Blood n Concrete #1 is a comic written by Andy X Jenkins with art by Ray Dillon and colors by Michael Okoroagha. A young man takes a drug that improves his memory…and gives him new ones. This is a science fiction and supernatural comic that stars two characters fifty years apart. The first man we meet is Norrie “Nutter” Harris; he is the leader of the Hackney Mob and currently has a metal plate in his head along with some nasty scarring. The second man we meet is a university student named Rob Smith who is broke, behind in school, and in debt to rough people. The story begins with Norrie in a pub with the rest of his gang planning a heist. Meanwhile in modern times Rob is stressing about the current state of his life. Norrie’s story takes place in London during the 1966 World Cup Final between England and West Germany while Rob’s is just a normal time in the UK. The common theme between these two characters is the urge to get some fast cash quick, whether that is out of necessity or a want. The action here is bloody and gruesome with some unpleasant attacks. The pace is slightly slower than average as there is plenty of talking and some small bios about the Hackney Mob members. The tone is more serious when Norrie is the focus but more stressful for Rob. There are more than a few intense moments for each of these characters. The dialogue is very British with slang you’ll have to Google but it’s much more understandable when Rob and his friends speak. There are more than a few wordy pages. This is a debut comic that gives us two fleshed-out characters in an exciting story with interesting implications.

            The art here is very detailed and has an overall gritty look paired with panels of all shapes and sizes to highlight different moments. The color range here is vast and they can occasionally take on a watercolor kind of quality. Most of the scenery is famous/landmark buildings and shots of the city. The location changes constantly from a pub in the 60’s to a present day University to the British Museum. These places have extra bits in the back and foreground that bring these areas to life and they tend to persist even in the smaller panels. The expression level here is high with emotions being worn on sleeves. The range is all over the place from anger to joy to depressing sadness. The faces are generally high detail though they can dip occasionally; they showcase every look well even at a distance. The violence features some disfiguring attacks with weapons and without with blood and some gore. The action scenes flow well and are short and spread out.

“Is this worth reading?”

Yes.

“Would I like this?”

If you like science fiction and supernatural blends starring two characters with one of them being black and taking place in the UK in the 1960’s and modern times with violence and struggle then this is for you.

“What would this comic’s film rating be?”

R. Violence, blood, gore.

“Could I get a quote from the comic?”

“Just leave the jokes to me, Fingers.”

 

Digital Link: https://bloodnconcrete.co.uk/

Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/andyxjenkins/blood-n-concrete-comic-issue-1/description

***IN-DEPTH COMIC STATS BELOW***

Probably Contains Spoilers

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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 28

Violent Pages: 4, for 14% of the comic

Sexy Pages: 0, for 0% of the comic

 

**The levels below aren’t necessarily maintained throughout the whole comic, but they were definitely reached**

 

Violence Level – 3

“Wasn’t no tussling at all.”

“Sometimes you gotta hit somebody.”

“I’m getting charged with how many counts of assault?”

“This was a tournament arc.”

“All my life I had to fight.”

 

Gore Level – 4

“The only thing leaking out your face is tears.”

“Looks like somebody spilled some ketchup.”

“Might need to soak that up with a bath towel.”

“That isn’t supposed to be outside the body.”

“This is a slaughterhouse.”

 

Death Level – 3

“And everybody lived happily ever after.”

“We might have gone to a couple funerals.”

“It just LOOKS like a serial killer was here.”

“Yeah this was a tragedy.”

“Think Gettysburg.”

 

Porn Level – 1

“Everybody kept their clothes on.”

“I guess it was too hot for a bra.”

“Sometimes you got to let everything air out.”

“This is like late night Cinemax in the early 2000’s.”

“Oh. This is porn.”