Astro City: The Tarnished Angel

Astro City, Vol. 4: The Tarnished Angel by Kurt Busiek
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

When Steeljack got paroled and tried to go legit, he couldn't find a job. Now he's trying to figure out who's killing the washed up criminals in Kiefer Square, his old Astro City neighborhood. Will Steeljack discover the killer before he becomes the next victim.

I knew this was going to be something when I saw Kurt Busiek dedicated it, in part, to Lawrence Block. Since I've read a few hundred detective books over the years, this one was right up my booze-soaked alley.

The Tarnished Angel is about Steekjack, a crook with metal skin fresh out of stir. With no employment prospects and nowhere to go, he heads back to his old neighborhood and gets caught up in a mystery that other people don't seem to care about. Who cares when criminals wind up dead?

The cover of the trade reminds me of one of the covers in the Hard Case Crime series, an homage to the pulpy Gold Medal and Fawcett paperbacks of yesteryear. Steeljack's Robert Mitchum-inspired Bassett hound looks really add to the feeling of being beaten down and defeated by life.

All that being said, it was a joy watching Steeljack plod his way toward the solution. Along the way, he meets The Mock Turtle, who has one of my favorite costume designs in the series so far. Also in the Mock Turtle's tale, the first reference to The King of Elfland's Daughter in a comic.

Steeljack's wanderings reveal more of Astro City's past. The Hombre and Bravo were great. It's a shame how things went down. When the killer was revealed, I wasn't sure how things would play out. It's a noir tale, after all. The ending was very satisfying.

Astro City tells human stories in a city of super heroes. This is the tale of a downtrodden, broken down man who needs one more chance. This is easily my favorite Astro City tale so far. Five out of five stars.

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