I honestly didn't know what to expect from this new title and the new charcter, and I'm still reserving my judgment as this introductory issue doesn't really get into the premise yet. But damn, this was a fun read, and it's because Jolley has developed a badass character in the vein of Dirty Harry and Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson's character in the Deathwish movies). Stories set in a super-hero universe tend to embrace violence, but Jolley puts an ugly face on that violence here. The most surprising aspect of the book is the effectiveness of the artwork. I'm pleased to see Kirk and Riggs working together again, but I never thought a book with such a harsh tone would be right for them. Fortunately, I was wrong.
Travis Clevenger is a cop, or at least he used to be. Now he's locked up, reduced to little more than the criminals he used to put away. Clevenger's made an impression upon the prison population, though; he's hated and feared more than any other inmate. Two FBI agents -- one of them an old friend from his days on the outside -- come to visit Travis and to make him an offer. No one has ever had as much success bringing in superhuman criminals, and they need his help. There are a couple of problems: Clevenger wants no part of the deal and even if he did, he'd have to survive long enough to get from the interview room to the outside.
The one-time Supergirl art team of Kirk and Riggs brought a softness to the Girl of Steel that emphasized her humanity; it's one of the reasons they were such strong storytellers on that series. Given the tone of this title, though, I figured they'd be out of their element, that the softness I perceived before would work against them here. I didn't consider that they're artists and can adapt to their assignment. They bring a sharp intensity to Clevenger here, and the depiction of some horrific violence is quite effective when it comes to shocking the reader. Baumann's colors bathe the book in a green glow, which is a plot element, but it also establishes an eerie, unsettling atmosphere.
Jolley fosters an air of mystery here by beating around the bush when it comes to the main character's history. He's not in jail for murder, but he is there for killing someone. We're also given a hint at a dramatic physical transformation. The scar on his face begs for a big story to be told. There are a number of little touches that really draw the reader in.
The badass cop who breaks the rules... from Eastwood's Dirty Harry to the main characters in such flicks as Lethal Weapon and Cobra, it's a cliched archetype everyone knows all too well thanks to a parade of movies of varying degrees of quality. There's something appealing about it, though. The notion of someone protecting us and doing what's right as opposed to what's proper is oddly comforting, but ultimately, such characters win us over with a coolness factor. They're a perfect mix of law and outlaw, and that's my take on the nasty protagonist to which we're introduced here.
