Customer Reviews

Incognito

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Zack Overkill is a former villain in a witness-protection program. A mandated regimen of pills keeps his powers at bay, and an overzealous parole officer keeps his balls busted. But then he finds out that illegal substances restore his powers, freeing him from the drudgery of his job as file clerk and putting him behind a mask again, this time as a good guy.

"Incognito," by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Sean Phillips is very violent and very vile, but always (or almost always) in service of the story: A look at what the vintage pulp heroes of yesteryear might have morphed into if they hadn't faded away with the advent of the comic book and the movies, among other johnny-come-latelys of pop culture.

Phillips' artwork bears a resemblance to the work of Wally Wood here, and that's one of the highest compliments I can pay. His men are square- jawed and his women are curvaceous in a way that's highly Wood-like, while still retaining the individuality that makes the artist's work the perfect complement to Brubaker's inventive, twisting scripts.

And there are twists aplenty. The basic premise, which could occupy a lesser writer and satisfy a more conventional title for years, are only a jumping-off point for a wilder ride here. Like most Brubaker heroes, Zack Overkill's backstory becomes more complex as the tale rolls on, his unknown past affecting his present and future. By the time the reader reaches the ultimate chapter, Brubaker and Phillips are ready to present non-stop action, with copious bloodletting and, of course, the promise of future Zack Overkill adventures to come. I'm all for it.

Missing here, as they are in all trade paperbacks of the team's other series, Criminal, are the articles and illustrations from the back of the monthly books, material that Brubaker vows will not be reprinted in the trades. As I've always read Criminal in collected editions, I haven't realized what I've been missing. With Incognito, however, which I read monthly as it was released, I became spoiled by Jess Nevins' articles on various obscure pulp heroes, and I missed them in the trade. Luckily, Brubaker saw fit to give us one of Nevins' pieces here, a (mostly) fictional history of zeppelin heroes that ties into the main storyline.

This is great stuff for the adult reader. Highly recommended.

I am a big fan of Ed Brubaker. I love Sleeper, I love his Captain America, his Daredevil and the issues of Criminal I have read. Therefore, I had to buy this the instant it came out. Incognito has a similar feel to Criminal and Sleeper, which it is not surprising as all three are crime fiction and all three have the same duo writing and illustrating.

Incognito is the story of a super villain that is now in protective custody because he testified in court against a bigger fish. His powers are controlled by medicine. He realizes he can counter the effects of the medicine by getting high. He gets his powers back, but not wanting anybody to figure it out, he now uses his powers to stop thieves instead of for crime, as the only reason he does that is for the thrill. For three years he had lost his motivation to live and now it was all back.

As usual with Brubaker, the story gets better as it goes along. The twists keep coming and the story just flows perfectly, thanks to the great art provided by Phillips. I had always known that Phillips was the perfect noir artist, but since I hadn't seen his covers before, I didn't know he was capable of making such beautiful covers. The covers of the Incognito series are mesmerizing, I want one of those as a poster.

I like that the book incorporates ideas from pulp fiction (not the movie, but actual pulp fiction from the 30s), being inspired by those heroes and thrusting them into a great noir story.

Brubaker and Phillips are a perfect team and anything they will write, I will read. Check this book out.

Once I got my hands on my copy of 'Incognito' I could hardly put it down. Its one of the most original comic books(or graphic novels rather) I've read in a long time. I thought the whole ex-supervillian going into Witness Protection thing was interesting enough but when you add sex,drugs and a noir-style of storytelling to the mix it makes for a great read. I had to stop myself from reading the book cover- to- cover when I first got it because I didn't really wanted it to end! Although Phillips' artwork in the book is eye popping throughout(panels showcase beautifully drawn acts of over-the-top violence), I think the narrative is the real standout. I wasn't all that familiar with Brubaker's work prior and now I'm ready to raid every comic store in the city for his books. Its not an easy task to make a character whose last name is "Overkill" someone to root for but in the end I couldn't help like the guy for his whole better than you mentality and brash persionalilty. Check this Out!

Ed Brubaker has been one of comics' best writers throughout the first decade of the 21st century, rising to real prominence with his move to Marvel Comics in 2005, where he began a landmark stint on "Captain America", as well as a number of other titles. His most famous work prior to his time at Marvel was "Sleeper" (published by DC's Wildstorm imprint), two 12-issue series illustrated by Sean Phillips. A year or so after Brubaker went exclusive, Phillips migrated over after him, and soon the two had set up a new creator-owned crime drama, "Criminal", which earned exhorbitant praise and is currently in the middle of its fifth volume of stories. Whereas "Sleeper" was a noir set in a world with superpowers, "Criminal" existed in a mundane world. And now, between arcs of "Criminal", Brubaker and Phillips took time to deliver their latest collaboration, which is more in the vein of "Sleeper" than "Criminal". While not quite as good as either of those, it is well worth reading. Some spoilers follow.

We open with our main character, Zack Overkill, living a boring life as an office drone, dreaming of his former exciting existence as a supervillain before he became a witness for the feds and was put into a relocation program. The mundane world he is forced to live in is driving Zack crazy, when the opportunity of something more interesting presents itself to rejoin the more interesting life he had left behind. The basic premise has a lot of similarities with Mark Millar's more famous "Wanted" (very loosely adapted into a hit motion picture). Indeed, this could easily be seen as Ed Brubaker's take on that story, except, being by Ed Brubaker, it is far more subtle and interested in characterization, rather than shocks. Zack, who provided key evidence in the conviction of the supervillain mastermind Black Death, now finds himself in the crossfire between the government (led by the sort-of superhero Zoe Zeppelin) and the cabal of the Black Death's organization, which is still led by the old man himself behind prison bars. Wildcards include Zack's mundane friend Farmer, who is the only person in on his secret (his Pete Ross, if you will) and is interested in ways to exploit it (not like Pete Ross); and Ava Destruction, the psycho permanently-sixteen assassin (who reminds me in some ways of Sin, the Red Skull's daughter from Brubaker's own "Captain America").

There's a certain fun tension between the incredibly serious tone that the art and the writing style generally sets (similar to "Criminal") and some of the more absurdist elements of the superhero genre, which are played up here a lot more than it was in "Sleeper". Names, for example; you've got a very serious crime noir starring characters with names like Zack Overkill (of the Overkill Brothers), Zoe Zeppelin, Dick Deadly, Ava Destruction, etv. In the hands of a lesser writer, this just wouldn't work, but Brubaker expertly manages the tone. There the usual staples of a Brubaker/Phillips project: sex and nudity, bloody violence, all the curse words you care to read. Unexpectedly, though, this project ends much more upbeatly (conventionally, some might say) than either "Criminal" or "Sleeper", the closest to being a traditional origin narrative (though there are some tweaks on convention still stuck in there).

Recommended.

Where most comic books are relatively clear cut - they are about heroes or villans and pushes this idea that that dichotomy is total and absolute - INCOGNITO manages to pain the two sides in shades of gray. The heroes, while ultimately trying to protect "truth, justice" and the proverbial "american way", are not milk white and all knowing as can be seen in the cliches of this media and the villains, while being terrible people and doing horrendous things to themselves and each other, have some humanity and offer a very different perspective - a perspective that very few will ever see or enjoy.

The people, with the shades of gray, make the world much more realistic(as realistic as a comic book about superheroes and supervillians can be)than those of other comic books, but still has a problems because the book is relatively short and right when you really start to be intrigued and feel for the characters and understand the world the book is over.

Despite that problem i'd still recommend it to those who are new to graphic novels and those who are really into the whole comic book universe.

This had some vivid sections to it and some originality, but I wanted it to go further in one direction or another ... it fell towards comic book cliches when I expected it (from the setup) to give me some kind of new gruesome thrill instead.

While some of the characters aer'nt as well developed as they could be, the art is great, the concept neat and the execution is solid. The only issue I had with the story was that the concept of the character being incognito (the piont I thuoght of the comic) ended too shortly into the work.

This would make a terrific movie if done well. Though not their best work, this is a solid effort by Brubaker and Phillips. It has a fantastic story, great illustration work, and is never dull.

Here's a wild premise: What if there were a witness protection program for supervillains?

Former superpowered criminal "Zack Overkill" has been drugged to give them merely human strength, then given a dull job in nowheresville in exchange for ratting on the big bad, Black Death. The story begins when he's (accidentally) found a way to counteract the drugs and get his powers back. Rather than trying to rejoin his old gang, he becomes addicted to crime-fighting.

There's a lot of goofy fun to be extracted from this premise, and the pulp comic world is fleshed out nicely--mad scientists, heroes with names like "Dr. Zeppelin," and of course Black Death, an unkillable personification of evil who leads his gang from prison through telepathic conversations with his lawyer. Throw in a woman with an unhealthy thing for superheroes and Zack's sociopathic indifference to the people he's saving, and you've got an edgy thrill ride.

At least, for the first few issues. Unfortunately, toward the end of this collection, the story moves away from the fresh premise and into more mundane superhero comic territory. It's a shame; while the afterword promises more issues to come (as of this writing, the six issues collected here are the entirety of the series), it's hard to imagine it going anywhere as original in the future.

This is what Brubaker should be writing. Superhero noir tales that delve into intelligent ideas and themes without thouroughly confusing you. I'm happy to see that this story doesn't dive too much into crime drama, because I'm more of a superhero reader. You're going to get a few genres out of this book, but the most prominant one is superhero noir.

NO SPOILERS: This is a story about a twin brother villain put on witness protection. The character begins to feel lifeless and meaningless living a normal life. He is then drawn out of hiding, and his normal life is cast aside. His re-entry into the superhuman world is nothing like his previous conflicts. The joy of this book is what changes he must go through and who Zack Overkill is now. Brubaker's dialogue is badass, at times hilarious, and thankfully meaningful.

This book you're looking at is a new classic. The story has such a rich quality, and the artwork is absolutely perfect to its tone. Shorty after reading this you will want to revisit these characters immediately and relive the awesome and dramatic tale that Incognito is. Hopefully Brubaker will give us more, because this story is nearly bursting out of this small trade paperback with possibilities.