Review – 7 Psychopaths – Vehlmann/Phillips
7 Psychopaths
Fabien Vehlmann (author), Sean Phillips (artist)
Release date(s): March 23rd 2007 by Delcourt, December 7th 2010 by BOOM! Studios (reviewed) – available @ bookdepository.com
format (88 pages, TPB, color, English), 9.99 USD (approx. 9.5 EUR)
Synopsis: 7 men, 1 impossible mission – assassinate Hitler! With World War II in full swing, there’s only one-way to draw the war to a quick end: kill Hitler. But who would be insane enough to try? Joshua Goldschmidt knows just the men to do it. Insane? Psychotic? Mad? Call them what you will, but the SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS are now the only hope the world has…
I am a history fan. Love the books, documentaries, movies and alternative scenarios of WW2. That is what 7 psychopaths brings to the table. It’s a bit of The Dirty Dozen meets Inglourious Basterds. A crazy bunch with nothing to loose, going in with no plan or tactics in order to take down Hitler. The plan sounds great and the story delivers well in the opening chapter. Sadly, when the squad gets to Germany, the story has major hiccups regarding the story, skipping major parts, and leaving the reader wondering is he missing pages in the comic.
Art of Sean Phillips is what makes this comic going for me. In the intro, he states that he wanted to make a big over-sized French comic album, and he provided some fine work for this comic. The amount of detail and reference used is obvious and appreciated. For me it caught the atmosphere of the second world war. Color by Hubert fit perfectly on Phillips’s drawing. There are extras included in this edition by Boom! Studio, additional covers, sketches which improve the overall impression.
Pros: good idea, starting chapter, work by Sean Phillips
Cons: story hiccups after landing in Germany
Conclusion: Being short and finite, story didn’t fully develop and we are left we a great idea, good art, but sadly too many flaws during the development of the story.