Fatale #16 Review

Sixteen issues in and the message is loud and clear: Josephine is the most irresistible woman in the history of creation. Men from all walks of life, and spanning many decades, just devote their lives to her at the first sign of her hypnotic smile or the first glance of her intoxicating beauty. If we keep getting hit with the same message, over and over again, why do we stick around?

It’s because Ed Brubaker keeps the reader completely captivated as the mystery surrounding the femme fatale gets deeper and deeper. This time, Josephine has blended in with the grunge crowd in 1990’s Seattle and she has no memory of her past life.

What made this really intriguing is that some of the people she surrounded herself with were able to resist her charms for a short time until they gave in. Maybe her memory loss has something do with it, or maybe it’s the amount of drugs her new friends are on.

Sean Phillips’ artwork makes an indelible impression on the story with shadowy imagery and creepy character work that enhances the general tone of the plot. Dave Stewart has been the colorist on this series for a while, but Elizabeth Breitweiser’s coloring has done a great job of holding up her end of the bargain by bringing this eerie domain to life.

The slow burn nature of Fatale gives us little bits at a time without making the reader feel that they are not getting enough. If anything, Fatale makes the bread crumbs feel like a feast that ultimately keeps us satisfied until the next time dinner is served.

Grade: A-