By Don M. Ventura
Jennifer Blood #1
Dynamite Comics
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For a week where I purchased relatively few books, I was concerned that there would be a dearth of good stories. Typically when there is less to choose from, I’m not likely to find a lot that I’m going to enjoy. That was not the case this week when I found most of what I read this week quite wonderful.
Then it came to deciding on the best of the week and it really fell between two books that were polar-opposites tonally, but both were examples of excellent storytelling for the types of stories that were being told. So, while I have refused to have two books tie each other for best of the week, Hulk #30 and Jennifer Blood #1 have come the closest.
But the best thing I read last week was Jennifer Blood, a shining example of Garth Ennis’ impeccable script work. While some might be turned off by Ennis’ continuous returns to crime and hyper-violence, I’ll embrace it as long as the writer has something fresh to say. And he does.
Jennifer Blood is the story of a housewife by day and a glock-carrying vigilante by night. She also carries grenades, knives, and anything else one would use to take down a small army of car-traffickers. It may sound like your standard double-life vigilante story, but make no mistake, Ellis’ narration for the protagonist keeps the material fresh from beginning to end.
We open with Jennifer writing in her diary (a fuzzy pink book, covered with colorful butterflies) as she records the domesticity of her life. Soon she is documenting sneaking valium into her family’s valium to ensure they did not awaken while she went out for an evening for bad-guy eliminating.
It was this opening narration that let me know I was reading something special. A lesser writer would have rushed through this opening to get to good stuff—the crime and violence. However Ellis uses these opening pages to create a three dimensional character that goes on about her guilt for using a non-eco-friendly dishwashing soap, letting her husband get away with schmoozing her so that she’ll cave-in to his request to go hunting, and a number of other life observances that are honest and unique enough to flesh out his main character.
Throughout the book, Ellis has Jennifer write “honestly” at the end of sections of writing to project exasperation, as if to say “for Pete’s sake” or “good grief.” At first it’s fitting for a weary housewife but used ironically, and humorously, during the more blood-heavy scenes.
Speaking of the blood-heavy scenes. They’re wonderful.
Jennifer goes into action wearing a tight leather outfit and she steps out of her car and strikes a pose, then chastises herself for doing so. She starts shooting up a group of criminals shooting one man’s tongue off then using he cleavage to distract a couple of others who soon fall prey to her.
There’s a great fist fight with another hood that is so expertly written. Jennifer has fooled the guy into thinking he’s in a fist fight with her, but she surprises him by slicing cutting him, then she slits his throat. There’s a great piece of dialogue where she muses that the guy makes a huge “performance” out of dying.
After the carnage has ended Jennifer heads home and calms down with some boring sex with her husband to bring her down from the adrenaline high of her evening. Another wonderful piece of narration.
I found the art by Adriano Batista a bit stiff for my taste, but his abilities were extremely fitting for this material.
If you saw Jennifer Blood on the comic rack and passed by it because it didn’t seem like your cup of tea, I suggest picking it up on next trip to the comic shop. This was a wonderful read.
Honestly.
