With that, they set out on a bloody mission of revenge across the Midwest. Once his enemies are eradicated, Michael plans to leave his son with his wife's relatives, on a farm in Perdition, Kansas. As he does in his other books, Collins mixes in historical figures with his fictional creations. The O'Sullivan's mix it up with Frank Nitti and Al Capone (allies of the Looney family) and ultimately cut a deal with Elliot Ness to crack the Looney's crime empire. During this time, O'Sullivan shows how he got his nickname, as he emerges victorious from one bloody gun battle after another. Young Mike ends up using a gun to defend his father, too, and finds that after bloody killings, his father will often seek out a Catholic church so he can go to Confession. While he does make sure his son is safe, Michael loses the last gun battle. The religious theme lasts through the book, up to a surprise end for the grown-up Mike.
The novel is stylishly drawn by the English artist Richard Piers Rayner, in a black and white "Comics Noir" style. The art set just the right mood for their travels through the Depression Midwest, to a Perdition in more ways than one.
Other than a few Harvey Pekar works, I haven't had much exposure to graphic novels, and was surprised at how quickly I finished the book, probably in less time than it would have taken to watch the movie. (Given the number of panels that were nothing but gun battles, the overall dialog is sparse.) Collins adds a rather lengthy autobiographical introduction to the beginning of the novel that was also interesting — and will probably lead me to look for more of his work.
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