Reviewer: Chris Delloiacono
Story Title: 50 to Life
Written by: Steve Gerber
Art by: Brian Hurtt
Colored by: Brian Haberlin
Lettered by: Jared H. Fletcher and Pat Brosseau
Editor – original series: Joan Hilty
Editor – collected edition: Anton Kawasaki
Publisher: DC Comics
When the The Shawshank Redemption came out, I blew it. The title didn’t interest me, and no matter what good notices it received, I refused to check it out. Finally, I listened to my girlfriend at the time and I watched…in awe.
It’s my favorite movie now.
My first viewing of The Shawshank Redemption nearly knocked me on the floor. I don’t seem to be alone in this regard either. The Shawshank Redemption has become one of the most revered movies of the last decade, and is now a true “modern classic.”
The Shawshank Redemption aside, prison stories don’t generally move me a great deal. The idea of Hard Time did not resonate with me at all during the promotional build-up to the series’ launch late last year. I skimmed the preview flyers, but didn’t care. I read the unanimous rave reviews, but still I didn’t budge. Finally, with the Hard Time: 50 to Life trade paperback collection released a few weeks ago, I relented.
Just so you know, in the past week or so, the Nexus staff has begun the process of voting for our “Year End Awards.” After reading this trade, and picking up the four issues that have been released since, the book made my top five! That’s no joke!
The same way that The Shawshank Redemption did it several years ago, Hard Time snuck up on me and kicked me right in the ass and said, “you will never be the same again.”
The story begins in the midst of a Columbine-esque scene at Caulfied High School. Where events differ slightly from Columbine, at least at the outset, is that the two students with the guns are not there to kill, just frighten. Of course, events quickly spiral out of control, and several injuries and deaths result. Numbered among the dead is one of the gunmen, Brandon Snodd. Although Snodd was the mastermind, and the other gunmen, Ethan Harrow, actually tried to tone the situation down, blame for the incident falls squarely on Ethan.
By the end of the first issue Ethan, although only 15 years old, is sentenced to fifty years in prison. While being led from the courtroom, a mysterious, but invisible, entity escapes Ethan’s body. The entity lays waste to the courtroom, but Ethan is not implicated in the matter.
The first issue is perfect. It serves in stark contrast to the remainder of the series. We are introduced to some of our characters and the “world” of Hard Time in the first issue, but the real situation is set-up at the end of issue oneâ€â€not issue 6 like so many writers have grown accustomed. This way we are led to, and not shown what the book’s about. The premiere issue is the end of Ethan’s old life, and a precursor of things to come. If you’re like me, you’ll be hooked within the first twenty pages.
The second issue begins with Ethan being transported to the “State Penitentiary.” The looming walls are shown by artist Brian Hurtt in a fantastically illustrated splash page. The motto on the prison’s walls states, “A debt once paid is forgiven,” but a more apt slogan from the imagery would be, “Abandon hope, all ye who enter!” Once inside the walls Ethan goes through the routine we expect from entry into a prison. There’s delousing, a body-cavity search, handout of prison issue clothes, and the walk to the cellblock.
Once on the cellblock the story settles in. The hardest part about a prison drama of any kind is writing characters that a reader/viewer can relate to, and more importantly find some reason to care about. Along the way we are introduced to the street-tough Cole, who gives Ethan some tips on surviving. Then we meet up with Ethan’s cellmate, the old-guy, Curly, that offers little hope, but lots of wisdom on how to get-by on the inside. The important cast members are filled out with Gantry the crazed preacher of Cell Block B, and a group of Neo-Nazi’s led by Swift. Oh, and how could I ever forget Cindy. In actuality Cindy is Swift’s cellmate, and quite the pretty number. You may ask why Swift gets to “room” with a girl. Well, Cindy’s not a girl”¦she just looks and acts like one.
With the cast in place by the end of the second issue, the remainder of the collection is a wonderfully written study of Ethan’s slow adjustment to “life on the inside.” Steve Gerber infuses the series with interesting conflict, well defined characters, situations that are not only enthralling, but also provoked a great deal of thought. The thread that really got to me was the business of Ethan’s appeal. Ethan’s lawyer is trying to have his sentence reduced to only twenty-five years. Could you imagine your life if a twenty-five year sentence was a great accomplishment?
Life seems hopeless, and many would probably give up. Ethan finds reason to go on. He’s in a vicious, brutal grown man’s world, yet he survives and almost begins to thrive. One of the most interesting aspects is Gerbe’s use of the “entity” that Ethan is able to manifest while he sleeps. This manifestation gives Ethan a leg up. He’s got a trump card that is still unknown to everyone else in prison. On top of giving Ethan a chance to exact some revenge, it allows him precious moments out from behind the walls.
It’s difficult not to compare Hard Time with The Shawshank Redemption. They are both prison dramas that offer us a view into prison life, but a life in prison infused with some level of hope because of the attitude and ability of one individual. Hard Time bears similarities to Shawshank in the outstanding dramatic tone set forth in both, but it breaks new ground by telling the story of a superhuman locked behind the walls of a prison. There are elements of similarity between the two, but Hard Time is breaks the mold of every comic series that’s come before.
