I have a tendency when reading comic books to stick largely to superhero comic books. It’s not that I think only superhero books are entertaining, it’s just sort of a habit of mine, but one I’ve been trying to break over the last five or so years. As such, I decided to check out 7 Psychopaths and am I ever glad I did! This was one entertaining book with some very strong characterization. Fabien Vehlmann and Sean Phillips are able to take an old concept, using prisoners and others with nothing else to live for to invade World War II Germany for one reason or another and truly invigorate it. In this case, the story is assembling the titular seven psychopaths for a mission to kill Hitler and end the war.
What really brings this story its energy is the truly interesting characters. The leader of the psychopaths, Joshua Goldschmidt, is just so much fun to read. He’s delightfully sarcastic and rude, but you also know he’s the smartest person in the room at any given time and it makes him truly endearing. Even though only five of the members are introduced in this issue, they are all shaping up to be equally fun to read. They range everywhere from a pathological liar and impersonator to a man who believes Hitler is communicating with him telepathically as a means of torture and could definitely make their mission an interesting one once it gets underway. Vehlmann definitely has a great grasp on writing insane people and that is most certainly a compliment.
I think the person I have to give the most praise to, however, is artist Sean Phillips. I really enjoyed his work in Marvel Zombies, but I haven’t gotten around to reading some of his other works so I was worried how well he’d be able to draw a cast of regular humans and he did not disappoint. I could best describe his art in 7 Psychopaths as cartoonishly realistic. All of his characters have a distinct feel to them that makes them feel real. Possibly the highlight of the work though is that each of the psychopaths seem to have some sort or artistic tick that make them seem as though they actually have the problems the reader is told they do. My personal favorite it the goofy smile that team member Willy Wright has on his face perpetually that just screams that he is lying to you and enjoying it at any given time. Phillips war-torn Europe certainly looks the part as well and it looks just plain gorgeous. Considering I read an interview with him saying he had no clue what 1940’s European architecture looked like and had to constantly research it, it looks especially amazing.
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book, to say the least. I really didn’t know what to expect going into the issue and, honestly, I was kind of expecting to not really like it, but I definitely did. The only real downside is that the plot still feels a little generic in basic concept, but it has every opportunity still to open up and really shatter expectations. If Vehlmann can keep up this level on characterizations and keep the story varied, it could easily become one of my favorite books of the year.
Overall: 9.4/10
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