Clearly, this is the example one looks for in a disgruntled ex-”big two” writer who goes independent.

Even though the comics code authority is long gone, we all know at this point the flavor of the big-two titles will never drift far past PG. And such is what lends to the predictable limits of most super-powered storytelling.

Don’t get me wrong: there are certainly an abundance of good, even great PG stories out there. However, sometimes it’s more about: why play in a sandbox when the beach is only blocks away?

With that said, while Lazarus #1 is not sailing into R-rated, it’s clearly establishing a trajectory as an adult-themed book. It’s a nice escape to read a piece like this when it has hopeful elements of everything that is best served in an R-rated visual medium: political intrigue, deception, violence, and the prospect of more to learn about this budding, unique dystopian world.

As important to this book, the protagonist is a girl, yet one that hasn’t been defined as entrails of the usual female piece: the always-inappropriately dressed and bending starlet, or some uber-feminist with a gun that punches like a train with the arms of an awkward anorexic. To that, I say, “Thanks. Thanks for not completely undermining my investment in this comic, Greg Rucka. Because… why, when there’s Playboy? Why bother if there’s already Playboy?” It’s time for a story, not a crudely drawn centerfold.

It’s all good. I’m ready for more good and hope Rucka’s got it in him to keep building on this momentum. The story is infinitely more inviting with the pairing of Lark’s apt and immersive rendering.