What would you do if you were given enhanced superhuman abilities for six months? The catch is, after that time you die. Would you volunteer yourself to gain these abilities? Then would you use them for good or for evil? In Death Sentence we see how three different individuals use this enhancement and how all their lives come together in the end.
I never heard of this series before but it started late in 2013. This particular collection makes up of the 6 issues of the story. When it comes to limited runs like this, I do prefer to read them in the trade style format. First thing I see about it was “Sex, Superpowers and Six months to live”. I was like…OK?! I like sex. I mean just because I’m not good at something doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it, right? I want superpowers…who doesn’t? Why only 6 months to live though? The 3 main characters are Verity who is a frustrated artist, Weasel who is a struggling guitarist and Monty who is a rogue media icon. They are all infected with the G+ virus. I thought I had it as much time as I spend on Google+ but it turns out to be something totally different. We keep going back and forth through the story gaining more insight on the characters and the struggles they are going through in each of their own lives. As they each develop their superpowers, they each go about using them in different ways. All at the same time enhancing their natural talents. Weasel gets very creative with his music. Verity explodes with her artist vision on the canvas. Monty on the other hand is going about this a whole different way. Since he was a crass comedian and a media icon, he seems to exploit this enhancement from the virus and take it beyond Charlie Sheen levels. His superpower is telekinesis and how he controls others and what he does to them is beyond me. Monty falls off the deep end to say the least and now it is basically up to Verity and Weasel to take him down.
I enjoyed this series for a couple reasons. The characters were unique and relatable. When Verity blew up on her boss, I know I have wanted to do just that in the past but had some restraint. Weasel’s struggles with music…I’ve been there, too. Another thing I liked when reading this was playing it out in my head as a live action movie. I think it would be very entertaining to watch. I can see Monty played by Russell Brand for some reason. The attitude fits him. Nothing against the artists because the work was great. This was a nice change to a typical superhero book because these weren’t superheroes per say. While Verity and Weasel stepped up and played hero, they were just normal everyday humans that got infected with a virus. If I had the G+ virus, I would want to make sure I lived my last six months like all three of them. Have fun while helping others…I’m just not too sure I would want to shag the Queen of England.
This hardcover collection is pretty sweet. It collects all 6 books with an introduction from Rob Williams. Something unique that I haven’t seen before is that Monty Nero and Mike Dowling do a written commentary at the end of the book. They give you insight through the whole series which is really cool.
DEATH SENTENCE COLLECTION
Writer: Monty Nero
Artist: Mike Dowling
192pp – HC – FC – $22.99
Available June 18th, 2014
