My re-read of 100 Bullets (Brian Azzarello) comes to a close with issues 80-100, which barrel forwards at a break-neck pace, and bring to mind the ending of Hamlet. As the final story arc plays out, one after another after another of the many characters in this ensemble piece meet their violent ends, and at the final page barely a man or woman remains standing.
This certainly makes for a fun-filled, action-packed finale, but it leaves a distinct feeling of disappointment as well. Every story needs a climax, but it also needs a denouement, for the new status quo to be explored and the ramifications of the story to begin to be felt. The end of 100 Bullets is all climax, and by the end, the world (or at least America) has been turned on it's head. The Trust, the secret power behind the foundation of America, which has been pulling the strings, making and breaking presidents, and infiltrating every aspect of American life, in the final panels, is eradicated completely. The Trust is gone, but the reader hasn't a chance for this to sink in or to discover what comes next, because the story's over.
Some of the character's ends are satisfying, some less so. Every chicken comes home to roost, and the machinations and hidden agendas become clear, ish. The art remains spectacular throughout, and the dialogue sizzles... it's a great series, but I really, desperately want to know, what happens on the morning after? (8/10)
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