Book of the Week 11/21/07 Powers #27
Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Pencils by Mike Avon Oeming
Colors by Nick Filardi
"I want you to put yourself into this one". With that first sentence, this book engulfed me. This is a perfect comic book. Period. Even after being published for several years now and roughly a year of stories that weren't incredibly thrilling, Powers is back in the game and leading the pack! With each issue getting more and more intriguing, Bendis and Oeming blend a perfect mix of action and drama with a moody atmosphere that sucks the reader into the comic in a way few others can.
This issue puts us in the middle of the the investigation regarding the murder of missing teenage girls all over the city. The morgues are filling up and the cops are visibly strained. The body language and appearance of both Walker and the Chief show the toll that this investigation is having on them and the rest of the precinct. This issue also has a surprise appearance by an old hero from Walker's past whose daughter is one of the missing, adding even more tension to the mix. The second story in this arc continues to follow Deena Pilgrim as she investigates the underworld on her own for the killer while also evading the cops. Surprisingly, this second story doesn't miss a step either as Bendis continues to follow Deena down the rabbit hole. It's interesting and tragic to compare Deena from the beginning of the book to her current state. The character has been through so much that I truly feel for her and am curious how or if Bendis will redeem her.
The new format really works for this book. While it's never been published regularly, we now have it bi-monthly, on great paper, and with an increased page count with NO ADDS in the middle. Never has $4 been more worth it than this. This is the book that I would give readers new to comics or to show just how good the comic form can be. This is an epic piece of crime fiction that is not to be missed.
