Comic book review
Written by Mark Millar
Art by Steve McNiven
Titan Books hardback
Release date Out now

A millionaire uses his resources to avenge the death of his parents. It might sound familiar – only this is a bad guy…

Brutal, bloody and twisted, Mark Millar’s latest assault on comic book readers is here. It’s a dark, unpalatable tale that feels angry and at times juvenile. It’s also the most readable comic I’ve read in a very long time.

The concept of two men pitching their great intellects against each other is nothing new, but Millar’s take on this well-worn concept is taken to such ridiculous extremes that it reaches almost operatic heights. There’s nothing our protagonist, Police Chief Blake Morrow, can do to catch his quarry that cannot be countered by Nemesis’s almost precognitive levels of forward planning.

Steve McNiven’s art is as dynamic as the story demands. A set piece involving Air Force One feels so cinematic that you wonder how Tony Scott (who looks set to direct the movie adaptation) can beat it.

Millar and McNiven barely put a foot wrong with this outrageous, morally troubling tale. It’s a pity the story is so self-contained. These characters perhaps deserve a far longer run in which they can torment each other. Any chance of a sequel? Jonathan Wilkins

VERDICT: 9/10
Twisted and terrific spin on the supervillain concept.