PAINKILLER

Debuting through Marvel’s Icon imprint, “Painkiller Jane: The 22 Brides” #1 brings readers a whole lot of Jane. The issue, written by Jimmy Palmiotti has two stories: The opening chapter of a multi-part adventure, and a one-shot back-up, though weighing in at twenty-two pages, “Monsters” pushes the boundaries of the definitions of a ‘back-up tale,’ despite the fact that it is placed at the backside of this issue. As a matter of fact, the lead tale is only twenty pages in length, which makes the back-up more like a feature, right? Whatever the case, the end result is the same: “Painkiller Jane: The 22 Brides” #1 delivers a lot of story for its $4.99 cover price. The first of those two stories is part procedural and part action flick as Jane and her girlfriend, Maureen, cross paths with the Brides while investigating a series of exploding buildings. That story is preceded by a four-page prologue tale recounting the history of the Twenty-Two Brides. That four-pager alone could, and woul

Jimmy Palmiotti brings his Painkiller Jane character (co-created with Joe Quesada in 1994) back with this four issue mini-series “Painkiller Jane: The Price of Freedom.” The first issue features artist Juan Santacruz illustrating the 20-page primary story “The Price of Freedom” while artist Sam Lotfi handles the 10-page back up titled “From The Beginning.” The main story, one of Jane on a mission at the request of her longtime best friend, NYPD Detective Maureen Fernandez, is nothing particularly interesting — as a spoiled “princess” is being attacked at an airport and Jane is the only one in a position to save her. While it’s nice to see so many women in leading roles, what we have so far on each of them is shallow. Jane is the “badass that doesn’t follow the rules,” Maureen is the “tough as nails detective,” Sabina Poonwalla is the “spoiled, vain, stupid, princess that needs saving,” etc. It’s just a bunch of cliches thrown onto paper at this point. Is there time for greater depth