Review by JAM
“Captain, you’ve known me ten years. You honestly think I could do this?”
“Not in your right mind.”
Detective Adam Kamen to Captain Reginald Moore - Area 10
I need more work like I need a hole in the head. And yet I decided to write my first graphic novel review about a guy with a hole in his head. That’s ironic, right? Area 10 is a hectic thrill ride through the ancient art of trepanation, the “art” of reaching enlightenment through the drilling of holes into one’s cranium. By itself the trepanation is morbid, but add in a serial killer who takes the heads of his victims at the same time, and you have a homicidal mystery that keeps your pulse racing.
As a killer known as “Henry the Eighth” continues a killing spree highlighted by the headless corpses he leaves behind, Detective Adam Kamen works to follow his trail and put an end to this spree. A man with a tragic past working to get his life back on track, Adam is attacked by a madman who injures Adam in a near fatal screwdriver attack into his skull. In the process of his recovery from this injury, Adam fights to remain part of the “Henry the Eighth” case even as he finds the injury affected him in unforeseen ways. During all of this, he finds many pieces of his life interconnecting as he hunts for answers and to possibly clear his own name.
Writer
Area 10 comes to us from Christos N. Gage, who I remember from his Deadshot miniseries most of all, but the guy is a good writer. For a little background, the guy has written for several high profile television series such as Law and Order: SVU and Numbers, and has done a ton of work in the comic field lately. He keeps the pace of the book running, and throws enough twist and turns that I found myself doubting what I had read before. Let’s put it this way, I found myself wanting to yell at the book about how he left something coming that was too transparent and cheesy for the reader, and then on the next page I found out I was wrong. I was so wrong, and glad to be. Heroes are heroes, even if they are flawed. Villains are villains, though they attempt to humanize themselves. And Christos keeps this world turning and makes this book a highly recommended read if you are a graphic novel/crime novel fan.
Artist
I was not really familiar with Chris Samnee before this, though I am now going to have to find out what he has drawn before. The black and white setting in the graphic novel gave his pencils a Mike McKone figure dynamic look and a Paul Gulacy shading look. I’m not a great artistic evaluator, but I appreciate the talent of Samnee, and he makes the title strong artistically as well. The shading and textures fit the crime noir setting well and his characters are highly recognizable throughout the novel. Definitely going to check out what else he has done to see if anything trips my fancy.
JAMS Ink
My thoughts on this were “Dang, I am glad I ordered this!” The story is good and not too over-the-top, the art is really good, and the twists, turns, and subtle nuances that Christos provides make this graphic novel really good. DC Vertigo Crime has done a good job of pairing excellent writers and artist that fit the style of these hardcover releases. And as much as I thought I would complain about the size of the books being smaller than my trades, I enjoy the size as it’s easier to carry and the art has still translated well. It reminds me of the digest sizes that the companies would release every once and a while. For twenty bucks, this is well worth the money, and I’ll be reviewing some more of the Vertigo Crime titles coming up. If you would like to check this book out, grab it here at Amazon or at your neighborhood comic book store if they have it.
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