Given how much I enjoyed their debut on Skinwalker, I was looking forward to seeing Three Strikes, the new Oni mini-series from this creative team. The book doesn't disappoint, using the same dual narration technique as Skinwalker but generally going off in a completely different direction, more Elmore Leonard than Thomas Harris. DeFilippis and Weir do a great job fleshing out the lives of the two protagonists while using the plot to set them on a collision course, and I expect that this series will have a lot to say not just about mistakes and responsibility but about how we all get wrapped up in our own lives and don't always consider how we can impact others.
Brian Hurtt continues to grow as an artist, which is impressive considering that his stuff looked good right from the outset. But if you compare Queen & Country, Queen & Country: Declassified, Skinwalker and now Three Strikes, what you'll see is someone who always brings talent and skill but also a certain something different to each project. In the case of Three Strikes, the notable change has been much more detailed and expressive faces, particularly with the sad-eyed Rey Quintana but also with all the different characters. The basic personality of the characters comes through in the designs by Hurtt, and the tough cop exterior of Conway says as much about him as the somewhat hang-dog expression of Quintana.
This first issue is all about the characterization, and that's the area where DeFilippis and Weir really excel. Even the most ardent of tough on crime supporters would have a hard time not feeling that injustice is being done to Quintana, and although Conway's ex-wife and daughter have legitimate beefs with him, we also sympathize with Conway because he seems like a good guy. The first-person narration tells a lot about these characters, and it allows the writers to put a lot of information about the characters into the first issue.
While there's a lot of characterization going on here, though, there's also equally important stuff that develops the setting and the rules of the game, just as the first issue of Skinwalker established the tribal ritual at the center of the story and the bureaucracy of the FBI that would become so important by the end. We see into Quintana's somewhat shady past and one of the influences that got him into this situation in the first place, and we see (and hear) about what led Conway to where he is as well. We're told about the three strikes law that gives the book its title, and we see that the inevitable pursuit of Quintana by Conway is going to muck with both of their lives, giving room for drama on both sides as well as illustrating that both men are likely to be completely oblivious to the fact that the other guy is hurting too, so focused will they be on their own problems.
Three Strikes has an inventive premise and it tackles a subject I happen to find fascinating (bounty hunters), but that's not why I'm so happy with it. The reason I liked this first issue so much, why I expect to enjoy the rest of the series and why I expect big things from everyone involved is because of the solid foundation of characterization that lies underneath the whole thing. This is a character-based drama, and while the plot is certainly interesting, it's seeing how the story affects the characters that these creators have developed that makes it such an intriguing read.
