Velvet, Volume 1: Before the Living End

Altogether more sophisticated spy comic, seventies-set, hearkening to the style of the paranoid cynicism of the era. Velvet's a secretary to the Director, but she's also a retired spy in her own right, and when one operative is murdered and she's put in the frame as a mole, she goes on the run, following a thread into the past to discover who set her up. Action and intrigue, secrets and lies, moody art and hard-boiled storytelling makes this a perfect noir espionage thriller. Espionoir.

What if James Bond were a woman?
7:16 pm 9 October 2016
Velvet, Vol. 1: Before the Living End - Bettie Breitweiser, Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting
What if she'd been shuttered off, to be the assistant to the big boss? Well, you'd have Velvet. Out of practice, but then again she has an advantage: no one realizes just how capable she is.

When one of the agents she'd slept with - and she apparently slept around like Bond did - is killed, she refuses to believe that the man who killed him was a double agent. Even though the dead agent is her favorite, she apparently has a tie to man being framed for his murder.

It only gets more complicated when she's framed for murdering the man who apparently assassinated the first agent. It becomes a race to show more clear both their names and find out what was really behind the death. Double agents, smuggles and spies galore in this slick noir that places a woman at the forefront of the action.

I also genuinely like Velvet: she believes in what she's doing, and is brutally honest about herself and the world. She's determined and capable and I found myself liking her more and more the more I read.

I got this as part of a Humble Bundle and plan on clearing out some of those graphic novels to make more room on my computer for my latest acquisitions before I buy more of this series, or track it down at the library.
Graphic Novel Image Comics Humble Bundle read in 2016 show less

I can't really say anything about this fantastic graphic novel that hasn't been said! It's terrific. I love the main character, the writing, especially the art (kept bugging my husband about the art, actually: "Look at this! Just look at it!"). All I have to add is that I was in it 100% when she kicked OFF her high-heeled shoes to get some business done.

Outstanding spy-thriller, and a world-class heroine: smart, sexy, and unstoppable.

Good solid plot: a spy is killed for reasons unknown, and a mild-mannered secretary is drawn in, but she was a spy herself and quickly reverts back to her former self. Lots of people have likened Velvet to a "bad-ass Miss Moneypenny" if James Bond were killed. I liked the realistic graphics and cityscapes, but felt that too little progress was made in Volume 1.

A tense spy thriller, Velvet Vol. 1 is the concept other reviewers say it is, but I found the swirling mysteries around Velvet Templeton even more interesting. Suffice to say, looking forward to more...

Very well done spy story, featuring a fascinating female character. I can't wait to read more.