Bob Saetta, the number two man in the Saetta crime family, seemingly has a change of heart, attack of conscience, whatever you want to call it, and turns himself into the police. Bob’s willing to tell all for only, well, we’re not given exactly what it is that Bob wants in return before his family goes missing and six cops end up dead. And that just brings us to page three.

Back to Brooklyn is a five-part series from the guys who brought you Preacher (writer Garth Ennis) and Painkiller Jane (co-creator Jimmy Palmiotti), who have teamed up with a relative newcomer, Mihailo Vukelic whose super-stylized and slick panels will soon mark him as a comic artist whose style you can spot from across the room. Not bad for someone just out the gate.

As an opening chapter, Back to Brooklyn has got all the right ingredients. We’ve got a rogue mafioso, self-serving G-Men, singing hookers, and a Scorcese-worthy bloodbath. It’s a solid beginning from a solid team, though I have some minor qualms with the match-up. To start with, I wonder about the choice to bring on Vukelic. He’s a talented artist for sure, and he’s someone who I think will make a big splash, but while the opening panel has a nice grainy look that fits the style and genre perfectly, the art is almost too glossy for a down-and-dirty crime thriller. Vukelic may be a little obsessed with the tech; layers, blur tool and the like. Each panel on its own is breathtaking (I really can’t credit the guy’s talent enough) but as a storytelling device it hits a little flat. Likewise, Ennis’ dialogue is a little mismatched in spots. Overall, the writing is top-notch, but when we’re first brought into a mafioso card game, it’s mostly throwaway lines meant to signify that we’re dealing with the bad bad guys, as opposed to the somewhat noble bad guy we’re rooting for. It’s an old trick, and it doesn’t really work anymore.

Despite the minor faults, I’ve already read Back to Brooklyn twice, and I very well may give it another go before issue two hits the stands. It’s a solid read, and it could very well be the opening act to a great mini-series, so if you think it might be your thing it probably is.

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