Blacksad 2 : Arctic Nation

Rating:
Summary: the best graphic novel of 04---really!
Review: I loved Blacksad #1 , but #2 blew me a away with its anthropomorphic characters, plot about a white racist group and plain old drawing skill. If you liked 100 Bullets, if you dig '40s noir and Jim Lee's Batman, I highly recommend Blacksad #2.

Rating:
Summary: Pleasing to Both Eye and Mind
Review: I picked up Blacksad 1 & 2 yesterday and was rendered quite awestruck by the work. The fine detail, beautifully applied watercolor/acrylic technique, and perfectly proportioned images are not what I am accustomed to seeing within the comic book world. Within Arctic Nations, the authors have used the anthropomorphic to accentuate how useless the whole ideal of "the pure race" really is. Even if you are not a fan of the anthropomorphic, you will enjoy this. Accompanying the artistic scenery is a story that riveting and smooth. P.I. Blacksad, brought in from the city in investigate a young girl's kidnapping, quickly becomes aware that the Arctic movement (White power and all that rot, reminiscent of the KKK) has foul seeds planted throughout the town. After the murder of the girl's mother, the police are ordered by higher-ups to get off of the case -they must protect the reputation of the town's leaders before all else - and Blacksad is on his own. Can he save her, himself, and the hide of a weasel reporter whose been tailing him for the past week? You'll have to read to find out. Trust me, you won't believe the ending.

Rating:
Summary: Pleasing to Both Eye and Mind
Review: I picked up Blacksad 1 & 2 yesterday and was rendered quite awestruck by the work. The fine detail, beautifully applied watercolor/acrylic technique, and perfectly proportioned images are not what I am accustomed to seeing within the comic book world. Within Arctic Nations, the authors have used the anthropomorphic to accentuate how useless the whole ideal of "the pure race" really is. Even if you are not a fan of the anthropomorphic, you will enjoy this. Accompanying the artistic scenery is a story that riveting and smooth. P.I. Blacksad, brought in from the city in investigate a young girl's kidnapping, quickly becomes aware that the Arctic movement (White power and all that rot, reminiscent of the KKK) has foul seeds planted throughout the town. After the murder of the girl's mother, the police are ordered by higher-ups to get off of the case -they must protect the reputation of the town's leaders before all else - and Blacksad is on his own. Can he save her, himself, and the hide of a weasel reporter whose been tailing him for the past week? You'll have to read to find out. Trust me, you won't believe the ending.

Rating:
Summary: Great! Just great!
Review: John Blacksad is back! On the search for a kidnapped girl, Blacksad finds himself in a small town torn apart by poverty, corruption, and organized racism. The concept of White versus Black is dealt with the color of one's fur. The White supremacist group, Arctic Nation, is comprised of white-pelted creatues, while a Black militant group has distictly black pelts. Blacksad, a black cat with a white snout, is literally in the middle.
The story is well-written, but not as gripping as the first Blacksad book "Somewhere Within the Shadows". The artwork is, like the first book, excellent. The attention to detail is staggering.
This isn't just for anthropomorphics fans, but everyone who loves a great graphic novel, or entertainment in the style of clasic Film Noir.
Strongly recommended!
(Is it just me, or does the white mink in this story look a bit like White supremacist Matthew Hale?)