Written by ED BRUBAKER
Pencils & Cover by SEAN PHILLIPS
It's the second of three standalone stories, as Criminal's new expanded format keeps the hits coming! In previous arcs of Criminal we've met the man who killed him, and we met his only surviving sonŠ now meet Teeg Lawless, thief, murderer, and all around bad mother-#@$%er. Fresh from two tours in Vietnam, Teeg arrives home in 1972 carrying the baggage of war, a drug habit, and an unpaid debt to a local mob boss that's now long overdue. *"Before the Living End"* tells how he goes about finding a way out of his problems and back into the life of crime. On top of this longer-than-usual length main story, Criminal now features an expanded back-pages section, as well -- with articles by Brubaker and other top crime writers, from novelists to screenwriters to comic writers. These noir articles have become a popular piece of the Criminal package, and are something that can only be found in the comics, not in any collections.
REVIEW by Brian Fisher
Do you like crime comics? Do you like really, really well written drama? Then why the heck aren't you reading Criminal? One of the best crime comics written, probably ever, Criminal follows the interweaving stories of several crooks, from small time schmoes to the guys who call the shots. Ed Brubaker was born to write noir like this, and there's nothing he does better. In this issue we're given the back-story of Teeg Lawless (whose son was featured in the second arc of the first volume) from his time in Vietnam to his blackout drunkenness, which leads him to take down a bad score that could cost him everything. Fans of Bru's work on Daredevil should definitely check out his work on Criminal!
I give it 9 out of 10 Grahams
