RICOCHET! CRIME COMICS SHOOT BACK WITH A VENGEANCE.
by Brian Colin and Matt Chmielefski

In the first of a series of PopImage features focusing on the crime genre in comics storytelling, Brian Colin and Matt Chmielefski examine crime comics roots and newfound resurgence of popularity; as well as what is about this style of storytelling that makes it so exciting, to comics readers and non-comics readers alike.

It's cold out on the streets tonight and has been this way for as long as I can remember. Its more than the freezing temperatures, more than the new book rack at my comic book store, full of cookie cutter superhero titles, each one blending into the next in a four color jumble of similarity and, dare I say it, mediocrity. Where are the stories of real people? The ages old struggle of man against man, or man against society? After all, before there were superheroes, before there were spaceships and robots, before cloning, and the Internet, there was crime.

It's 1916 and the earliest predecessor to not only the crime comic book but the comic book in general, is entertaining everyone from meager housewives to allied soldiers on the German front. The pulp magazine, one hundred pages of trash pop literature published weekly. Writers who would later become legends are being paid two cents a word to introduce us to Sam Spade, Philip Marlowe, Doc Savage, and The Shadow.

It's 1950 and Bill Gaines, publisher of MAD magazine has just made the most significant advance in periodical crime publishing since the pulp magazine, with a line of non-superhero comics under the EC imprint. Often regarded as brutally violent, horribly offensive, and stunningly brilliant, it's no secret that CRIME SUSPENSTORIES, and SHOCK SUSPENSTORIES, (along with TALES FROM THE CRYPT, VAULT OF HORROR, WEIRD SCIENCE, and the rest of the EC line) played a pivotal role in the advent of the comics code (but that's a story for another time). The point is that once the dust had settled and the senate hearings were over, the comics code was in place. The youth of America was temporarily safe from depravity and, most importantly, Bill Gaines was out of business. Crime comics in this form all but completely disappeared in favor of lighter stories that were more centered around adventure or humor than realism.

The rest is history: thirty-five years of spaceships and robots and superheroes.

Until now.

"The crime story allows a writer to choose a side, and it's just as easy, if not easier, to take the side of the bad guy"

SIN CITY, JINX, SCENE OF THE CRIME, KANE, 100 BULLETS, SAM & TWITCH, STRAY BULLETS. it looks like the genre may actually be taking the same route that Elvis took back in '76. The realistic crime genre is making a comeback in a big way. With heavy hitting creators like Frank Miller behind it, it's no surprise that it's drawing more than a little attention. And why not? The old school of cops and robbers, professional thieves, killers, homicidal maniacs, prove that the mere mysteries of the sins man commits against his brother can still hold our collective attention. Be it for personal gain, or passion, or psychotic neuroses, today's crime stories could just as easily be ripped from current headlines as Raymond Chandler's novels of the 40's could. They are a dark portrayal of what we are as a society and as individuals.

The crime story allows a writer to choose a side, and it's just as easy, if not easier, to take the side of the bad guy, the rebel; the James Cagney, the Robert DeNiro, or the Chow Yun Fat. Characters with motivations that stem past the played out standard, provide an insight not only to the story, but also to us. Not everyone can be the indestructible last survivor of a dead planet, and these are people in situations that occur without the benefit of cosmic rays, or a radioactive spider. These things happen in places you've been, cities you've visited while on vacation; and in parts of them that you wouldn't dare go into. The art style is dark and jagged compared to the typically bright colors, overdeveloped muscles and massive breasts of the superhero story. Color, if used at all, is used to set a grim mood.

One of the strongest qualities of the crime fiction genre is its accessibility to the non-comics reader. In an already over saturated market whose product is supposedly geared towards children, crime comics are aimed at a more mature audience. Many non-comic readers would find any of these books entertaining, based on shear cinematic likeness. They relate more to film and prose fiction than any others in the industry, not only in plot, but also with dynamic 'camera' angles, and gritty dialogue.

Frank Miller's SIN CITY, is a prime example of using a fictitiously realistic environment to advance a story. No matter where you are, what city you live in, there's a little bit of "old town" there, where you can almost see the filth and corruption filtering through every crack in the cobblestone streets. Instead of simply involving characters, he's made the setting a character in itself, a character with as much personality as your favorite Italian restaurant, or that seedy porn theatre down the street. Miller is the father of this generation of crime comics. Before SIN CITY there was little else in the medium that made much of a name for itself in the crime genre.

Where Miller uses the city to create the backdrop, Brian Michael Bendis relies on classic roles with a fresh use of dialogue. Characters like GOLDFISH, the con man, or JINX, the female bounty hunter, could live down the hall in your apartment building. Along with Marc Andreyko, Bendis has even been diving into the realm of historical fiction with TORSO, based on Eliot Ness' work in Cleveland after he left Chicago. His strong sense of cinematography coupled with some of the best dialogue the industry has to offer is proving Bendis to be one of the most intriguing creators in this age of crime comics.

"Miller is the father of this generation of crime comics"

Even more in the mainstream, DC has thrown its proverbial hat into the ring with several worthy offerings from Vertigo, starting with the GANGLAND anthology, edited by Axel Alonso. SCENE OF THE CRIME by Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark & Sean Phillips, has received such recognition and is presently being translated into numerous languages. Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso have received acclaim for their work in the genre, first with JONNY DOUBLE the ongoing 100 BULLETS. Howard Chaykin, no stranger to the hard-boiled genre himself with past work such as THICK BLACK KISS checks in with artist Rick Burchett in the futuristic noir-thriller PULP FANTASTIC.

As always, when the establishment sets a precedent, the alternative press answers, pushing the medium that much further. Steven Grant and Mike Zeck presented a down and dirty crime yarn with DAMNED, one of the first outings from Homage. Crime novelist Greg Rucka and artist Steve Lieber's WHITEOUT garnered wide acclaim and is up for production as a major motion picture. Dark Horse did a whole series of comics based on the works of novelist Andrew Vacchss. David Lapham's STRAY BULLETS, Paul Grist's KANE, and numerous other self-published titles, go where even Dark Horse and Caliber haven't yet ventured. These titles and many more provide either an even darker portrayal of harsh reality, or they add a unique spin that only the small press, concerned more with the ART of comics and less with the BUSINESS of comics, can offer. It's a safe bet that with creators like Miller and Bendis setting the standard, and with new talent coming into the independent market on almost a daily basis, it can only get better from here.

Brian Colin and Matt Chmielefski are hard-boiled storytellers themselves, Brian is the publisher/creator of Chalk Outline Studios, featuring the crime anthology ANNEX, which Matt will be contributing an upcoming story titled "Illegal Occupations" to. Watch out for them!

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