeps everything nice and tight without relying on overly wrought splash pages. This is a book that gives you every cent worth with the amount of visual content in it.

I’m really excited to see where this story goes with the final chapter coming next month. And a part of me died when I learned that the series would be taking a hiatus during Bru and Phillips new Icon book. But this book continues to be special and I savor each moment I have with it, from the opening panel to the closing words of the essay at the back of the book.