Love 'em or hate 'em, no one can deny that the good folks over at DC/Vertigo love to try different things. This time around, we get a new sub-division of Vertigo dubbed Vertigo Crime, which will be putting out smaller, digest-sized hardcover original graphic novels by today's top talents that will deal with different aspects of the crime genre. As described to us, some books may feature a horror or science fiction edge to them, while others could potentially feature well known Vertigo characters like John Constantine. To kick things off though, Vertigo is releasing, along with the aforementioned John Constantine-starring Dark Entries, Brian Azzarello and Victor Santos' Filthy Rich.
Filthy Rich follows inept used car salesman and former sports hero Richard "Junk" Junkin as he makes his journey from a down-on-his-luck loveable loser to a low rent thug that becomes embroiled with the wrong crowd - and the wrong girl.
Though both Vertigo Crime hardcovers release on August 19th, it is Filthy Rich that fulfills its potential as the debut book in the new Crime line, and should be seen as a smart decision on the part of DC. Filthy Rich is very much an epitomic representation of the pulp-noir style that so many crime books strive for, and that the Vertigo Crime line is a natural fit for. Azzarello is certainly no stranger to crime, writing Vertigo's own 100 Bullets for so many years, and his experience shines through in his barren, dystopic dialog and characterizations. More importantly, his love and appreciation for noir is apparent simply from the book's structure.
From the introduction to the story's primary characters to the importance and execution of the femme fatale role, the appeal of - but also one detriment to - Filthy Rich is our familiarity with the story beats and character types. Presumably, most anyone that decides to give these books a shot will already be fans of crime fiction and noir in general, so reading Filthy Rich probably won't open any new doors for you, but then, isn't that why noir is its own genre to begin with? Azzarello provides all the facets of a great noir tale, and excels at them. Fans will likely be able to guess who betrays who, and in what order, but ultimately, that winds up being part of the fun.
These are characters that are ruthless, selfish, violent, and lustful; yet we read them imagining ourselves in their position. Noir is nothing if not masochistic, torturing ourselves as we think about what we would do in these character's positions, when forced over the edge. Filthy Rich provides these thoughts in spades, as Azzarello's humanistic characters are most interesting under the extreme - and unfortunate - situations they find themselves in. Most impressive as far as the character work goes, as is often the case in a pulp tale like this one, is how the reader's opinion of the main character Junk deteriorates over the course of the story. At first, he's sort of the goofy bafoon ex-jock who can't catch a break. As we come to realize, he's the maker of his own demise that stems from his many weaknesses. In other words, he's an every day Joe that comes to hate himself the more time he spends inside of his head, no so different from the rest of us.
All of the Vertigo Crime books are going to be black and white, and just as Azzarello's half of Filthy Rich exemplifies the genre, Victor Santos' artwork finishes the job. Santos works best in scenes with sharp shadows; nighttime bedroom scenes with the lines of the blinds falling across the characters, pouring rain falling through the street lamps onto the pavement, and dark hotel rooms rife with lust. Though many of his characters - mostly the women - look relatively similar, Santos is able to dress them up differently enough with visual cues taken from their personalities to make them more identifiable to the reader without the use of color.
More importantly, Santos clearly understands what Azzarello is moving towards, and helps him to reach the destination. His city streets are seedy, his women are buxom and his application of shadows - and of course the obligatory cigarette smoke - is exemplary. Filthy Rich is not complex in its layout, but it is certainly cinematic. Each panel could easily be representative of a storyboard should a film version ever come to fruition.
As we mentioned, all the Vertigo Crime OGNs will come in black and white, digest-sized hardcovers, featuring the cover work of Lee Bermejo. The overall design of the book is quite appealing, and putting each Vertigo Crime hardcover on a bookshelf will come to look very impressive over time. Though the admission price of $19.99 is a tad steep for a book easily read in one sitting, Filthy Rich is definitely something you'll re-read from time to time. We can't say for certain for the rest of the Crime line that will eventually be released, but if Filthy Rich is any indication, hopefully you'll get your money's worth with each release.
Stay tuned for our review of Vertigo Crime's other August 19th release, Dark Entries!
