Book #03

100 Bullets: A Foregone Tomorrow by Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso

In the fourth collection of this series, Agent Graves continues to offer immunity to everyday people to carry out their innermost desires of vengeance with the 100 bullets that he supplies. But as these self-serving manipulations take place, pieces of the mystery of the Minutemen and the organization that created them start to come together, and we discover to the research and conspiracy theories of Mr. Branch. As more is revealed about the series' main characters, the true meaning and importance of the conflict between Graves and the Trust starts to emerge

It's all beginning to come together. I often struggle to remember where I left off with graphic novels, so it took me a while to work out what was going on.

In previous volumes, we're treated to the decision-making processes, cultural differences, and motivations of characters who are handed the case containing the bullets of immunity. That's always very exciting, but in this volume we're treated to some character background and depth; we learn more about the past lives of the Trust and the Minutemen, and begin to understand the plot with a bit more clarity than we were previously allowed.

My favourite story arc here was Graves bumping into an older gentleman in hospital, and realising they had met before in the sixties. Subtle hints are made about an incident in Dallas, which really appealed to me since I've had a morbid fascination for what happened on this day since reading 11.22.63.

There's a lot going on here, and at times it's hard work to keep up with the changes in pace, new information, and characters who look confusingly similar (sorry). It's not a bad volume, it just relies a lot on the reader having already taken information from the first three volumes and (in my unfortunate case) remembering it all. I am worrying I'm not keeping up as I should be.

Despite the information overload, it's still intriguing, still well-drawn, and still filled with uncertainty. Let's do volume five.