Mary's Review: JTHM - Director's Cut by Jhonen Vasquez

Jhonen Vasquez is not a well man: this is neither a good nor a bad thing. Its simply a fact of nature. And while the modern crowd tends to associate his name with the short-lived cult hit Invader Zm, his work actually traces back to a certain psychopath named Nny. The glorious thing about JTHM (Johnny the Homicidal Maniac) is that its cathartic. Nny is the dark voice in the human mind, acting out those violent little fantasies that would get a real person put in prison: who hasn't at one point or another imagined horrible bloody deaths for that person with the cell phone in the movie theatre, or the guy who put you on hold for three hours? Jhonen has done the public a favor, offering them the chance to live vicariously...or so it starts. Since Director's Cut is the cumulation of the entire series of comics, the evolution of the idea is easily observable: from simple, mindless violence to a bent more worthy of Sandman in its late installments. Readers tend to take a liking to one style or the other, but it is what it is. The best, to this reviewer's inkling, are the comics involving Squee, the unfortunate child who is Nny's next door neighbor (he also has a side collection of his own comics). For reasons not explained and best ignored, Squee falls outside the radar of victims, creating a few great interactions. Sadly, its limited mostly to the opening and closing of the collection. All in all, an afternoon's distraction, a good side detour for ZM fans. Abandon all sanity, ye who enter here.
Final Verdict: 4Q, 2P
Warning: Best for 15-16+, as it is (obviously) violent and contains harsh language. This concludes this review's moment of conscience.