Horror and Strange Heroes may have been the first to be known for their early dizziness and originated from Mainline DC, but it can also be argued that crime and mystery were also burned into DNA. It started with the Sandman Mystery Theatre, but later solidified with perennial classics such as 100 bullets and scalp. Even Hellblazer was sometimes seen as dazzling in noir, and had a black and white hardcover crime subimprint that was short-lived but almost universally superior.
It makes sense that one of the last waves will become a crime book.
“I wanted to belong somewhere. I was told for the rest of my life that I was shit. That’s everything they say, and I’m not anywhere.”
The American massacre by Brian Hill, Leandro Fernandez, Dean White and Pat Brossoe tells the story of former FBI agent Richard Wright, who deals with bad filming guilt, returns for an off-book undercover investigator to infiltrate a group of white nationalists. They are trying to reveal who is killing other agent’s partners and roaming the thieves of racism, greed and ambition. It’s deeply uncomfortable.
It is not even possible to say that this story has a shade of grey. Although it can be argued that Reid is at least trying to become a good person, the world presented here is full of lies, deceptions, and hatred. There is a kind of moral relativism that attempts to justify a character mixing both his hatred, his despair of others, and racism and classification. But it’s true in the sense that people are doing this all the time. They don’t think their actions are awkward, and they probably believe themselves as “good people.” And some will simply adhere to ideology from a sense of belonging. I’ll go together to get along.
Leandro Fernandez has a style reminiscent of Eduardo Risso and Marcelo Frusin. Exaggerated characters with fine lining defined by a wealth of shadows. It works very well for crime and horror stories, bringing rich darkness to the visuals. Fernandez’s sense of layout and pacing is also impeccable, especially when it comes to portrayals of violence and the despair of some characters’ faces. It is reinforced by Dean White’s colour, and sometimes gives a kind of watercolor effect, giving the story’s atmosphere a bit awful feeling.
Pat Brossoe also does something interesting with the word “several balloons” and leaves some of them open in the grooves. This effect leaves the dialogue a little more open compared to all the shadows on the page.
“It’s hard to keep secrets, Richard. They’ll eat you up.”
What’s interesting is that of all the final waves before the dizziness was shut down, the American massacre of Hill, Fernandez, White and Brossoux concluded. It’s not something that leaves things hanging, it’s a decisive end. I don’t know if it was always the intended ending or if it came much earlier than what was expected, but this became nine issues rather than six, and I pivoted to the finale. It’s a dark and unhappy purpose, but it’s also perfect. The final chapter is dark and will make you cold.
The book sternly looks at unpleasant subjects. The characters are almost completely unthinkable. Language (I will repent if I do not tell you that there is racial slander at work) and violence are polished to knife points. And you don’t like the end. Noir really can’t get any better.
Classic comics big summary: American massacre
American Massacre
Author: Brian Hill
Artist: Leandro Fernandez
Colorist: Dean White
Letterer: Pat Blossau
Publisher: DC Comics – Vertigo
Release date: November 21, 2018 – July 31, 2019
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