Broken Frontier

Translated and reformatted from the acclaimed French hardboiled noir series Le Tueur, The Killer #1 puts readers inside the head of a professional assassin.

What type of man is capable of taking a human life? On the surface, that sounds like an easy question to answer – a disturbed man, an angry man or a bad man. But like many things in life, the easy answer isn’t always the correct one. If a person out of their mind killing is terrifying, how much more disturbing is it to consider a man that would take lives by his own choice? That’s who "The Killer" is. He doesn’t kill because he’s angry, hateful or insane. To him it’s a job. A means to an end. All he wants is enough money to withdraw from the world and to be left alone.

The Killer puts you inside that man’s head.

I wish I could remember exactly where I read it, so I could give proper credit, but someone wrote that the problem with the independent comic scene today isn’t in diversity. It’s in quality. There are a million and one choices on the comic racks these days, but only a handful of books really stand out as exceptional and unique. Matz and Jacamon’s The Killer #1 is one of those select few. From the title and back cover notes, it would be very easy to assume this comic is another "mature reader" books that relishes in violence, sex, blood and immorality. The Killer actually has very little blood and violence, and far from relishing in it, the entire world presented here is actually very sterile and calm. And that makes it incredibly scary. By presenting the entire issue from within The Killer’s perspective, readers see how a young man withdrew from the world. Bit by bit, Matz shows how The Killer disconnects from humanity and why it makes perfect sense. Considering the entire comic deals with a man sitting alone in a hotel room, this is an amazingly rich (albeit uncomfortable) story.

Artist Luc Jacamon, who also provides the translation for the comic, is as much the storyteller here. Matz’s script has a dramatic motion picture quality to it, and Jacamon imbues each panel with a cinematic feel. Over the course of the issue, he presents lush and exotic panels, and then quickly withdraws back into tight frames that compliment The Killer’s worldview.

The Killer #1 is a perfect example of good comic book storytelling. Mature, introspective and engaging, Matz and Jacamon’s work offers a strong alternative to more traditional comic book fare.