The Complete Jon Sable: Freelance Volume 2 Review

Review by: Mike Maillaro: Freelance

More fun with Mike Grell’s bodyguard/children’s novelist

Written by: Mike Grell
Art by: Mike Grell
Colored by: Janice Cohen
Lettered by: Peter Iro and Ken Bruzenak
Editor: Mike Gold
Publisher: IDW Publishing

Note: This trade reproduces issues 7-11 of Jon Sable: Freelance, originally produced by First Comics way back in the early '80s.

Check out my review of the first Jon Sable trade This review is going to be fairly short, as most of what I said about the first trade still holds true here.

While the first trade took way too a little too long introducing Jon Sable’s origin, this trade is full of terrific one-issue stories. Lots of action and intrigue, mixed with Grell’s quirky sense of humor. Grell also introduces some terrific new characters in these issue including Sonny Pratt, an old stuntman friend of Jon’s who wants to become Jon’s “sidekick/partner in crime,” Grey Adler, a gay character who provides some interesting contrasts to Sable, and my personal favorite Maggie the Cat, a burglar who would end up being a constant foil for Jon.

Along with the great stories and great characters, you also get more of Grell’s terrific art. Along with his amazing writing, I've always loved Grell's art. He has a gritty realistic style that fits these stories. Sable isn't an overly muscled superhero, but more of a James Bond type. Actually, the last issue of this trade features Sable in a tux, and you can’t help but thinking of 007. And even without being ridiculously disproportioned like most comic book women, Maggie the Cat is pretty hot.

My biggest concern about this book is that the trade was only 5 comics. My guess is that the next Jon Sable story was a multi-parter. 20 bucks for 5 comics isn’t a very good deal, but at least these are some damn good comics. It’s a shame that IDW picked up this and Fallen Angel. IDW produces great comics, but way too expensive.

This trade is even better than the first one. Once the origin story was out of the way, Sable just keeps getting better. And plus it introduces Maggie the Cat, one of my favorite Grell characters. Grell really starts getting on a roll in these issues. If you are looking for something different, Sable is a great place to start.


Story: 9/10 – The one shot stories work much better for Sable.
Art: 9/10 – It’s Grell, so it’s gorgeous.
Characters: 10/10 - Sable is awesome, and his even expanding circle of associates are one of the best supporting casts in comics.
Humor: 7.5/10 - There are some funny moments, especially with the supporting cast, but it’s never laugh out louf funny like Giffen or Peter David.
Jumping-in factor: 5/10 - You are better off starting with the first trade or you will be playing catch-up here.

Overall: 8.5/10