It’s 1987. Marcus Lopez hates school. His grades suck. He has no money. The jocks are hassling his friends. He can’t focus in class, thanks to his mind constantly drifting to the stunning girl in the front row and the Dag Nasty show he has tickets to. But the jocks are the children of Joseph Stalin’s top assassin, the teachers are members of an ancient league of assassins, the class he’s failing is “Dismemberment 101,” and his crush, a member of the most notorious crime syndicate in Japan, has a double-digit body count.

Welcome to the most brutal high school on Earth, where the world’s top crime families send the next generation of assassins to be trained. Murder is an art. Killing is a craft. At King’s Dominion High School for the Deadly Arts, the dagger in your back isn’t always metaphorical, nor is your fellow classmates’ poison.

Written by Rick Remender with amazing art by Wesley Craig and color from Lee Loughridge the series is about the mid-1980s underground through the eyes of the most damaged and dangerous teenagers on Earth.

The first issue is interesting. The first three-quarters of the comic is about Marcus Lopez and his living as a homeless kid, slowly revealing the his life that lead to this moment. Then out of the blue, he’s on the run and being helped by mysterious individuals to evade the police. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think this was a schizophrenic break and we’re seeing a paranoid delusion. The action and last quarter of the comic seem to come out of nowhere.

The latter half of the comic is interesting. It reminds me of a less comical version of its fellow Image published comic Five Weapons. It’s an interesting comic overall and I’ll absolutely read the second issue to see where this all goes.

What really stands out is Wes Craig’s art and Lee Loughridge’s coloring. The art in parts is amazing and throughout solid. That art is helped with the minimal colors used creating a palette that matches the mood of the comic.

I can’t say I recommend the comic as a “buy” but it is worth reading. I have a feeling the series will get better as the next feel issues come out, but this first one’s story is a bit strange for me to totally get behind it.

Story: Rick Remender Art: Wes Craig
Story: 7.75 Art: 8.75 Overall: 7.75 Recommendation: Read

Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review