An Introduction

"Crafted by writer Brian Azzarello and artist Eduardo Risso, 100 BULLETS is arguably the finest collaborative comic book this medium has produced in decades, weaving such themes as fatherhood, baseball and organized crime into a series of poignant tales as dark in their humor as they are gut-wrenching in their pathos. They are the stories of haunted, marginalized people who slip through life on sheer inertia, until their destinies are irrevocably changed by a man known only as Agent Graves. A cross between the archangel Gabriel and an old-fashioned G-man, the ghostlike Graves comes into their lives with a powerful handgun and 100 untraceable bullets. His offer? Opportunity. The opportunity to exact vengeance - or the opportunity to make amends. It is the dichotomy between these two choices which makes 100 BULLETS so engaging. While the untraceable bullets offer immunity from the law, the characters find that they cannot shield themselves from the moral consequences of their actions.”

- Jim Lee, 2001
from his introduction to 100 Bullets Volume 3: Hang Up On The Hang Low

In 1993, DC Comics made a decision to create an imprint featuring their 'Mature Reader' titles under one banner, and launched Vertigo, the home for non-super powered, dysfunctional characters. Some titles worked well, some didn’t. Those that did included The Sandman, Shade the Changing Man, Hellblazer, The Invisibles, Lucifer, Preacher, Animal Man, Doom Patrol, a wide range of mini-series and some excellent one-off stories. Many of these series were finite, planned to run for a certain amount of issues. Some bit the dust early because they were too odd or didn't sell, like the Minx. Others fell apart when the writer changed, Swamp Thing post Rick Vietch (although it picked up for a while later on), Animal Man and Doom Patrol after Grant Morrison. The fickle nature of the market killed many inventive titles before they reached their prime, the cancellation of the excellent Human Target being a prime example.

Titles came and went. Along the way, writer Brian Azzarello took on Hellblazer and gave new life to John Constantine where the title once struggled. He also wrote Jonny Double, a four issues series on which he collaborated with artist Eduardo Risso. Azzarello and Risso produced a 'Batman - Black and White' short story together which was also very well received.

In 1999 the duo’s next collaboration, 100 Bullets, was unleashed on the public. It's very dark, very graphic and very compelling. The critics love it, but such is the comic book market these days, it doesn't sell as well as it deserves. The profile of 100 Bullets was raised in 2003 when Azzarello and Risso took on the main Batman book.  Unfortunately this meant 100 Bullets appeared only four times in twelve months. In June 2004 Issue 50 hit the shelves, a few secrets were revealed and a monthly schedule was resumed. 100 Bullets is now back on course, and accelerating to a climax.

100 Bullets...100 issues...bring 'em on.