Ruse, vol 1: Enter the Detective
Written by Mark Waid. Pencils by Butch Guice, and Jeff Johnson. Inks by
Mike Perkins, Paul Neary.
Colours: Laura Martin (a.k.a. Laura DePuy),
Jason Lambert. Letters: Dave Lanphear.
Reprinting: Ruse #1-6 (2002)
160 pages
Published by CrossGen Comics
TPB Cover price: $15.95 USA
Digest-sized Traveler Edition: $9.95 USA.
Imagine a movie about Sherlock Holmes directed by Howard Hawks (with his
flare for snappy banter and the gender switching he brought to "The Front
Page" when he turned it into "His Girl Friday"), add a supernatural spin, and
throw in the pulp-era staple of a hero with a network of operatives...and you
might get an idea of Ruse.
And at its best, it's every bit as fun as it sounds.
Ruse is set in an alternate reality late 19th Century (presumably England),
where bat-like gargoyles flitter about the streets the way pigeons and
sparrows do ours. Simon Archard is a Sherlock Holmes-type: a brilliant
detective, able to infer clues from things most people don't even notice, but
with a lack of people skills. He's rude, abrupt, and condescending. His Dr.
Watson-esque female sidekick is the feisty Emma Bishop who, in some respects,
is more truly the star, in that she provides some of the narration and the
story often follows her without Archard, more than Archard without her. She's
also more compassionate. Their relationship is flinty at times, allowing for
amusing banter and sarcastic asides.
But there's a little bit more at work here, because Emma has a secret
unbeknownst to Simon. She has magical powers (to stop time), and seems to be
here with an agenda to study, and/or subtly teach, Simon.
The opening story arc has the two investigating a newly arrived Baroness in
a plot that is perhaps intended to have vague echoes of "Dracula" -- though
only vague. It throws us instantly into this world, as though already an on-going series with a history to the characters already in place. We are
casually introduced to Simon's various eccentric operatives, from a child
savant to an ex-boxer, to characters meant to evoke pre-existing figures such
as a chimney sweep named Bert -- ala "Mary Poppins" -- and a man dressed like
the Elephant Man (both appear only briefly).
Mark Waid is one of the better regarded writers in comics. His "Kingdom
Come" mini-series from a few years back, imagining a future reality for DC
Comics' superheroes including Superman, Batman, etc., was particularly well
received (albeit, as much thanks to the breathtaking, fully-painted art of
Alex Ross). Like all writers, Waid can be hit and miss, but his work on Ruse
is, at times, exceptional. Well-paced, it'a a talky, investigative detective
series, but with plenty of action and suspense. Waid, tongue firmly in cheek,
seems totally at home with his characters and the evocative milieu. The
badinage between Emma and Simon might actually have you chuckling out loud at
times. Above all, Waid seems to be having fun, and wants his reader to as
well.
The series is cut from similar cloth as Alan Moore's and Kevin O'Neil's
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen with its light-hearted evocation of
Victorian Era fantasy adventure given a modern spin. But Ruse is frankly better -- despite its
tongue-in-cheek aspect, it's a more human, more narrative-driven version of the
concept.
The art by Butch (Jackson) Guice is also a stand-out. Guice is an artist
who's been around for a long time, and has always been a perfectly serviceable
artist...but his work here is light years ahead of anything else I've seen by
him. Perhaps some due goes to inker Mike Perkins, or colourist Laura Martin.
But the art is wonderfully effective, full of detailed city scenes, and period
drawing rooms, well realized wardrobes, and careful, realist figures and faces
full of energy and conviction. If you're going to do a period piece, it helps
to have an artist who can draw period details. Guice even manages to slip in a
certain element of sensuality...no easy feat giving that the women all dress
in shoulder-to-feet gowns. But there is a lush beauty to his women.
Guice also
experiments with the comicbook format, his panel arrangements being such that you read from left to right across a two page spread. It can take a bit to adjust to -- particularly as he isn't entirely consistent: the first few pages are
conventional, read-each-page-at-a-time, sort of stuff, and even later he
occasionally breaks his own format. But once
you figure it out, it's an interesting approach, almost like a "widescreen" comic. Curiously, not so very long ago I had
been thinking along those very lines, how it might be interesting for an artist to
try such a stylistic experiment.
The first four chapters comprise the initial story arc and it's a
delightful romp -- fun, clever, exciting, with a touch of the macabre.
Granted, as often happens with Sherlock Holmes pastiches (or homages as this
more truly is, since, after all, it's not about Sherlock Holmes), it's more a
suspense-thriller than a genuine mystery. We learn the Baroness is the villain
early, and as Simon and Emma uncover aspects of her villainy, we wait to learn
what her master plan is. But then it turns out, there isn't one. Her actions
aren't so much a means to an end...they're the end in and of itself.
Still, as a rollicking adventure, it's thoroughly entertaining.
That story comprises only four of the six chapters collected here. The fact
that the next two issues are relatively stand alone affairs should be welcome.
You get one epic, novel length adventure...plus two bonus stories! Part of the
appeal of the initial story arc is its very length, as the plot veers about,
throwing in a few twists and turns...something the shorter pieces can't quite
match. The next story, for instance, has Emma investigating a serial killer of
prostitutes, and it's a decent but somewhat banal affair. Since it's basically
an Emma story, the highly entertaining interplay between her and Simon is
missed, and the humour can be awkward when it's maintained even in scenes of
Emma visiting the parents of a victim. The final story, featuring a murder
during an illusionist's act, provides hints into Simon's background. That last
story is drawn by Jeff Johnson -- it's also beautifully realized, but, I'll
admit, lacks some of the striking reality of Guice's work.
But part of my quibbling arises from the whole nature of collected edition
trade paperbacks -- usually included under the umbrella title of the "graphic
novel". A book like Ruse: Enter the Detective is available in outlets
(bookstores) that the monthly comic isn't. And so, it's not unreasonable for a
casual reader to expect it to form a true "novel". Although the four-part
opening story comes to a close, it ends with Simon MIA -- making it a welcome
decision on the part of the editors to include the next story, which sees
Simon return. And the final story answers some questions raised in the
previous chapters -- all well and good. But it also raises new questions. Not
in the sense that the story seems "to be continued" or anything. But it still
leaves a certain feeling of dissatisfaction. The initial questions about Emma
-- her powers, her secret agenda -- go unanswered (in fact, they're barely
alluded to as the chapters progress).
It's a problematic concern. Since this collects six issues of an on-going
title, one can't expect everything to be wrapped up neat and tidy here (else
the series might have nowhere to go). On the other hand, TPB collections have
become so prevalent (to the point where I've heard it suggested that TPBs are
actually how the companies make their money, moreso than from the original
comics) it might behoove writers to structure their stories bearing in mind
that the end result will be a collected volume.
As genuinely fun, as geuninely clever as the story is -- and as genuine as
my enthusiasm is -- it's not quite as smart as you would like it to be. Part
of the appeal was the belief that it would all come together, at least
somewhat, in the climax. But that doesn't quite happen.
Still, for all my grumbling, Ruse: Enter the Detective was
refreshingly delightful, particularly the initial story arc. Well realized
characters, and witty dialogue, mixed with its intentionally evocative milieu,
makes for a truly fun read. And I'm certainly encouraged to seek out the duo's
further adventures. Which, after all, is no doubt the point of the unresolved
sub-plots. It has been collected both as a regular TPB and, for those on a
budget, in a smaller, (slightly) cheaper format.
Reviewed by D.K. Latta
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