100 Bullets

1 First Shot, Last Call (1-5, Winter's Edge). [From DC Comics: In this dark and intriguing trade paperback, the mysterious Agent Graves approaches ordinary citizens and gives them an opportunity to exact revenge on a person that has wronged them. Offering his clients an attaché case containing proof of the deed and a gun, he guarantees his "clients" full immunity for all of their actions, including murder. In these opening chapters, Dizzy Cordova, a Latina gangbanger who has just finished a prison sentence, is given the chance to avenge her family's murders, and a downtrodden bartender receives the opportunity to exact revenge against the woman that ruined his life.]

2 Split Second Chance (6-14). [From DC Comics: The second trade paperback in the 100 BULLETS line, this book resumes the tale of the mysterious Agent Graves who offers ordinary wronged people the opportunity to kill with impunity using 100 bullets that he supplies them with. But even as Agent Graves continues to approach and manipulate his "clients," questions about the ghoulish agent start to arise as people from his past begin to appear, revealing interesting information about their former acquaintance. In the end though, these facts only lead to different questions as the mystery behind Agent Graves' motives deepens.]

3 Hang Up on the Hang Low (15-19). [From DC Comics: This third collection of this modern noir classic contains an Eisner Award-winning storyline in which the enigmatic Agent Graves pulls a young man by the name of Loop Hughes into his web of intrigue and deception. Armed with one of Agent Graves' "special" briefcases, Loop tracks down his long-lost father and is soon drawn into his dad's world of mob enforcement. As Loop acts on his deepest inner desires and violence erupts, Agent Graves' ulterior motives are chillingly revealed along with more clues about the intricate conspiracy that he is orchestrating.]

4 A Foregone Tomorrow (20-30). [From DC Comics: In the fourth collection of this series, Agent Graves continues to offer immunity to everyday people to carry out their innermost desires of vengeance with the 100 bullets that he supplies. But as these self-serving manipulations take place, pieces of the mystery of the Minutemen and the organization that created them start to come together, and we discover to the research and conspiracy theories of Mr. Branch. As more is revealed about the series' main characters, the true meaning and importance of the conflict between Graves and the Trust starts to emerge.]

5 The Counterfifth Detective (31-36). [From DC Comics: Reprinting issues #31-36 of the Harvey and Eisner Award-winning VERTIGO series, 100 BULLETS: THE COUNTERFIFTH DETECTIVE brings to light another chapter in the story of Agent Graves and the remnants of his old outfit the Minutemen. Agent Graves presents his trademark attaché case containing a gun and 100 untraceable bullets to Milo Garret—a small-time private dick who's just gotten out of the hospital after losing an argument with his car's windshield. With his face covered in bandages, Milo has become an invisible man in more ways than one. As his latest case draws him into the shadowy world of the Trust, he's forced to confront the blank space that is his past and figure out what it has to do with the attaché case he's holding in the present...and do it before what he doesn't know ends up finishing the job that the windshield started.]

6 Six Feet under the Gun (37-42). [From DC Comics: One by one, the shadowy Agent Graves has been lining up his pieces on the board, preparing for the final confrontation with the Trust. And one by one his opponents have been moving as well - against each other as well as Graves. Now the plays are getting more complicated, and if they want to survive, the players will all have to face the truth about where they've come from - and where they're going.]

7 Samurai (43-49). [From DC Comics: Loyalty costs. The escalating conflict between the Trust and its onetime soldier, Agent Graves, has claimed dozens of lives - but not all of them are dead. Casualties have also landed in prisons, both physical and mental, there to watch the days tick by as their wounds slowly scar over. Now, as the lines of this murky battlefield continue to shift, some of those captives are finding unbreakable addiction may keep them in, but they can't keep the war out - and neither can any number of untraceable bullets.] Book of the Week 7/21/04

8 The Hard Way (50-58). [From DC Comics: The bars never close in New Orleans, but some memories can't be drowned, even with all the cheap beer in the world. For Wylie Times, it's a woman named Rose and a briefcase from one Agent Graves that haunt his broken-down life. He loved her, she died. Graves gave him a gun, 100 untraceable bullets, and a man named Shepherd to blame. Now Wylie's about to find out the rest of the story - including the truth about Shepherd and his employer, the Trust. What he learns will turn his his world inside out - and permanently redraw the battle lines of Graves' private little war.]

9 Strychnine Lives (59-67). [From DC Comics: The match between the Trust and its one-time enforcer Agent Graves has reached full engagement, and with most of the pawns now captured it's time for the knights to start running the field. For the houses of the Trust and former Minutemen alike, that means cementing alliances, consolidating positions - and targeting more major pieces for elimination. But as the kings maneuver to stay out of check, they may be setting up their queens for sacrifice. The question is, do they have the strategy to back their plays - or the strength on the board?]

10 Decayed (68-75). [From DC Comics: The clandestine war between the houses of the Trust and their former warlord, Agent Graves, is growing hotter, and soldiers from both sides are taking up new positions on the battlefield. But as the wary heads of the Trust try to unite behind their new warlord, the last of the old Minutemen are being reactivated. And with all the maneuvering going on, it's getting harder and harder to tell just who's holding the big knife - and who's hanging from a hook.]

11 Once Upon a Crime (76-83). [From DC Comics: The Trust, Agent Graves and the Minutemen arrive in Mexico for a showdown that will mark the end for at least one major player, while the mystery behind the Atlantic City job is finally revealed.]