"You need to act like a killer, so people will treat you like one."

It is New York, 1920, and Archibald "Archie" Brown aka Rudy Burns aka the Barbarian Count is a former leading Broadway actor who is attacked in an alley resulting in disfigurement, ending his career and his relationship with Stephanie.

Archie's friend Sammy has an idea. "We need to give you a role that will entertain them. To make them want to see you.... you can play the villain." A boxer, The Barbarian Count, mystery man. Is Sammy taking advantage of Archie's fame? Will Archie lose himself in his new persona?

See my complete review at The Eclectic Review ( )

How the mighty have fallen! Rudy Burns is the greatest actor on Broadway and is loving the limelight. But when a chance mugging leaves him severely disfigured, the life he took for granted disappears in an instant. With no job, no money, no woman and no home, he has truly hit bottom. Neil Gibson’s new dramatic graphic novel set during the roaring twenties, tells the tale of a man whose hubris brings him to ruin and begins the slow process of rebuilding his life in a most unusual way. Theatrics is brilliantly illustrated by Leonardo Gonzalez whose previous works include the Twisted Dark series.

I am glad to see that, more and more, graphic novels are getting away from the super hero genre and presenting stories that are truly out of the box. It is original ideas such as this that will promote continued growth in graphic novels as an art form.

The book contains some illustrations of graphic violence from beatings but is otherwise not unsuitable for young adult readers.

My only peeve is that it ends rather abruptly. There will obviously be second volume which I am looking forward to but to say that this volume ended in a cliffhanger does a disservice to the cliff.

Four stars. #Theatrics #NetGalley

Note: The review was based on an advanced reading copy obtained at no cost from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. While this does take any ‘not worth what I paid for it’ statements out of my review, it otherwise has no impact on the content of my review.

FYI: On a 5-point scale I assign stars based on my assessment of what the book needs in the way of improvements:
*5 Stars – Nothing at all. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
*4 Stars – It could stand for a few tweaks here and there but it’s pretty good as it is.
*3 Stars – A solid C grade. Some serious rewriting would be needed in order for this book to be considered great or memorable.
*2 Stars – This book needs a lot of work. A good start would be to change the plot, the character development, the writing style and the ending.
*1 Star – The only thing that would improve this book is a good bonfire. ( )

3 .5-3.75 Stars
A darkly engrossing and gritty 1920s-era graphic novel set in New York City with a good start for a storyline and some solid artwork. I especially enjoyed the illustrations of the MC that look similar to what I would imagine Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde would be like. A fun beginning to a new series. For graphic novel fans or anyone who appreciates the darker underbelly of 1920s NYC.

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