Criminal: The Deluxe Edition Volume 2
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- Create Date：2021-04-15 13:52:47
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Ed Brubaker
- ISBN：1534305432
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Summary
The second oversized hardback of the award-winning crime series from Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips is finally here！ The first edition has gone through four printings， in sellout after sellout， and now the rest of Brubaker and Phillips' noir masterpiece is collected in the same format。 Collecting BAD NIGHT， THE SINNERS and THE LAST OF THE INNOCENT - along with short stories， behind-the-scenes pieces， art and articles， all previously uncollected。 Don't miss out on this beautiful package from the best-selling team behind such hits as INCOGNITO and FATALE。 Colors by Val Staples and Dave Stewart。
COLLECTING: CRIMINAL （2008） 4-7， CRIMINAL: THE SINNERS 1-5， CRIMINAL: THE LAST OF THE INNOCENT 1-4
COLLECTING: CRIMINAL （2008） 4-7， CRIMINAL: THE SINNERS 1-5， CRIMINAL: THE LAST OF THE INNOCENT 1-4
Reviews
Matthew
，
I didn't love this collection as much as Vol。 1 but still a solid slew of noir crime stories， these perhaps a bit more intimate in telling。 A solid set of stories that carry on from the first but a bit less hard edged and a touch more forgettable。 Still， I'm looking forward to Deluxe Vol。 3！ I didn't love this collection as much as Vol。 1 but still a solid slew of noir crime stories， these perhaps a bit more intimate in telling。 A solid set of stories that carry on from the first but a bit less hard edged and a touch more forgettable。 Still， I'm looking forward to Deluxe Vol。 3！ 。。。more
Kristýna Obrdlíková
，
Břitký storytelling， úsporný styl， co slovo， to promyšlený zásah a navíc kulervoucí příběhy。 Brrr。
Richard
，
The second stunning collection of the amazingly consistent Criminal stories！ This book starts off with one of my favorite comic book stories of all time and stays on a high from there！ This work is must-read stuff！Contains:Bad Night ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️The Sinners ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️The Last of the Innocent ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ The second stunning collection of the amazingly consistent Criminal stories！ This book starts off with one of my favorite comic book stories of all time and stays on a high from there！ This work is must-read stuff！Contains:Bad Night ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️The Sinners ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️The Last of the Innocent ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 。。。more
Carolyn Cooper
，
The Last of the Innocent run was very good。
Lucas Corso
，
El listón estaba MUY ALTO con el volumen 1 （ver reseña）， pero el tándem Brubaker & Philips lo ha logrado。 Todo lo bueno del anterior volumen permanece， pero en esta ocasión las historias son， si cabe， más hirientes。 Tracy Lawless se convierte por mérito propio en un icono del género pero， como el mismo Brubaker reconoce en su introducción， en la historia "El Último de los Inocentes" toca techo。 La diferenciación gráfica， la identificación entre discurso e imagen hacen que todo sea más retorcido， El listón estaba MUY ALTO con el volumen 1 （ver reseña）， pero el tándem Brubaker & Philips lo ha logrado。 Todo lo bueno del anterior volumen permanece， pero en esta ocasión las historias son， si cabe， más hirientes。 Tracy Lawless se convierte por mérito propio en un icono del género pero， como el mismo Brubaker reconoce en su introducción， en la historia "El Último de los Inocentes" toca techo。 La diferenciación gráfica， la identificación entre discurso e imagen hacen que todo sea más retorcido， más。。。 triste。 Se confirma que， hasta los más miserables， tienen algo en su interior con lo que nos podemos identificar。Pese al sobresaliente desenlace de la historia de Tracy Lawless （primera parte en el volumen 1）， La quinta estrella viene de "El Último de los Inocentes"。 Para la historia del "noir" gráfico。 。。。more
Will Cooper
，
An amazing collection of three crime stories interweaving different characters， but they are all in the same world。 Incredible storytelling。
Neil Sarver
，
I'd read the previous collections with these in them， but I just got this collection recently。 It's very interesting to read them altogether。 I'd read the previous collections with these in them， but I just got this collection recently。 It's very interesting to read them altogether。 。。。more
Javier Muñoz
，
Segundo tomo de esta colección de serie negra de Brubaker， algunos personajes nuevos y otros ya conocidos participan en historias de asesinatos en las que llegamos a empatizar con los asesinos， en total son tres arcos de cuatro o cinco capítulos， en cada uno de los cuales se desarrolla uno （o varios） asesinatos y los posteriores intentos de eludir la justicia de los criminales。 En realidad la segunda historia se escapa de este molde， y resulta más bien una historia detectivesca， pero sigue tenie Segundo tomo de esta colección de serie negra de Brubaker， algunos personajes nuevos y otros ya conocidos participan en historias de asesinatos en las que llegamos a empatizar con los asesinos， en total son tres arcos de cuatro o cinco capítulos， en cada uno de los cuales se desarrolla uno （o varios） asesinatos y los posteriores intentos de eludir la justicia de los criminales。 En realidad la segunda historia se escapa de este molde， y resulta más bien una historia detectivesca， pero sigue teniendo similitudes en la forma de entender los asesinatos， una manera para nada dual， sino con muchos grises。 En estas historias los asesinos tienen unos motivos bastante sólidos y no siempre reciben su castigo。Mi historia favorita es la tercera， en la que un hombre que se casó con la hija de un gran empresario vuelve a su pueblo natal con motivo de la muerte de su padre， donde tiene recuerdos de tiempos más sencillos y mejores， debido a las infidelidades de su esposa y a que redescubre un amor de la adolescencia empieza a plantearse asesinar a su mujer para quitársela de encima y de paso cobrar la herencia。 Lo curioso de esta historia es la forma de contar los recuerdos de la juventud， con un dibujo que recuerda al estilo de los cómics de Archie， lo cual es muy adecuado porque la historia básicamente es como si Archie se hubiera casado con Verónica y volviera a Riverdale años después amargado por su matrimonio y encontrara refugio en sus viejos amigos Betty， que sigue tan adorable como siempre y Jughead， que ha terminado siendo un alcohólico y drogadicto en rehabilitación。Del dibujo poco hay que decir que no haya comentado en otros cómics del tandem Brubacker-Phillips， una pasada。 。。。more
DaViD´82
，
Především v prvním a třetím příběhu je to výrazně narativně hravější i ambicióznější než v minule。 Což， paradoxně， je ke škodě， protože podobnému echt noiru přímočarost sedí。 Žádná z povídek není byť jen náznakem （pod）průměrná， ale je vidět， že si s tím Brubaker chtěl po stránce vyprávění pohrát a tak je to na žánrovku místy až moc meta （komiksové vyprávění v komiksovém vyprávění， minulost ve stylu à la Archie apod。）。 Do očí to bije především vůči druhému příběhu， který zmíněné žánrové přímočaro Především v prvním a třetím příběhu je to výrazně narativně hravější i ambicióznější než v minule。 Což， paradoxně， je ke škodě， protože podobnému echt noiru přímočarost sedí。 Žádná z povídek není byť jen náznakem （pod）průměrná， ale je vidět， že si s tím Brubaker chtěl po stránce vyprávění pohrát a tak je to na žánrovku místy až moc meta （komiksové vyprávění v komiksovém vyprávění， minulost ve stylu à la Archie apod。）。 Do očí to bije především vůči druhému příběhu， který zmíněné žánrové přímočarosti věrný je， a finální bonusové úderné mikro povídce。 。。。more
Roman
，
Absolutely bloody brilliant。 Also really violent and ruthless and awesome and。。。 WOW。
Jakub Kvíz
，
Another 3 stories from the world of Criminal and it's really something else。The first story， "Bad Night"， is IMHO the best Criminal story so far and it focuses on Jacob， the forger we met in "Lawless" story。 Poor guy can't catch a break。 In "The Sinners" we meet Tracy Lawless again as he's trying to repay his debt to local kingpin Sebastian Hyde and solve the series of murders of local crooks。 In "The Last of the Innocent" we got basically brand new cast （with a small cameo of Teeg Lawless） and Another 3 stories from the world of Criminal and it's really something else。The first story， "Bad Night"， is IMHO the best Criminal story so far and it focuses on Jacob， the forger we met in "Lawless" story。 Poor guy can't catch a break。 In "The Sinners" we meet Tracy Lawless again as he's trying to repay his debt to local kingpin Sebastian Hyde and solve the series of murders of local crooks。 In "The Last of the Innocent" we got basically brand new cast （with a small cameo of Teeg Lawless） and I really enjoyed the "Archie styled" flashbacks。 There's also a short bonus story originally published in Dark Horse's "Noir" anthology which is also great （and colored for the first time）。The second deluxe collection is another home run by Brubaker & Phillips and I can't wait to sink my teeth to the new ongoing series。 。。。more
Vasilis Giannopoulos
，
It includes three stories: Bad Night， Sinners and Last of the Innocent。 The last two were as amazing as anything else I have read from this creative duo。 However， I couldn't say the same about Bad Night; nice plot but something felt extremely unnatural with some of the protagonists' decisions and acts。 Unnatural enough for me to get distracted and eventually not enjoy the story as much as I would have liked。 Of course， all in all， Criminal is as best as a crime/noir comic can be。 I am really hap It includes three stories: Bad Night， Sinners and Last of the Innocent。 The last two were as amazing as anything else I have read from this creative duo。 However， I couldn't say the same about Bad Night; nice plot but something felt extremely unnatural with some of the protagonists' decisions and acts。 Unnatural enough for me to get distracted and eventually not enjoy the story as much as I would have liked。 Of course， all in all， Criminal is as best as a crime/noir comic can be。 I am really happy that I have both deluxe editions in my collection。 。。。more
Cristina
，
https://osrascunhos。com/2017/12/27/cr。。。O primeiro livro de Criminal tinha apresentado histórias viscerais onde a violência constitui parte integrante do quotidiano das personagens， fazendo com que se sintam constantemente atraídas para caírem nos velhos e perigosos episódios。 Neste volume as histórias voltam a incidir sobre criminosos， mas são criminosos mais sofisticados， alguns que se envolvem na violência conscientemente pelos motivos errados e arrastam os outros por maus caminhos。Outros vol https://osrascunhos。com/2017/12/27/cr。。。O primeiro livro de Criminal tinha apresentado histórias viscerais onde a violência constitui parte integrante do quotidiano das personagens， fazendo com que se sintam constantemente atraídas para caírem nos velhos e perigosos episódios。 Neste volume as histórias voltam a incidir sobre criminosos， mas são criminosos mais sofisticados， alguns que se envolvem na violência conscientemente pelos motivos errados e arrastam os outros por maus caminhos。Outros voltam ao crime ao conhecerem uma Femme Fatale que os enfeitiça com a sua presença。 É o caso de um homem que vive uma existência nocturna e cinzenta， produzindo regularmente uma pequena banda desenhada no jornal e intercalando com longos passeios à noite， após a morte da sua esposa – morte pela qual foi perseguido por um polícia persistente até ser encontrado o corpo num carro há muito acidentado。O episódio trouxe-lhe mazelas físicas e psicológicas que o levam a esta existência cinzenta e rotineira que será quebrada ao encontrar， num café， um casal em conflito。 Ele está notoriamente bêbado enquanto ela tenta escapar à agressividade eminente。 A intervenção é necessária e antecipada abrindo portas a que o cavalheiro de última hora leve a jovem， acabando os dois a noite na mesma cama。A partir dos segredos descobertos pela jovem o homem volta a ser puxado para o crime， constituindo， simultaneamente vítima e perpetuador， num enredo que tem mais nuances planeadas do que poderíamos pensar inicialmente！ A história é contada em duas perspectivas que se cruzam e complementam usando uma estratégia narrativa já conhecida do primeiro volume de Criminal。Na segunda história conhecemos um assassino a soldo de um mafioso – mas um assassino pouco usual que tenta procurar informação suficiente das vítimas para justificar o acto de as matar。 Depois de se ter tentado afastar desta vida uma vez e envolvido por necessidade， volta a pensar em se afastar， desconhecendo que a sua vida irá descarrilar quando o mafioso suspeita que o assassino poderá estar envolvido com a filha adolescente e， simultaneamente， o seu caminho se cruza com um grupo de justiceiros que pretende limpar a cidade。A última história， The Last of the Innocent é， na verdade， a mais arrepiante。 A história apresenta um homem que volta à cidade onde cresceu para assistir ao funeral do pai。 Ao retornar à cidade reencontra velhos amigos e velhas paixões， apesar de estar casado com uma ricaça que se envolveu com um antigo rival。A história vai alternando memórias da infância e da juventude às quais atribui um estilo gráfico muito próprio com os planos da personagem principal para refazer a sua vida nem que para isso tenha de envolver， fatalmente， outras pessoas。Tal como o volume anterior este termina com uma série de capas alternativas para cada um dos números que reúne， e com uma espécie de trailler – algumas páginas de banda desenhada inéditas que apresentam alguns elementos das histórias que irão constituir o volume。De ambiente soturno， noir， que corresponde bem às histórias apresentadas， este segundo volume volta às histórias de criminosos onde a eminência da violência se sente mas， enquanto que， no primeiro， as histórias eram mais viscerais e decadentes retratando pessoas que vivem no meio da violência， que a ela estão acostumadas e que acabam atraídas para novos episódios como traças à procura da luz， neste volume as histórias têm elementos mais refinados e alternam episódios de violência física com violência psicológica， destacando-se os planos frios de teor calculista que irá desgraçar a vida de alguém。 。。。more
Charlie
，
Great story telling reminds me of 100 bullets
Sloan
，
This entire series is exceptional。 Highly recommended for fans of the genre。 Renewed my faith in the storytelling quality of comic books/graphic novels。
Francisco Silva
，
Según creo mejora el volumen anterior （Criminal: The Deluxe Edition， Vol。 1 ）， conteniendo al menos 2 de los mejores arcos de la serie （'Bad Night' y 'Last of the Innocent'）。 Aun cuando las historias se muevan dentro de recursos habituales del genero: violencia， mafias，drogas，bares，sexo， etc。 El cliché no se hace pesado ， ya sea por la construcción natural del guión por parte de Brubaker que no se engolosina en algo pretencioso o tal vez por el dibujo plagado de tinta y sombras a cargo de Sean P Según creo mejora el volumen anterior （Criminal: The Deluxe Edition， Vol。 1 ）， conteniendo al menos 2 de los mejores arcos de la serie （'Bad Night' y 'Last of the Innocent'）。 Aun cuando las historias se muevan dentro de recursos habituales del genero: violencia， mafias，drogas，bares，sexo， etc。 El cliché no se hace pesado ， ya sea por la construcción natural del guión por parte de Brubaker que no se engolosina en algo pretencioso o tal vez por el dibujo plagado de tinta y sombras a cargo de Sean Phillips que le cae como anillo al dedo。 Esta dupla es sencillamente infalible a la hora de narrar historias en esta， su zona de confort。 。。。more
Danijel Jedriško
，
Brubacker/Phillips "Criminal" is one of the best comic books I've ever read。 Fifth volume "The Sinners" is one of the best stories I've read in comics for a while。 Noirish take on modern world， character driven stories and homage to the classic noir。 All that， and more， is incorporated in the "Criminal"。 On the backpages of every volume there is a piece about noir culture - movies， series， books and more。 This is one of the best comics for people intrigued by the genre and for those who want to Brubacker/Phillips "Criminal" is one of the best comic books I've ever read。 Fifth volume "The Sinners" is one of the best stories I've read in comics for a while。 Noirish take on modern world， character driven stories and homage to the classic noir。 All that， and more， is incorporated in the "Criminal"。 On the backpages of every volume there is a piece about noir culture - movies， series， books and more。 This is one of the best comics for people intrigued by the genre and for those who want to find rare gems which are mostly overlooked by the mainstream public。 Wonderful！ 。。。more
Robert
，
MORE PLEASE。
La Revistería Comics
，
Las historias más fuertes， personales y a la vez universales de Criminal en este contundente segundo integral。
Blindzider
，
Just read it。 It's that good。 Just read it。 It's that good。 。。。more
Julie
，
Úžasně temná， noirová záležitost， která by rozhodně neměla zůstat nepovšimnuta。 Pro milovníky komiksů povinnost。
Cheese
，
This puts volume 1 to shame。 Each story in this book is excellent。 From beginning to end。 The characters， the artwork and the intricate plot lines are perfection。 The best crime noir out there！！！ Amazing。
Sean
，
Why Hollywood hasn't jumped all over Brubaker & Phillips' masterpiece Criminal is beyond me。 Here in the second deluxe edition the last three Criminal volumes are collected。 The first story， Bad Night， is my favorite。 The cross and double cross that you expect is only the beginning。 Brubaker creates characters with so many layers， its amazing。 The inclusion of the the comic strip aspect was fantastic and added so much to the story。 The middle story involving another Tracy Lawless story was very Why Hollywood hasn't jumped all over Brubaker & Phillips' masterpiece Criminal is beyond me。 Here in the second deluxe edition the last three Criminal volumes are collected。 The first story， Bad Night， is my favorite。 The cross and double cross that you expect is only the beginning。 Brubaker creates characters with so many layers， its amazing。 The inclusion of the the comic strip aspect was fantastic and added so much to the story。 The middle story involving another Tracy Lawless story was very good but was a little too by the numbers but that's being nitpicky。 The conclusion was a sad tale of revenge， friendship， and what could have been。 Sean Phillips is the perfect artist for this and would not have been the same without him。 Ed Brubaker does comic book crime noir as good as anyone in the business。 Overall， a near flawless collection！ 。。。more
Benjamin Bauer
，
The 2nd hardcover of Brubaker's grim Neo-Noir comic。 The three stories contained within are "Bad Night"， "The Sinners" and "The Last of the Innocent"。 The three of these are excellent， twisted tales that if anything， are more conceptually interesting than volume 1's yarns。 Especially the final tale in which good ol' Archie Comics Americana is counterbalanced with Phillips & Brubaker's loser-filled reality。I've really only got two gripes with this book。 The first is that not all of the actual bac The 2nd hardcover of Brubaker's grim Neo-Noir comic。 The three stories contained within are "Bad Night"， "The Sinners" and "The Last of the Innocent"。 The three of these are excellent， twisted tales that if anything， are more conceptually interesting than volume 1's yarns。 Especially the final tale in which good ol' Archie Comics Americana is counterbalanced with Phillips & Brubaker's loser-filled reality。I've really only got two gripes with this book。 The first is that not all of the actual back-matter from the single issues is included in the back section。 Normally this wouldn't bother me， since I know that typically Brubaker's single issues are advertised as containing back-matter that won't be reprinted （Or at least they did for "Fatale" and now do for "The Fade-Out"）。 HOWEVER， in the preface before the "extras" section， there's text that states that the essays ARE included。 Only one is and it's kinda meh。My other gripe？ My copy had printing errors in "The Sinners"。 The bottom text of some speech bubbles was cut out。 While it didn't ruin my overall experience of the story， it was a bit akin to having a film skip。 Either way， if you dig Noir， this book and the Deluxe Edition 1 are must-haves。 Or snatch up the editions that Image comics is putting out。 Those look pretty swag。 。。。more
Jeff Lanter
，
There is no doubt that the stories contained in Criminal Volume 2 are some of the best noir you can find。 I've read and reread each of these stories and this time through I was struck by how complex and perfect each of these story arcs are。 Criminal is really perfection and something I'm proud to own in hardcover。 If there are any disappointments with the Deluxe Edition it is that there are almost no essays in the back and the only one that is included isn't that interesting。 My copy also has so There is no doubt that the stories contained in Criminal Volume 2 are some of the best noir you can find。 I've read and reread each of these stories and this time through I was struck by how complex and perfect each of these story arcs are。 Criminal is really perfection and something I'm proud to own in hardcover。 If there are any disappointments with the Deluxe Edition it is that there are almost no essays in the back and the only one that is included isn't that interesting。 My copy also has some missing text in the speech bubbles which was also disappointing in a book of this high quality。 This is offset by some other nice extras like artwork from individual issues that accompanied the essays and a couple of short extra comics that were not collected in the trade paperbacks。 When you talk about desert island reads and you talk about something you will want to own for life， for myself anyway， Criminal Deluxe Edition Volume Two fits both of those categories and that is why it gets my highest recommendation。 。。。more
Rumi Bossche
，
With the second deluxe edition of Criminal we get more of the same， and i mean that in the very best way。 Stellar noir stories that are both original but also salute the old days of classic noir， we get another three stories with returning characters， in a non lineair way and skipping through time and back。 Just stop reading this and get them。 This is another deluxe edition with a great design， quality paper and binding， a couple end notes， some of Sean Philips artwork， and a essay and trailer With the second deluxe edition of Criminal we get more of the same， and i mean that in the very best way。 Stellar noir stories that are both original but also salute the old days of classic noir， we get another three stories with returning characters， in a non lineair way and skipping through time and back。 Just stop reading this and get them。 This is another deluxe edition with a great design， quality paper and binding， a couple end notes， some of Sean Philips artwork， and a essay and trailer in comic book form。 Highly recomended。 。。。more
ΕιζΝιnΕ
，
The Last Of The Criminals？ Damn， I Hope Not The second volume of Criminal wraps up what is one of the best crime comics ever made， but it won't be gone forever。 I hope。 Now that Brubaker and Phillips have moved from Icon to Image with their genre-blending titles 'Fatale' -- which combines the noir elements of 'Criminal' with the cosmic horror of H。P。 Lovecraft -- and 'The Fade Out'， they may be there for some time。 The success of both works means that what began as a short diversion between The Last Of The Criminals？ Damn， I Hope Not The second volume of Criminal wraps up what is one of the best crime comics ever made， but it won't be gone forever。 I hope。 Now that Brubaker and Phillips have moved from Icon to Image with their genre-blending titles 'Fatale' -- which combines the noir elements of 'Criminal' with the cosmic horror of H。P。 Lovecraft -- and 'The Fade Out'， they may be there for some time。 The success of both works means that what began as a short diversion between 'Criminal' story-arcs is now their creative focus， with no end-dates forthcoming。 Below and following -- some examples of Sean Phillips' brilliant original art pages for Criminal， some from this volume， some from the first:Given what the two have accomplished thus far， I'm guessing the hiatus won't become a permanent vacation， though it may be a long one。 As Volume 2 demonstrates， this is more than just your average crime story。 Even the more straight-forward plots of 'Coward' and 'Lawless' provided Brubaker-patented twists that were far from predictable， whether or not you happen to be a fan of Hammett， Chandler， Thompson， et al。 'Bad Night' is where Brubaker begins to play with the ideas he will put to good use later， while 'The Sinners' once again features Lawless in one of the best stories yet。 'The Last of the Innocents'， however， sees Brubaker flexing some intellectual muscles， delving into meta-narratives that are closer to Paul Auster and his 'New York Trilogy' than Jim Thompson or Richard Price。Phillips' artwork is so perfect for the material that 'Criminal' could easily pass as the product of a single mind， as many of the best crime comics are。 Teams so well-suited for collaboration are rare in comics -- Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso are the only other duo that work as well， particularly on 100 Bullets， another top five entry for the best in crime comics。 Phillips has a realistic style， but one that's stripped down and drenched in shadow， bespoke art tailored exactly for the subject matter。Phillips also does another excellent job designing the hardcover， a truly deluxe edition that makes DC hardovers look cheap in comparison， despite the fact they usually cost more。 Actually， the standard 'deluxe' DC hardcovers are cheap， by any comparison。 The extras are very cool; a couple of the essays from the single issues are included， but only the ones penned by Brubaker， unfortunately。。。 it would have been nice to get them all， but for vague reasons relating to copyright and authorship， it didn't happen。 Or maybe Marvel wanted to leave fans and completists with an incentive to pick up the floppies。 Fine。 The stunning Gouache and watercolors Phillips created to accompany the essays， however， are included in their entirety。 The volume is slightly oversized， at about 7。5" x 11"， and is a hefty 428 pages， printed on glossy， high-quality stock。 This is big 'E' Essential for fans of comics noir， and highly recommended for comic fans in general。Whether Brubaker and Phillips revisit Criminal， or stay with Image， continuing Fatale， The Fade Out and whatever comes next， the titles are less important than the collaboration itself。 Still。。。 I hope they find their way back to the hardboiled territory of Criminal at some point。 More Art-book Reviews More Comic-book Reviews More Novel Reviews A Mysterious Review That Might Be Related to the Book in Question， But Written By Someone Else Entirely 。。。more
Toby
，
The problem with claiming the first deluxe book of Criminal as one of the best noir books ever created， and not just in the graphic novel field， is that now when the second deluxe book is finished and it's even better than the first I have no more superlatives to throw at it。 The beautiful artwork aside Ed Brubaker takes his series to a whole different level thanks to his writing; the depth of character， the intricate plotting， the agony and apathy， the evil of good men and the kindnesses of evi The problem with claiming the first deluxe book of Criminal as one of the best noir books ever created， and not just in the graphic novel field， is that now when the second deluxe book is finished and it's even better than the first I have no more superlatives to throw at it。 The beautiful artwork aside Ed Brubaker takes his series to a whole different level thanks to his writing; the depth of character， the intricate plotting， the agony and apathy， the evil of good men and the kindnesses of evil men， he twists everyone and everything around a knife of their own making as they inhabit a life of crime that has robbed them of all hope for ever coming out the other side alive， it's a marvellous book loaded with existential pain and is an absolute pleasure to read。 Three more story arcs within his already established world feature some characters you've already met and others you'd surely like to avoid in a dark alley， he takes his stories in fascinating directions that are both genre staples and intensely new depictions of the criminal underworld at the same time。 The loss of innocence is a major theme throughout the series but with these three stories it's amplified further thanks to clever interrogation of the medium， the writer of the Frank Kafka comic strip that punctuates previous stories comes to the fore in a very smart way， whilst the twisted tale of Riley Richards， All American Boy riffs on the Archie Comics， and then there's Brubaker's own sad take on vigilante justice。 Sadly this appears to be the end of the series， but at least it ends on a magnificent high。 PERFECT noir fiction， PERFECT use of the graphic novel format， ESSENTIAL reading。 。。。more
Michael Bacon
，
Nearly equal to volume 1。
Christopher
，