Reviewer: Chris Delloiacono
Story Title: All Bad Things Must Come To An End
Written by: Steve Vance
Penciled by: Christine Norrie, J. Bone
Inked by: Daniel Krall, J. Bone
Colored by: Lee Loughridge
Lettered by: Kurt Hathaway
Assistant Editor: Harvey Richards
Editor: Joan Hilty
Publisher: DC Comics
Please don’t go…
Bad Girls has had more than a fair share of turmoil and change during its brief five month run. Originally set as a 6-issue mini-series, the book was unceremoniously trimmed to five. Series co-creator Jennifer Graves only provided the artwork for issue 1, and this final issue saw the penciling chores split between Christine Norrie and J. Bone. That’s more change than most mini-series should have to deal with.
Even with one less issue and myriad artistic changes, the book maintained a solid narrative and an artistic cohesion from beginning to end. Books with a lot less changes than this one have failed in that regard. So, I give a thumbs up to everyone involved with the creation of Bad Girls. You pulled off a very mean feat, and told a damn good story in the process.
Limping to the finish?
As last issue came to a close, it really didn’t feel like Bad Girls could reach a satisfying conclusion and tie up the necessary loose ends. Yet, somehow, Steve Vance was able to pull everything together, and leave himself room for a sequel! Okay, I realize a sequel is unlikely, but this book would really work as a television series. Down the line, if it does get optioned, stranger things have happened, demand could warrant a continuation. Hey, I’m hoping here!
I didn’t expect too much out of the book when it shipped. Yet, each month I was pleasantly surprised by Vance’s ability to tell an interesting story around the idea of high school girls being endowed with super powers. He masterfully recreated the high school setting, and the characters were as convincing as I’ve seen in a comic book.
The tie that binds.
Lauren’s (our hero) struggle to stop Tiffany’s “gang†of powered bimbos comes to a surprisingly satisfying conclusion. The government agents that have been lurking around, but kept out of the action, finally come into play. Plus, all of the other ancillary characters join in the fun. Even though DC robbed readers of one issue of this series, amazingly, nothing about the conclusion seems rushed. Vance hits all of the important beats, leaving no stone unturned for his conclusion.
As I stated, the artwork although almost constantly changing in these pages, has remained very much in line with what Jennifer Graves introduced us to in issue #1. Christine Norrie actually improved upon the concept, and I would have liked to see her work for the entire final issue. Thankfully, J. Bone does an excellent job with the middle portion of the book. Lot’s of changes, but the artwork never slipped in quality.
I can’t think of a book that has surprised me more in the last year or so. Not that this is one of the best books I have read, but it was consistently better than I had hoped. Each month, I expected the ceiling to fall in, yet the pros involved held things together and told an interesting story that stood out from most books on the racks. I’d like to give everyone involved in Bad Girls a hearty thank you, because unfortunately very few people seemed to notice this mini. Oh well, I know just how good it was.
