Though more people will likely read New Mutants #1 -- the other comic book released this week that's written by Nunzio DeFilippis and Christina Weir -- this is the one they should be reading. Don't get me wrong... New Mutants #1 is a good read, but Three Strikes is a great one. The characters are astoundingly real, and the plot boasts a tone that's just as genuine. One could throw a "based on a true story" label on this book, and no one would doubt it. Reinforcing that realism is Brian Hurtt's artwork, which seems to get stronger and stronger with every new project he takes on. And it was already damn good to begin with.
Bailjumper Rey Quintana and his ne'er-do-well friend Billy Lemick drive a stolen car to a small Californian town where Rey hopes to lay low and start a new life, hiding from the mistakes of his past. Unfortunately, Billy's got more rebellious and illegal pasttimes in mind, forcing Rey to juggle his friendship and his survival. Meanwhile, Noah Conway's boss asks him to check to see if their suspicions are true regarding Quintana's status, but he's got his daughter tagging along, making for some awkward moments.
There's an interesting balance in Hurtt's artwork here. On the one hand, he maintains a slightly gritty tone that's in keeping with the unusual spin on crime fiction, but there's also a softer quality to be seen in some of the characters, notably Rey and his mother. That more tender tone brings out the everyday quality in the characters quite well. The backgrounds are remarkably realistic, as are the reactions that are apparent on the characters' faces.
Also believable are the mistakes that the characters make. The reader knows Rey is making a huge mistake when he contacts his mother, but the writers have sold the mother-son relationship so well that we know that it's entirely in keeping with Rey's character. His mother's feeble attempt to hide her son's activities from Noah and his boss comes off as thoroughly plausible as well. I love how Rey's girlfriend proves to be the brains of the outfit as well.
Noah doesn't seem to be making as overt a mistake when it comes to involving his daughter in his work. One could argue that he could get closer to her by allowing her inside his life, just a little. But I suspect that mistakes will be a major theme of this story as a whole, and Noah may be making a big one by allowing his private life and his job to cross over into one another.
