Friday, September 9, 2011

"Like a Sniper Linning Up His Shot" by Jacques Tardi and Jean-Patrick Manchette

Superb.  Jacques Tardi adopted "The Prone Gunman" by Jean-Patrick Manchette and its splendid.  Without a doubt Manchette is my discovery of a new(ish) noir writer - and his stuff is pretty bleak, in a very French style of course.  Nevertheless the narrative is about a trained assassin who wants to quit his work, but alas can't.  He has a thing for Maria Callas and a tender heart - that is hidden from everyone, including himself.  But make no mistake he's a murderer. Tardi's illustrations are pretty perfect, and visually he tales the tale.  This is the second release in English of this dynamic dual.  One hopes that there are other titles lurking ahead or in one's drawer someplace in the latin Quarter.

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