The Kirkman-created, Spencer-scripted, Martinbrough-illustrated noir tale has been collected after receiving multiple postive reviews during it’s monthly run. Will this story of deception hold up in trade?
Written by Nick Spencer
Illustrated by Shawn Martinbrough
Conrad Paulson lives a secret double life as master thief, Redmond. There is nothing he can’t steal, nothing he can’t have…except the life he left behind.Now with a grown son he hardly knows and an ex-wife he never stopped loving, COnrad must try to piece together what’s left of his life before the FBI finally catches up to him…
…but it appears they are the least of his worries.
152 pages / $14.99
Let me start by saying, I don’t think the person who wrote that solcitation read “Thief of Thieves”. Aside from a couple lines I took to be lies, Redmond didn’t have a double life. No one in the story ever knew him as anything but a thief. Also, from what I can tell, he didn’t leave his life behind. Based on their interaction, I understood the wife to kick him out, not him walk away. Finally, I don’t have any idea what the last part of the solicitation meant. Through the whole story, except for a few pages right before the twist, the FBI is his only worry. Then again, it’s not like this is the only solicitation to be completely wrong.
Misrepresentation aside, this was a pretty good book. The hard part about writing a good mystery/heist story is for the plot to hold up on a second read, when you already know the twist. Many episodes of NCIS or Law and Order make zero sense on a repeat viewing. In comics, writers sometimes shoot themselves in the foot when they start writing stories without knowing how the mystery plays out (See: Red Hulk is really Ross), resulting in convoluted explanations the readers don’t usually like. Spencer avoids this, telling a tale suspenseful during a first read, and solid the second.
He also reveals his characters through natural dialogue, subtle moments, and flashbacks to important events. The flashbacks also work to disguise the chapter breaks in the collection. Since the narrative jumps back and forth in a single issue, the skips between chapters are nearly invisible, except for some clues from the art.
Speaking of art, Martinbrough went against the grain for most noir comic tales and used more solid lines and clean illustrations instead of gritty, sketchy lines seen in “Criminal” or “The Rinse.” The action seens look dynamic, and the death of Redmond’s old partner looks horrific, even in silohette. His inks get a lot of help from colorist Felix Serrano, who helped add motion and life to the images.
The bonus features were nonexistant. Like, not even the covers were included nonexistant. The only page which wasn’t story was a list of other Kirkman and Skybound books.
The seven issues collected here were originally sold for three bucks each, so the $15 price tag is quite a discount, which more than makes up for the lack of extras.
Final Verdict: 8 – Buy
