Shot Callerz

(Oni, 2002)

In most comics, the portrayal of inner-city criminals seldom goes beyond the stereotypical mugger hiding in a dark alley, waiting for a lost or clueless uptown prey. Not so in this comic book, set in an eat-or-be-eaten urban landscape where a mugging would be about the kindest fate a victim could hope for.

But in Shot Callerz, some criminals are victims, nonetheless. After an apparently successful robbery, Nea Garvin is betrayed by her boyfriend and partner in crime. Shot in the back and left for dead, Nea slips into a coma, while her man makes off with the take. When she eventually awakens, she finds her real troubles are just beginning, as the gangsters she helped rob are at her bedside, looking for their stolen loot.

Crime novelist Gary Phillips realistically and painfully captures the essence of life in the darkest recesses of the city. Brett Weldele’s art provides a look that can truly be called grim and gritty, with his excessive usage of dark gray tones over a minimal amount of detail. It’s not pretty and it’s not supposed to be.

This should appeal to readers of hard-boiled crime stories or stories about the inner-city gangsta scene, as well as fans of books like Sam & Twitch or Greg Rucka’s run on Detective Comics.

— Jim Johnson

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