Review: Dead Man’s Party #3

This was definitely one of my favorite indie’s from last year so I’m glad to see the team is back at with the next issue of the series. Dead Man’s Party in case you forgot, is all about assassins and hitmen and such. The assassin genre is one that I’m always drawn to and think that goes for a lot of people, I thank Luc Besson for it since he infiltrated my mind at a young age with Leon the Professional. What about Dead Man’s Party? Well let’s just say that it returns in strides this issue. The Ghost is hurt in a bad way. He went to one of his safe houses only to get into a knife fight, but forgot his knife. He still won though because he’s the Ghost and that’s what he does. The problem was that when he opened the door to his safe house he discovered what puts the “party” in Dead Man’s Party, as a woman with a gun had him dead to rights. We learn in this issue though that she hasn’t pulled the trigger yet…

Her name is Cynara Veil and she’s a former lover and current CIA assassin, but she’s not there for the party. She’s says she’s there because she thought he’d already be dead and wanted to stroll down memory lane one last time. They get the tension out of the air and Cyn patches him up while he explains how screwed he is. She also tries to recruit him for the CIA, but he turns it down thinking that he’ll end up in a prison cell instead of with a paycheck. After Cyn leaves the Ghost gets his shit and leaves now knowing that his safe house is completely compromised. He keeps a low profile and even covers his tracks on his exit like a professional, but when he stops to get coffee he finds a new layer of difficulty has been added to his life when his face is splashed across the evening news.

Dead Man's Party #3 CoverThis is a pretty long issue so I’ll leave it there for you to finish on your own. Even though it’s been a while since I read the first two issues of this series jumping into this issue was like riding a bike. The tone and feel of the world was familiar and just welcomed me back (It was the exact opposite of reading this week’s Bedlam). The character interactions are very strong in this issue and the story does a great job of keeping some mystery to it. Usually by the third issue of a four issue mini, you know exactly how it’s going to end. Not the case here, I have no idea how the series is going to end and that’s exciting as a reader.

The art also returns at the same level of quality and that’s important with indie comics. You never want to see the art dip on a series in general, but it can be really distracting on an indie book. The photo realistic artwork returns and while you can tell there’s photo references, it still works quite well for the story. The action sequences are awesome and easy to follow. There’s a great sequence with motorcycles that really up the action in this issue. The visuals do a great job of telling the story and both narrative and art work well together.

I’m still really enjoying this series and can’t wait to see how it ends. The creators will be at NYCC this year so stop by and check out all three issues. If you’re a fan of hitmen and assassins then this series is a must for you.

Score: 4/5

Writer: Jeff Marsick Artist: Scott Barnett Publisher: Double Cross Comics Price: $3.99 Website