‘Pearl #5’ (review)

Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Illustrated by Michael Gaydos
Published by DC Comics

This is the penultimate chapter of this fine book. Bendis and Gaydos have taken the character of Pearl and done an amazing and unique job. This is a story about a woman who wants to become a master tattoo artist. The problem is, her Yakuza clan wants her to only be an assassin.

It’s one of the most compelling reads of the year. And this issue takes that story and puts it into overdrive.

The first few pages are of Rumor and her brother coming in to a ton of cash. They have a very funny conversation of what to do with it.

This is done in a way that reminds me of the way Bendis approached things in his early work.

It’s masterfully handled and a heck of a lot of fun. The title of the chapter is “That’s How The Endo Twins Became The Endo Twins.” And it’s fitting as well as extremely funny.

That beginning was part of Kimmy telling Pearl of how the Endo Twins came to be. From there, we get to see how Kimmy and Pearl are good friends. Bendis makes their dialogue natural and it flows easy. We then get a prose flashback which is very good and fun. This all leads to the ending of the issue which is a big cliffhanger.

At the end of this you see, Pearl meets up with Mr. Miike. She demands to have her tattoo shop given back to her. But Mr. Miike has other plans. That is when some other assassins show up. And then things really go to hell. It’s done in a very compelling way.

The art by Gaydos is tops. He is a great storyteller in his own right. He takes the characters and gives them all personalities and its beautifully expressive. This is some great stuff. I can’t wait to read this book as a whole.

RATING: A