Sam and Twitch #9: One Really Bad Day

Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by Jamie Tolagson

When I started to read Bendis's early Sam and Twitch stories, this single-issue story (collected here) is exactly what I was hope for.

With this issue, Bendis more or less leaves his two detective protagonists, and gives us a story from the point of view of a total loser named Dean.  The book opens on a card game between a few friends, and Bendis uses it to show off his often hilarious dialogue and ability to construct a character simply from what the other characters have to say about him.  There's a neat trick where we realize that we really are seeing things through Dean's eyes, as he gets himself into a bit of trouble with his friends and has to run out.

The rest of the issue follows Dean as he goes home, only to find his wife in bed with another man.  Eventually, he gets tracked down by Sam and Twitch, and more madness follows.

The art, by Jamie Tolagson, is a nice improvement over Angel Medina's work.  The conceit of having the story be seen through Dean's eyes makes things look a little like watching a first-person shooter video game (especially when Dean has a gun in his hand), but Tolagson pulls off the gimmick quite well.  I have high hopes for the rest of this series.