Richard Stark/Darwyn Cooke’s Parker

Man, was this all kinds of awesome.

Based on the acclaimed novel of the same name by the late Richard Stark (Donald Westlake), artist Darwyn Cooke adapted it to the graphic novel medium. Parker, set up by a desperate man in need of paying off some sketchy loans, seemingly returns from the dead to settle a score. Running through members of a massive crime organization dubbed, The Outfit, Parker makes it clear he wants his money back – at any cost.

I know I’ve been told ’round these parts that Parker is an excellent character, but after reading this, I couldn’t believe just how bad-ass he was. That’s right, I went there. Not only was he calm, confident and collected in just about everything he did; he kicked some serious ass in the process.

Also, the artwork in this was just tremendous. Cooke painted the world of 1960s New York in blacks, whites and various shades of blue. I’ve never seen anything like it and it really fit the atmosphere of Stark’s story.

I’ll go so far as to say this is easily one of my new favorites and the best graphic novel I’ve read since Batman’s The Long Halloween. I have no idea how this measures up to the original source but if it’s any indication on how this series is set to progress, count me in as a extremely interested.

Awesome!