Incognito: Bad Influences #2

Written by Ed Brubaker
Art by Sean Phillips

I love reading comics by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips.  They work so well together, and construct books that are such a pleasure to read.

This issue is focused on Zack Overkill's efforts to return to the underground, as he intends to work undercover for the SOS, the do-gooder government agency in his world.  To establish his legitimacy in the criminal underworld, he violently escapes from 'custody', and then tracks down a brothel for the powered set.  He hangs out with an old friend, gets attacked, and is well on the way to beginning his mission.

What makes this comic stand apart from so much of what's on the stands is the way Brubaker writes Zack.  It's clear that he's become a better man, as he starts to worry about things that would never have bothered him before, but Brubaker is able to capture his ambivalence about the changes he's undergone.  For him to sit in a brothel and laugh with another criminal is a treat for him, although he now has to examine what's going on, instead of simply living in the moment.  Zack's a complicated character, although he really wasn't when the first series started.

This is a solid, dense read, with wonderful art.  You should be reading it.