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GHM Online Columnist - Steve Higgins |
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| LATEST NEWS .: |
.MAY 2003.
Steve's Column Debuts! |
| COLUMN PICS & LINKS .: |
.100.Bullets.
.First.Shot.Last.Call.
by Brian Azzarello
and Eduardo Risso
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Feedback is always appreciated!
E-mail me at vacuumboy9@hotmail.com
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September 19, 2003
"100 BULLETS: FIRST SHOT, LAST CALL"
Writer Brian Azzarello has a lot on his plate right now. Joe Kubert is close to completing the artistic chores on the Sgt. Rock hardcover Azzarello penned. He and artist Eduardo Risso are taking over Batman after Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee depart, and Azzarello will join Lee when the superstar artist moves to his new book Superman. Of course, before any of his current fame, before any of his character-reinventing works for Marvel like Cage or Banner, Brian Azzarello was hard at work creating 100 Bullets for Vertigo, a book which would go on to redefine how people thought of crime dramas.
What sets 100 Bullets apart from most other works in the crime genre is its exploration of deep philosophical issues. The book has at its center the moral dilemma: What would you do if you knew there would be no consequences for your actions? If someone gave you the means and opportunity to get back at someone who you already had motives against, where would you draw the line?
In the first collection, 100 Bullets: First Shot, Last Call, the mysterious Agent Graves does just that. He provides complete strangers with a briefcase that contains irrefutable evidence, positive proof that they have been wronged in some way and who caused them that harm. Also in the attaché are a gun and 100 untraceable bullets, which Graves provides to these strangers with the explanation that, however they choose to use the gun, they will be free from prosecution.
In First Shot, Last Call Graves poses this question to two very different characters: Dizzy Cordova, a Latina gangbanger whose husband and son died while she was in prison, and Lee Dolan, a down-and-out bartender whose life was ruined when he was falsely accused of child pornography. Yet despite the disparate worlds these two characters inhabit, each one is fully rounded out into the type of character we can identify with. When Dizzy laments the loss of her family or when Lee tries to reconnect with his son, we empathize with their angst and heartbreak.
The credit for making these characters seem real cannot go solely to Azzarello's character development or his skillful ear for dialogue, but it must also rest on the artistic shoulders of his frequent artistic collaborator, the co-creator of 100 Bullets Eduardo Risso. When Dizzy Cordova stands silently in the rain with her eyes closed, we can plainly see her resignation and we feel it too. Risso's drawings feature some of the most emotive characters to ever grace the comic page, and his gifted ability for portraying the people that populate these tales allows us to truly feel what they feel.
In later stories, Azzarello and Risso spin 100 Bullets out of the crime genre somewhat and into a still suspenseful world of politics and intrigue, future storylines that are hinted at in the conclusion of Lee Dolan's tale. But what you get in First Shot, Last Call is really just the tip of the iceberg. 100 Bullets weaves many genres into a tapestry filled with vibrant characters and gripping plots. With the latest collection Six Feet Under the Gun due in stores this month, now is the perfect time to get engrossed in the world that Azzarello and Risso have created.
All Content ©2003 Steve Higgins, All Rights Reserved.
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| :. ABOUT STEVE |
Steve Higgins is an English instructor who loves comics so much he offers a class on them in the spring. His wife Sarah hates comics with a passion and wishes Steve would stop spending so much money on them each week.
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| :. ABOUT STEVE ( CONTINUED) |
Favorite Comics: Doom Patrol, Y the Last Man, Alias, Queen and Country, X-Statix, 21 Down, Paradigm
Favorite Movies: The Fisher King, Heavenly Creatures
Favorite Bands: Radiohead, Counting Crows, Weezer
Favorite Writers: Kurt Vonnegut, John Irving, Russell Banks
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| © 2003 - Gray Haven Magazine & All Authors. |
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