Incognito #5 – Review

by Ed Brubaker (writer), Sean Phillips (art), and Val Staples (colors)

The Story: Ava Destruction and Zack Overkill go to ground before Zack discovers the awful truth about his origins.

What’s Good: Everything you’ve liked about Incognito returns for another month.  Sean Phillips’ art is a key example of this; completely consistent in its style, tone, and quality without any dips or hurry. It continues to capture Brubaker’s weird mix of dark, hard-boiled noir and bizarre, ray-gun toting 60s sci-fi.  Incognito has been nothing short of excellent every issue, and #5 is no different.

I said it in my review last month and I’ll say it again now: I really, really like Ava Destruction as a character. Once again, despite her clear mental imbalances and homicidal tendencies, she remains impossibly likable. In that sense, the reader’s own relationship to her mirrors Zack’s. She’s dangerous, bloody, and generally awful. Yet relentlessly attractive and compelling.  It’s her very strangeness and ruthless and carefree violence that pull us towards her. And when Brubaker adds a level of vulnerability to her this month, it only makes us embrace her all the harder.

The twist regarding Zack’s origin occupies a central place in this month’s issue, and while it conveys, thanks in no small part to Phillips’ art and Staples’ neon colors and that throwback grindhouse/sci-fi feel, it also truly is a culmination of Zack’s existential struggles. In fact, Zack’s discovery and the subsequent conclusion of this issue are both beautiful in their being a concrete yet almost surreal manifestation of Zack’s loss of identity. Indeed, it fits the title “Incognito” perfectly. Despite its reliance on strong interior monologues, this series once again serves to question the nature of identity and whether the concept carries any validity at all. At the end of this issue, I’m leaning towards “no,” and yet paradoxically, I still see Zack as a distinct person that I’m invested in. This is testament to Brubaker’s skill as a writer that avoids clear answers.

Simply put, this is a highly intelligent issue that takes the book’s themes to an extreme new  level, setting up a bloodbath finale that is sure to define what it is to be “Incognito.”

What’s Not-so-Good: The short pair of scenes with Zoe Zeppelin didn’t feel particularly integral, especially given how awesome the rest of the book was. They’re clearly there as to explain the S.O.S’s presence in next month’s battle royale, but I can’t see why they couldn’t have been shortened, or combined into one scene. Then again, I’m biased as I really just want more Ava.

Conclusion: As I said last month, Incognito is a book that has given one of the best writers in comics today the freedom to do what he does best.  This is a writer in his prime, without constraints, making his ideal comic book.  Bottom-line? Buy the book, buy the trade, just read it!

Grade: A

-Alex Evans

Incognito #4 – Review

by Ed Brubaker (writer), Sean Phillips (art), and Val Staples (colors)

The Story: The S.O.S. has finally caught on to Zack’s night-time activities as our “hero” finds himself trapped in an unenviable situation.

What’s Good: Showing, not telling.  This phrase has haunted more or less every creative writing hopeful at one point or another, but in this issue, Ed Brubaker proves his mastery of the well-worn adage. Rather than have Zack tell us how his psyche is developing through textboxes, Brubaker uses his scenes and images to make these internal shifts all the more significant.

Two notable occurrences in this issue are the surprise office memorial for Farmer and the encounter with Amanda directly afterwards.  The former is a scene that shows Zack on the cusp of acknowledging an inexplicable positive in humanity and the “average Joe” he has so derided, yet due to letting the scene speak for itself, the reader almost seems more aware of this moment than Zack himself.  Meanwhile, the scene with Amanda plays up the feeling of paranoia that pervades this comic, making the reader actually share Zack’s anxiety right alongside him.

This is just a further nuance to the great writing that has continually propped up this series.  Paranoia is the game in this issue, and Brubaker plays it well.  Enhancing this is a further graying of the “good-guy/bad-guy” divide; not only is Zack hazy, but so too are the S.O.S., who turn out to be a far cry from SHIELD.

The character that sees the most development this issue is without a doubt Ava Destruction.  On the few pages that she appears in, she is utterly infectious.  Despite being terrifyingly insane and completely homicidal, she carries an undeniable charm and likeability.  The fact that we will be getting even more of her next issue has me excited.

Art-wise, Sean Phillips fans no what to expect.  The same dark, heavy pulp fare continues in this issue with no sign of slippage.  Phillips is nothing if not consistent.

What’s Not So Good: I didn’t feel that the internal monologue/textboxes were up the standard set by previous issues.  Don’t get me wrong, they’re still fantastic and were this any other comic, I would be enthralled; it’s only due to the unbelievably high bar that the series has set for itself that I find myself writing this.

I think a good part of it comes from what I mentioned about “showing, not telling.”  Due to Brubaker allowing the scenes to tell Zack’s emotions rather than the textboxes, the internal monologue becomes much more event-centered.  You don’t get the sort of overarching ruminating that you got in past issues.  It’s just feels simpler and more down to earth, with Zack more focused on his predicament than on the nature of his existence.

Also, I’ve always had a bit of a pet peeve for misleading covers.  Know that nothing close to a super powered battle between Zack Overkill and Zoe Zeppelin occurs in these pages.

Conclusion: Incognito remains an example of one of the top writers in comics today doing what he does best with complete freedom.

Grade: B+

-Alex Evans

Incognito #3 – Review

Ed Brubaker (writer), Sean Phillips (artist), Val Staples (colorist)

Story:

Zack Overkill is in a tight spot. As an unwilling participant in a witness protection program for villains, he’s having a hard time reconciling the liberties and excitement of his old life for the doldrums of his beige, office-filled existence. But since he’s been getting his powers back, things have changed – and not for the better. His so-called friend is mooching off his abilities, his parole officer’s pissed, and worst of all; his old boss, The Black Death, has agents on his trail.

And now, of all times, is when that “friend” wants him to go rob a bank, or else he’ll let everybody know who Zack really is…

The Good:

There’s good, and there’s loads of it. Brubaker’s writing, which has always found the balance between descriptive and evocative, finds a certain strength in combining his two passions – noir and superheroes – into a single project. The characters are amusing, intriguing, and, most of all, relatable, but to a stronger extent; many of us’ve had a fantasy of watching a maligned workplace burn to a cinder, but Zack Overkill could actually do it. And it pains him that he’s forced to work there, to troll around like a regular shmoe in a shit job, when he could be doing so much more.

The art from Phillips is phenomenal. As seen in his run on Criminal with Brubaker, he draws characters with personality and clarity. There’s distinction, perspective, and a certain stylization that makes everything easier to deal with – which makes the story that much more engrossing. His gritty style is a perfect setting for the story, and even with rayguns abounding, these elements come across as cool, rather than trite.

Val Staples brings a strong, savvy style of coloring that plays well with contrast and effect. It’s a great match for Phillips’s pencils, and is that third, truly crucial piece to bringing Brubaker’s words to life – because not only does it bring life, but it also brings personality to the pages. And when coloring can do that, you’ve really hit the nail on the head.

The Bad:

It’s very hard to find anything bad or disappointing about this book. It’s a cool, fast, fun, easy read with multiple layers to it. The colors are spot on, the art is great, and the writing is a perfect fit. If you can find something wrong with it, I’d imagine you’re trying far too hard. But, I do have one complaint – we were kept waiting almost two months between issue two and issue three. Brubaker apologizes profusely in the back of the book, saying that “from here on in, we should be monthly for the rest of the series and then we’re going right into the next run of Criminal, with no break this time.”

…I suppose we can cut you a little slack, because you two really delivered with this issue, and hopefully, the rest of the series.

Grade : A

Incognito #1 – Review

By Ed Brubaker (Writer), Sean Phillips (Art), and Val Staples (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: While I’d really rather not add another series to the old pull list, I couldn’t possibly ignore something new from the Criminal team of Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips. From concept to creative team, Incognito has all the right pieces to be a winner. That said, the series definitely has a bit of baggage to shed considering both the high bar set by Criminal and the hype that surrounds the project in general.

The Story: Serving as both a character introduction and an origin story, Incognito #1 introduces the reader to Zack Andersen, a man that was once known as Zack Overkill, one-half of the super-villain team called the Overkill Brothers. You see, Zack is now taking part in a criminal rehabilitation program set up to help captured super-villains reintegrate into society so that they can function “normally” thanks to a steady job and a side of power muting drugs. Zack doesn’t like his new lot in life all that much and, in the midst of a downward spiral involving drugs and ruminations about the nature of life and society, he decides to do something about it.

What’s Good: I really like the concepts and society on display in Incognito #1 and the overall tone of the book. Villains almost always prove to be compelling when given center stage and Zack Overkill is no exception. And while it’s a bit early to discuss the strength of the story, there are some interesting plot threads developed throughout the book that will definitely keep me around for at least another chapter or two.

On a technical level, the debut of Incognito impresses for the most part. The artwork by Sean Phillips is well-done and complimented almost perfectly by some stylish color work, courtesy of Val Staples. As for the writing, Brubaker effectively captures the personality and mindset of Zack Overkill through just the right mix of dialogue and narration.

What’s Not So Good: For as much as I like Brubaker’s handling of Zack Overkill, the character still comes across as a bit tired and cliché. In all honesty, I found the society being featured far more engaging that any particular aspect of the main character. Also worth noting is that a few scenes seem to lack a final layer of artistic polish, though I’m not entirely sure whether it is a problem with the artwork or the colors.

Conclusion: Incognito #1 is an interesting enough start to what should be a fun, dark series. While not quite as exciting as I had hoped, the issue contains enough hooks to keep me around for the near future. Besides, I expect things to improve quite a bit once Brubaker reveals more of Zack Overkill’s world and the characters that inhabit it.

Grade: C+

-Kyle Posluszny