The Stranger #1 is a comic written by Thomas Philipson & James Patricks with art by Devlin Baker. A detective is attempting to figure out the real identity of The Stranger. This is a mystery-focused superhero comic with noir thriller vibes, drama, and violence. The main man is Detective Sal Denaro, he is in the middle of doing his job when he comes across The Stranger. With him is Officer Rosie, she assists Sal in the chase. The story begins with a news report of the release of “Doc Bionic”, a former foe of The Stranger. It then shifts to the police station where Sal and Rosie talk about getting drinks but first they must handle a disturbance call. This takes place in 1975 New York. The violence here is mainly physical with a bit of blood but no gore. The pacing is overall a bit fast and the tone is like that of a dramatic detective movie. There are a few intense moments due to danger and violence. The dialogue is initially upbeat but turns a bit aggressive and serious. There is only one word-heavy page but more than a few thick text bubbles. This is an exciting and intriguing debut issue that sets the scene and gives us enough of a taste of the characters, the story, and the art to make us hungry for more.

            The art here looks like a modern version of 1970’s comic art with increased detail. The color range here is decent and consists of many dark tones. There is a strong shading here and the color of the sky plays a big role in the lighting here. This takes place in New York City and most of the scenery we’ll see is of the skyscraper variety. Due to this being a chase the location will change from homes to abandoned buildings. There are many notable angles here that look like they could’ve been pulled from a movie. The backgrounds here nearly always show the surroundings which adds an extra layer to the different moments. The expression level here is a bit below average as there are a lot of hard unemotional looks. There is some happiness, shock, and unease. The faces here are well drawn with a good amount of detail overall so they show the different expressions clearly. The violence here is mainly physical but does involve guns. There is a small bit of blood. The action scenes have a decent number panels, good flow, and memorable shots.

“Is this worth reading?”

Yes.

“Would I like this?”

If you like superhero stories with noir, thriller, and strong mystery elements that star a detective and feature some drama and violence then this is for you.

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

PG-13. Violence.

“Could I get a quote from the comic?”

“I knew you’d be back.”

 

Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cococomics/the-stranger-1-a-noir-superhero-muder-mystery-comic/description

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

Probably Contains Spoilers

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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 15

Violent Pages: 5, for 33% 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 – 2

“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 – 2

“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.”