CRIMINAL 2 #7

Review by: Neb

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Size: pages
Price: 3.50

It’s a sad day for me.  After putting down this latest effort from Brubaker and Phillips I came to a disheartening, almost brutal realization:  one of my favorite books is going on hiatus.  I know it’s not one of those comic book hiatuses (hiatusi?) that happens when a book is really going away, but it still leaves me in a mood of doom and gloom, much like the noir characters that populate this book.  Part of my sour feelings stem from the fact that like every issue before it, this book continues to be one of the best produced comics on the market.

With this issue, the current storyline, “Bad Night” comes to a tragic close, which shouldn’t be all that much of a surprise.  I mean, we are talking about noir here.  The main character of the story, Jacob, has been slowly losing his mind as his world is shattered by a series of events that would give anyone pause.  While this isn’t my favorite Criminal storyline, it’s still very strong in its own right, and I felt like this final issue really helped add some nice touches to the overall arch of the characters themselves.

There is a definite mystery in this storyline, one that plays out rather cleanly, but the focus of the story is on the way that these events affect the characters, Jacob specifically.  He’s just a guy you want to like; he’s a nerdy, semi-anti-social loner who draws comics.  And throughout the storyline, he’s thrust into a situation that he was never made for.  It’s not his world.  Unlike our last two “heroes,”  Jacob wants to escape the life.  He’s crippled, scared, and mentally unstable.  It’s this sort of dynamic that makes Criminal one of the more interesting books to read.  All of these characters are flawed, and you’re never really sure who’s going to come out on top and who’s going to come out six feet under.

Sean Phillips, as usual, blows me away with this art in this issue.  He was born to draw comics like this, and I love each and every single panel.  If you get the chance, just flip the book open to the last page, and look at the very last panel.  It’s an amazing portrait and even just looking at it, you know exactly what’s going on with that character.  It’s a stunning piece, and it just makes me more bummed that we won’t be seeing his art in this world for some time.

My hope is that after reading this review, you’ll be sure to pick up the trades for this storyline (or any of the previous ones).  I guarantee you that you’re truly missing out on something really special, and it’s rare that we get comics with this unique voice.

Story: 5 - Excellent
Art: 5 - Excellent

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