Concrete Park, Volume 2

Starred review from August 10, 2015
Answering the industry's call for more diversity in comics with deeply layered characters who have been discarded from society, co-writer and artist Puryear (screenwriter of the 1996 action film Eraser) and co-writer Erika Alexander (actress from the sitcom Living Single) tell the story of a gang war on another planet where prisoners have barcodes imprinted on their faces and must fight to stake their territory. The artwork, vibrant but gritty, is akin to a more detailed version of Gilbert Hernandez's style, and perfect for the tale. Puryear's experimental lettering choices are the most inconsistent aspect of the work. The uneven font in the prologue makes reading a chore, while other styles used throughout are more engrossing and succeed at sending you deeper into the world of Scare City. Puryear and Alexander produce a unique work that, while taking place in another galaxy, is steeped through both story and illustration in the kind of culture we find everyday on the planet Earth.

November 15, 2016

In a futuristic Los Angeles, Isaac shoots the man who killed his baby sister and finds himself en route to an off-world penal colony where prisoners work the underground ice mines. His shuttle crashes, and he escapes to throw in with Luca, head of the all-women M-80 gang in Scare City. This gritty, sexy sf series has wonderfully vibrant art that's graceful and sweaty, with imperfect yet appealing characters.

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