Angeltown #1
Originally Presented at Comixtreme.com
Quick Rating: Good
Title: Baller Part 1
When a sports pro’s ex-wife turns up dead, the murder case may not be as cut-and-dried as it seems...
Writer: Gary Phillips
Art: Shawn Martinbrough
Colors: Lee Loughridge
Letters: Jared K. Fletcher
Editor: Will Dennis
Cover Art: Shawn Martinbrough
Publisher: DC Comics/Vertigo
Review: The newest Vertigo miniseries seems to be a cop drama ripped straight from the headlines, as they say on TV. We open up on a pair of police responding to a domestic disturbance call, only to find the murdered Allison Burnett, ex-wife of an NBA pro with a tell-all book to her name. The case seems pretty cut and dry at first, shades of O.J., Kobe and Robert Blake all rolled into one. Theophus Burnett can’t be found, making him look even more guilty than the crime scene did, and the scene he caused at her book signing the day before her murder doesn’t exactly help matters.
His lawyer hires private detective Nate Hollis to find him before the police do, and it’s Nate that is our protagonist. The book focuses on his investigation both into Burnett’s whereabouts and the murder itself. Concerned, as it is, with a high-profile celebrity murder case, this book could pretty easily slip into caricature, but it doesn’t. Gary Phillips has crafted a pretty good mystery, judging by the first chapter, and he wraps it up with a suitably enticing cliffhanger.
We also get to delve into Nate’s character, examining his relationship with his father, what appears to be one major regret, and the factors that helped combine to make him who he is.
Shawn Martinbrough’s artwork is a fine marriage to this script. He and colorist Lee Loughridge create a moody atmosphere that suits the mystery very well. It’s not really dark enough to call it “film noir,” but seems to fit the shades of brown and orange that dominate most Los Angeles-based mysteries, like the late, lamented TV show “Boomtown.”
I was quite pleased with the first issue of this miniseries. I’m always up for a good mystery, and it looks like this will be one.
Rating: 7/10
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