Product Description: GrimJack returns to the ever-shifting city of Cynosure, and creators John Ostrander and Timothy Truman reunite to tell the tale! There's a firefight in The Pit and GrimJack is in the middle of the conflagration. His friends at Cadre have hired a beautiful vampire assassin to take him out. How does GrimJack save his neck - and who winds up in possession of Munden's Bar, the nexus of all realities?
Graphic SF Reader The early scoop on Grimjack : how he got Munden's, among other things. Some more great work here. I had been waiting for this for a hell of a long time. Hard to believe that we actually have new Grimjack work. Vampire assassins, and all the other crazy and nasty stuff that happens in Cynosure is again to be seen here, thankfully!
After thirteen years, it hits the ground running. John Gaunt a.k.a."GrimJack" isn't a simple character to understand. He is as multidimensional as his home city, Cynosure. This tale goes a long way in explaining what went into his makeup. He was the greatest gladiator of the Pit. He fought with distinction during the Demon Wars as one of the legendary Demon Knights. He was a bounty hunter with the Law Killers. He served with the Transdimensional Police. He was Cadre's most efficient assassin.
Through all this he just obeyed orders. He was a weapon that others wielded- no questions asked. It was easier that way. It was easier because he could never forget that the one time he had made a major decision on his own a world, and a woman, had died... People assumed that he was a sociopathic killer without feelings. He wanted them to think that. Yet deep inside he felt it all, all the pain, for that is the price that we pay for human life. It was this that finally taught him that the ends do not justify the means- it merely corrupts them. It was then that John Gaunt resolved that by any god that existed, he would be his own man until he went down to his grave. That's really where the legend started, when he stopped serving the powers-that-be and became a b*stard on the side of the little guys that needed him.
While you don't really need to be familiar with the old series to appreciate this story (as Ostrander points out in his excellent intro) it does revisit and expand much of the old territory. It is completely faithful to the original and well worth the wait. I especially appreciated knowing just how he ended up owning Munden's bar. It is difficult for me to imagine how Ostrander, and co-creator Tim Truman, could have done a better job.
Grimjack Year One Great hardboiled action by Ostrander and Truman works his magic as usual. Fills in some of the blanks of Grimjack's backstory following the Dancer rebellion. A good intro to the series if you're new to Grimjack, or just a regular at Munden's Bar. Check it out.
A pleasant return to some old stomping grounds I really wanted to gush about how great and fantastic this was, and all that jazz.
But, I can't.
I can gush about how it was a great story, well done, though the art was a little too pretty at times - I preferred Truman's less polished stuff on the original series, years ago... but hey. The covers are phenomenal, and the majority of the interior art is balls-on. It's great, but...
The story is a prelude - it takes place before any of the other stories we've seen to date (except for flashback stories, of course.) This introduces John to us, takes him from being a TDP cop to a member of the Cadre, and even has his first ever visit to Munden's.
It's got most of the major characters, somewhere, somehow. It's an excellent story, and it's fun, and that's all that matters.
WELCOME BACK JACK!!!! GRIMJACK IS BACK! .......Well, folks just call him Grimjack, his name is Gaunt, John Gaunt (no...he's no relation to the "War of the Roses" ) Gaunt, is a hard-boiled detective / former police officer, soldier and gladiator who looks like a cross between a swashbuckling pirate and a futuristic private eye with a sword. Like the great pulp detectives Gaunt's adventures take place in HIS CITY, Cynosure, a city intersecting crossroads of several universes intersect, allowing for locales that blend elements of fantasy, science fiction and the detective stories. GrimJack is a gritty anti-hero, often prone to violence The comic features some adult scenes, language and violence. Creator John Ostrander has explained, "Jack does have morality. He is not in there just to punish the bad guys. He has learned through a hard life that the only thing worth knowing is the truth, and he may kill to get to the truth." Originally the series began in 1983 as back-up stories in another comic book, "StarSlayer," published by First Comics soon getting its own comic, and was published until 13 years ago, never achieving mainstream comic appeal, but garnering a dedicated fan base First Comics folded and the rights have been in legal limbo until NOW! Not only are the trade paperbacks of the original run rapidly being published (in the LEDGEND OF GRIMJACK #1 and up...) but now with GRIMJACK: KILLER INSTINCT. Co-creator and artist TIM TRUMAN rejoins JOHN OSTRANDER for this welcome return.
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