DaRK PaRTY ReVIEW

::Literate Blather::

Monday, January 12, 2009

Comic Noir

The Rise of the Comic Book Crime Novel

After recently reading “Severance Package” by Duane Swierczynski and “Beat the Reaper” by Josh Bazell, DaRK PaRTY has identified a new genre in book publishing that – until now – has gone nameless. We also include Victor Gischler’s novels (like “Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse”) in this new category.

Let’s call it Comic Noir.

Comic Noir combines the elements of a graphic novel – most notably superhero comics by Marvel and DC – and incorporates them into the plot structure and dark themes of classic crime noir such as those written by Jim Thompson and James M. Cain.

This mix provides a vastly entertaining, completely ridiculous crime farce that has a tendency to take itself too serious while being laugh-out loud funny at the same time. Comic Noir novels generally are fast reads, feature huge build-ups, and then implode into groan-inducing, far-fetched conclusions.

But they are fun reads, if forgettable after a few weeks. They are the snack food aisle of literature. Tasty and with a great sugar high! They have also become the new darlings of book publishers and book reviewers.

DaRK PaRTY has identified six core components of the Comic Noir novel. Here they are:

1. Comic Noir books inevitably get compared to Quentin Tarantino films.

• In the review of “Go-Go Girls from the Apocalypse,” the New York Times called the book “Part Christopher Moore, part Quentin Tarantino…”

• In its review of “Severance Package,” Booklist gushed, “This is essentially one long action scene that begs for the next Tarantino to direct.”

• Also on “Severance Package,” the Chicago Tribune said: “…enough gut-churning violence to make a Quentin Tarantino movie look like a Disney musical…”

2. Comic Noir features “high-concept” plots generally found in comic books. The more outlandish the better!

• “Severance Package” is about the boss of a shell corporation that is really a covert spy agency calling all of its employees to work on a Saturday, trapping them on the corporate floor by rigging explosives to the exits, and then trying to execute all of them.

• “Beat the Reaper” is about a mafia hitman in the Federal Witness Protection Agency now working as an intern at a hospital being forced to operate on and save the life of a mob stoolie or face being revealed to his mafia enemies.

3. Expect a lot of unrealistic, over-the-top comic book violence with few if any emotional consequences.

• Our favorite: The protagonist from “Beat the Reaper” rips his fibula bone from his calf and uses it to stab to death a room full of heavily armed mobsters.

4. Comic Noir resembles bad Westerns when it comes to gun play: one bullet from the good guy always hits its mark while machine guns and heavily artillery in the hands of many bad guys always miss. And bullet wounds in the extremities are easily fixed in Comic Noir novels by wrapping a piece of clothing around the wound. Yet, guns ultimately don’t get the job done and hand-to-hand fighting is required.

5. The protagonists are generally sociopathic criminals (can you say “hitman”?) who are funny and sarcastic, and, despite being sociopaths, don’t seem to have any sexual hang-ups.

• The main character from Victor Gischler’s “Gun Monkey” is Charlie “The Hook” Swift” a mob enforcer and hitman.

• The protagonist from “Beat the Reaper” is Pietro “Bearclaw” Brnwa a former hitman for the mob.

6. Comic Noir treats female characters in much the same way as the comic book industry draws them (think Power Girl and Wonder Woman) – oozing sex appeal, scantily clad, and ready to punch you in the face (or shoot you in the back).

Please feel free to add any authors or observations about Comic Noir to our comments section.

Our review of "Beat the Reaper"

Our review of "Severance Package"

5 Questions About: Crime Noir

Labels: Comic Noir, Crimes, Duane Swierczynski, Fiction, Josh Bazell, Victor Gischler

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Posted by GFS3 at 8:54 AM.

5 comments

Thursday, January 08, 2009

Cracked-Back Book Reviews: January 2009

(Rapid-fire reviews of the books we’ve been cooking in the oven and then eating with a fine red table wine. And, of course, a “cracked-back” is what happens to the spine of a new book once you’ve thoroughly de-boned it. We’re always looking for our next read, so please feel free to make your own recommendations in our comments section. Read on!)

Beat the Reaper

By Josh Bazell

Josh Bazell, a newly minted doctor, received a seven-figure deal for “Beat the Reaper,” his debut crime novel that he wrote while an intern. Unfortunately, it’s difficult reading “Beat the Reaper” and not dwell on that enormous payday. It’s much like watching an overpaid baseball player – he’s good, but is he that good?

The good news is that “Beat the Reaper” is a nasty, little crime caper. It’s a crime farce with a cynical attitude and a slick style. The best part of the book is the first-person narrative voice of protagonist Dr. Peter Brown, a.k.a. Pietro “Bearclaw” Brnwa. Brown was once a mafia hitman and is currently in the Federal Witness Protection program studying to be an MD.

That’s where the reader lands in the story. One of Brown’s patients recognizes him. The deal is that Brown helps the patient live through his operation or one of his associates rats out Brown to the mafia family looking to take him out. It’s a delicious, wacky journey of cutthroat encounters with Russian gangsters, Italian wise guys, cranky nurses, desperate patients, and even a tank filled with man-eating sharks.

The one unfortunate part of “Beat the Reaper” is the ridiculous ending. It’s so improbable that you’ll find yourself rolling your eyes and groaning. But luckily Bazell has built up enough goodwill through is witty, stabbing style that you’re willing to forgive him for it.

“Beat the Reaper” is a blast (check out the video above) – a guilty pleasure (kind of like eating at a fast food joint). You’ll love it while your reading it (sans the conclusion), but you probably won’t remember reading it in six months.

Grade: B+

Lost River

By David Fulmer

The fourth book in the Valentin St. Cyr mystery series by David Fulmer (who, as an aside, looks separated from birth from TV ringleader Jerry Springer). The mystery takes place in steamy New Orleans of 1913 in the red-light district called Storyville. Fulmer is a master of creating place – and readers will feel like they’ve been transported back in time. Storyville lifts off the pages and into the reader’s imagination. You can smell the seedy tap houses and jazz joints. You can feel the hot, sticky humidity.

The writing is beautiful. The prose rolls like jazz music and Valentin St. Cyr fans will welcome “Lost River” into the series.

However, there are some stumbling blocks in storyline. The first is the mystery itself. It’s like a street map that can’t be refolded correctly. The traveler tries to retrace the proper steps, but ends up with new creases and folds and finally out of frustration stuffs the map back into the glove box. The mystery – which has to do with a series of murders to take over Storyville – has too many logic lapses to make much sense.

One of the most disappointing details gone wrong is that St. Cyr has his regular pistol (the Iver Johnson) confiscated by the police and is forced to use a backup. Yet at the end of the novel, his regular pistol is back in his hands for the final confrontation. No explanation is ever given (Fulmer should reprimand his editor for the mistake getting into print).

There’s also a sense that Fulmer likes his main character just a bit too much. St. Cyr is a living legend in Storyville and Fulmer is only too happy to show us how he’s worshipped. Yet even with these two challenges, “Lost River” is a solid entry and a good read for anyone who enjoys historical mysteries.

Grade: B-

Too Late To Die

By Bill Crider

“Too Late To Die” is the first novel in the long-running Sheriff Rhodes mystery series by the delightful Bill Crider (if you haven’t visited his must-read Pop Culture blog – then what are you waiting for?). The Dan Rhodes series is like potato chips – once you have one you can’t stop.

They don’t write mysteries like “Too Late To Die” anymore. This one was published back in 1989 when there was such a thing as the Soviet Union and Milli Vanilli was the “it” pop rock group. “Too Late To Die” is a character driven mystery that takes place in rural Texas. It’s filled with interesting people – quirky, flawed, and always fascinating.

Sheriff Dan Rhodes, a middle-aged widower, is up for re-election in Blacklin County, Texas. And just in time for the campaign comes the murder of a young wife – who appears to have been mighty popular with a lot of men other than her husband. As Dan investigates, the roll of suspects starts to get rather large: a cranky storeowner, a homeless half-wit, a religious zealot, and his rival candidate for sheriff.

The mystery unfolds in rural Texas style – languidly until it gets fast and furious. But really the mystery (which has a satisfying array of twists and turns) is just an excuse to explore the eccentric nature of the characters. It’s these interactions, dialogue, and portraits that bring Blacklin County to life and make “Too Late To Die” so fun to read.

Grade: A-

Cracked-Back Book Reviews: November 2008 (Graphic Novel Special!)

Book Review: "Runner" Will Leave You Breathless

Comic Books for Literature Professors

Labels: Bill Crider, book review, Cracked-Back, David Fulmer, Josh Bazell, mysteries