Fatale #6

Written by Ed Brubaker 
Art by Sean Phillips

The second story arc of Fatale starts with this issue, and it is an amazing start, perhaps even better than the first volume's.  Like with that story, this issue is split almost evenly between a prologue set in the present day, and the first chapter of the arc, set in the 1970s.

We begin by looking in on Nicolas Lash, the godson of Hank Raines.  Since we last saw him, Nicolas has become ever more obsessed with discovering the secrets of Josephine, the woman who was both his godfather's lover, and his companion when he lost his leg.  His obsession has led him to a level of paranoia which is confirmed as accurate when some people come after him, looking for some sort of object they figure he got from his godfather's house or safe deposit box.  Brubaker is piling on the mysteries in this section of the story.

The rest of the comic follows a B-movie actor named Miles, who seems to be involved in the seamier side of Los Angeles's drug fuelled star-wannabe scene.  Miles is looking to score some cocaine, and tracks a girl he knows named Suzy to a rather strange party.  He finds her in the basement with a stab wound, next to a guy whose head has been blown off.  It seems that Suzy is part of something called the Method Church, which I presume has some kind of link to the cult we've seen in previous issues of Fatale.  Anyway, it's not long before Miles is trying to help Suzy escape, and they end up in Josephine's backyard.

Most of this issue read not that differently from an issue of Criminal, which is of course, high praise.  There was more of a crime comic element to it than before, although I imagine that the horror aspect is going to be taking over as the story progresses.  Brubaker portrays Josephine as more of a victim of her circumstances, or 'curse' in this issue, which contrasts with how she was shown in the first arc, and in the prologue to this issue.

Fatale's first trade was published this week, so now is the perfect time for curious new readers to get on one of the best and most successful new series of 2012.  You won't be sorry.