Brief Mentions: DMZ #35

DMZ #35
Written by: Brian Wood
Art by: Kristian Donaldson

We have talked a lot about the works of Brian Wood on this website not to mention the number of times we have talked about his works on the podcast (mostly Northlanders but also the recently released Local Hardcover). We have talked about DMZ a few times but I can honestly say that I don't give this book nearly enough credit. I have often heard reviewers, especially those who review comics, talk about books that are so good for so long that you start to take the quality for granted. DMZ is the first book where that has ever happened to me. I love this book. I love it so much that I forgot to tell people as often as I could to check it out. I should have been telling every customer who was looking for something new to check out DMZ. I should have been mentioning it on the podcast every single time that it came out. It is so damn good that I forgot how good it is. This issue is the beginning of a 2 issue story arc that takes place in one of the unvisited Boroughs of New York: Staten Island.

This is also the return of one of Brian Wood's previous collaborators: Kristian Donaldson. Having worked together on two previous issues of DMZ (issue 11 all about Zee, and issue 20, part 3 of the Friendly Fire story-arc) as well as the oft-overlooked mini-series Supermarket (published by IDW and available in Tradepaperback) these two creators have really found their rhythm. This is clearly the best of their collaborations so far. Donaldson has a knack for crafting really memorable page layouts and creating unique characters and both are on display in these pages.

Wood is also doing some of his best work on this book. Wood has a great sense for writing Matty Roth and it's clear that over the span of the nearly three years that this book has been coming out that Wood has really gotten inside the head of the character and is capable of pushing him in all sorts of fun directions. I think that if you are looking for one really great Vertigo book to start reading that you should read Fables ... if you are looking for two really great Vertigo books to start reading then you should read Fables and DMZ. You certainly won't be reading anything else quite like it.