Death Sentence: London continues where the bestselling graphic novel left off – with London in ruins, psychic manipulator Monty ripped in half by failed musician Weasel – and rabbit-hated invisible artist Verity missing, presumed dead!  As England pulls itself back from the brink, new G-positive powers are popping up all over!  As martial law and forced abstinence prey on the mind of the London Mayor, the American alphabet agencies are watching the London warzone with interest – and special agent Jeb Mulgrew might be next to be thrown into the fire!”

I must admit I never read the original graphic novel and was afraid that picking up this series on a new arc would hinder my reading experience but was pleasantly surprised to read something just as crazy and wonderful as Grant Morrison would create. The comic opens with the crowd hailing their conquering hero, Weasel, while he wonders where his friend, Verity is. The comic, next moves to Texas, where we meet Jeb Mulgrew, an undercover FBI special agent, who is infiltrating a backwoods gang, until he is surprised by one the crew members,who just so happened or be “G-Positive powered”. I don’t want to give away the whole story, but the surprises don’t end there. This comic was definitely a fun read.

The story by Montynero, feels like the beautiful love child of Smallville and Breaking Bad, which have remnants of each throughout. It is most like Smallville, in its introduction of characters and their interactions with regular human beings, and the overall treatment of the burden of powers. It reminds me of Breaking Bad, in its’ well throughout character development and tarnished character flaws, something the show excels at and a lesson Montynero understands well. I cannot wait to see the direction he takes it, as once can only assume but I have a feeling, he much like his influences are full of surprises.

The art by Martin Simmonds, just pops off the pages, both elegant and realistic in his renderings of the various characters that make up this world. They feel more like matte paintings than comic book panels at times and that is definitely a good thing. You can definitely tell that he was heavily influenced by Alex Ross and Todd McFarlane, all the while, creating his own style in this story. His style and art direction, serves this story well.

Overall this first issue was a blast and will definitely have you hooked. It is a comic that may throw one off, by its plot, but it does something very rare, it exceeds the premise and brings the concept to new heights. It introduces you to new characters, and one definitely does not need to read the original arc to enjoy this, even though one would like to now. Definitely worth requesting it for your pullbox.

Story: Montynero Art: Martin Simmonds
Story: 9 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Titan Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review