Brooklyn Blood

May 7, 2018
Abrasive NYPD detective Billy O’Connor, back from a tour in Afghanistan, investigates a series of gory homicides in Brooklyn’s trendy neighborhoods in this psychological crime noir. “Sometimes it stinks as bad as the Gowanus ,” Billy muses of his job. “If that’s possible.” Each crime scene triggers PTSD flashbacks for the veteran. Has something gone rotten in this borough of immigrants and hipsters—or do his hallucinations actually predict the murders? Billy’s level-headed partner, Nadira Hasan, tries to ground him and get him back to proper procedural police work as the case snakes, seamlessly, into the supernatural. Levitz is a prolific writer of superhero comics (Wonder Woman, Legion of Super-Heroes) who brings his imaginative storytelling skills here to the portrayal of ordinary humans in a recognizably modern world. The intricate plot is well served by the art of Hamilton (Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451), as he blends realistic figure and architecture drawings with fantastical portrayals; his use of shadowing is excellent. Integrating Brooklyn’s often brutal real-world history, this bloody tale with Lovecraftian undertones will thrill mystery and horror comic fans.