100 Bullets, Vol. 02: Split Second Chance

As noted in my book 1 review, 100 Bullets is a smash-mouthed gem I somehow missed. Azzarello and Risso are nearly flawless as a word and art team. Anyone who like hard-boiled mystery stories delivered in gritty graphics, needs to squirrel some money away and snatch up this entire series.

A new set of stories where Agent Graves gives the briefcase to people who need justice. However, now we are also getting hints of who Agent Graves may be working for. In between the stories of the gambler and the waitress, we get also stories that begin to hint how deep things go. It really reminds me of the conspiracies of The X-Files and the character of the Cigarette-Smoking Man. I did find the story of the diner waitress particularly moving, and this is a strength in the series. You can always be moved by at least one tale. Others are thrilling, and others leave you wanting more. Maybe that is why I only gave it four stars, because at the end, I do want to find out more than just "to be continued." I will tell you this: the series show more is clearly getting better. And once you start this, you won't be able to put it down. show less

Things begin to get more involved as the series develops. We get our first real taste of the mythology, and we get to see Dizzy again. These issues introduce other important players in the mythos, like Cole Burns, and this is when I definitely knew I was in for the long haul.

The second volume of the collected 100 Bullets takes the story in some interesting new directions, and definitely improves on the first volume, which spent a bit too much time wallowing in "hard-boiled crime" cliches. Once again, the reason to read is Eduardo Risso's brilliant artwork, which carries the story along even through the weak spots in Brian Azzarello's frequently sagging script. But Risso is such a consummate professional that the entire package works - the minimal dialog plays to the strengths of the graphic novel format, and it's hard for the reader not to get swept up in this fast-moving narrative.

Volume 2 picks up where the first one left off, but starts setting out the pieces to the larger plot much more aggressively. Azzarello does a great job of hinting at what's to come while neither giving too much or too little away. There's always the sense that the next bit of information will reveal everything, even though that's not the case.

This 2nd volume of 100 Bullets delves a little bit deeper into the mystery of Agent Graves and the forces behind him. However, not enough to truly answer any questions.

So goes the hook in this series. I didn't like this book as much as the first one, but it's still intriguing enough for me to read the next volume. Bring back more strong female characters, please!

Gorgeous art, intriguing story, and it's just getting deeper. Amazing series.