Welcome to Tranquility: One Foot in the Grave #1 & 2

Written by Gail Simone
Art by Horacio Domingues

My store got short-ordered on the first issue of this mini-series, and it took a while for me to finally track down a copy, which meant that I got to read the first two issues back-to-back, and that was definitely a treat.

I really liked the original Welcome to Tranquility series, which was set in a small town populated by retired super heroes and villains, and their families.  It had a nice Picket Fences oddball vibe going for it, and the comic was filled with likable characters, most especially Sheriff Thomasina Lindo.  Then, Wildstorm mandated their Worldstorm crossover, and the book went into what I thought was an indefinite hiatus.

Now, Simone has brought back these characters, and is joined by the able Horacio Domingues, whose art on this title is so close to original artist Neil Googe's, that I didn't realize a switch had been made at first.  The story picks up shortly after where the series left off.  The murderous Mayor Fury is being released from jail after a key witness changed her testimony, and the town is preparing to welcome him back.  There is a strange outpouring of love for the Mayor upon his release, and the citizens of Tranquility have prepared a surprise for him at his wife's restaurant.  The only problem is that someone else shows up, who is supposed to be dead, and the Mayor and the two cops driving him, including Lindo, are attacked, and the Mayor taken prisoner by a new character, with a close connection to Fury.

As always when Simone is let loose, the writing is incredibly sharp and funny, but also well paced and plotted.  This is one of those quirky books that Wildstorm used to be known for, and which deserve way more attention than they get.  This new series is new-reader friendly; you'll be brought up to speed in no time.