Criminal (comics): Difference between revisions
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{{Supercbbox| <!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics--> |
{{Supercbbox| <!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics--> |
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title = Criminal |
title = Criminal |
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| image = |
| image = [[Image:CRIM005_cvr_s.jpg]] |
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| caption = Criminal #5, art by Sean Phillips <BR> ''Leo, the protagonist of "Coward"'' |
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| caption = |
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| schedule = Monthly |
| schedule = Monthly |
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| format = Ongoing |
| format = Ongoing |
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Revision as of 22:25, 30 April 2007
| Criminal | |
|---|---|
| File:CRIM005 cvr s.jpg Criminal #5, art by Sean Phillips Leo, the protagonist of "Coward" | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Icon (Marvel) |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing |
| Publication date | Oct 2006 - present |
| No. of issues | ongoing |
| Main character(s) | Leo Patterson Tracy Lawless |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Ed Brubaker Sean Phillips |
| Written by | Ed Brubaker |
| Artist(s) | Sean Phillips |
| Colorist(s) | Val Staples |
Criminal is an ongoing creator-owned crime comic book by writer Ed Brubaker with artist Sean Phillips published by Marvel Comics' Icon label.[1] The series is a meditation on the clichés of the crime genre while remaining realistic and believable.[2] In some ways it's an attempt to recapture much of the mood and style of Sleeper while removing the usual superhero trappings found in most mainstream comics.[3]
Story Arcs
Template:Spoiler Coward (Issues 1-5): The title of this arc refers to Leo, a second-generation professional criminal with a strong set of rules for his trade and a knack for planning jobs in great detail. These traits earn him scorn and work respectively from the underworld. Seymour, an old friend of his from a heist in the past (where his old friends were shot down prompting him to retire) comes and requests his involvement in the theft of a diamond briefcase used as evidence in some court case. Although initially reluctant, he agrees after Greta, a recovering drug addict and the wife of one his ex-colleagues, persuades him to take up the offer. Also working with him is Donna, a con-man and a police officer called Jeff and his friends.[4]
Leo implants a fake bomb in a restaurant on the day so as to divert the attention of the police force. He also causes the van carrying the case to diverge from its usual route by placing an obstacle in its path. This alternative route leads into a tunnel where the city traffic is exacerbated by a malfunctioning mini-Cooper. He manages to disarm the drivers of the van but he is betrayed when Jeff and his partners attempt to arrest him for the crime while secretly taking the loot for themselves. The situation is further worsened when Leo learns that the case actually contains heroin packets and in the melee that follows, Donna is shot dead.
Leo manages to escape with Greta and the case and he runs away to his grandfather's farm. He looks after Greta and the two fall in love. Eventually, though, Jeff and a thug by the name of Delron chase him to the farm and kill Greta. Through sheer luck, Leo manages to avoid being killed and instead his pursuants are shot. He takes Greta's girl (who they had kept as hostage) under his custody and promises to look after her.
In order to obtain revenge, he attacks the headquarters of an underworld boss by the name of Roy who had ordered the entire heist. Roy had wanted the briefcase stolen so as to damage the case of the prosecution against one of his lieutenants.
Despite braving the odds fighting his many enemies, Leo is severely wounded and so he remains on the floor in pain while the police arrive at the building to investigate the situation.
Reception
The series has been well received in the media but due to it being a self-published book, it has not been advertised as thoroughly as other comic book series. The series has been nominated for the Eisner Award for the Best New Series of 2007.[5]