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Pearl III #2 Review: Slowly But Surely Getting There

Published Sun, 24 Jul 2022 20:27:11 -0500

In Pearl III #2, a reader can see (or intuit) what writer Brian Bendis does well: show character. In an issue that's entirely about dealing with the fallout of an attack on the titular Pearl's tattoo shop, Bendis and Michael Gaydos expertly show Pearl navigating the many different relationships that have to be updated with the news.

Pearl III #2 Review: Slowly But Surely Getting There — The cover to Pearl III #2

Case in point is the interview with an FBI agent that Pearl pretends to be shell-shocked and unintelligent to navigate her way out of. There are a lot of word balloons, and while not all of the word balloons are strictly necessary, they do give a sense of a back and forth between the two characters. When not being interrogated by the FBI, Pearl's more open. Sadly, thanks to a combination of a bad .pdf (maybe a quarter of a page, for multiple pages, is missing) and double-page spreads is difficult to perceive or analyze on a computer, the buildup to the ending of Pearl III #2 is ruined. Luckily Pearl III #2 ends on a splash panel with only two small word balloons, so the effect is somewhat salvaged.

Bleeding Cool previously covered the previous issue, Pearl III #1, here. Dark Horse hosts a preview of the issue here.

The New York Times bestselling, Peabody, and multi-Eisner Award-winning writer Brian Michael Bendis (Superman) and superstar Jessica Jones cocreator Michael Gaydos begin a masterful saga involving art, crime, loyalty, and passion. Another blistering chapter in the saga of Pearl Tanaka. This young tattoo artist is still coming to terms with the fact that her entire family has always been the most hardcore yakuza clan when her tattoo shop is horribly destroyed and her awesome friends targeted for assassination by rival clans. Or is it someone closer to them? Bear witness to one of the most beautiful comics on the stands today as master illustrator Michael Gaydos brings another fully painted chapter of Pearl Tanaka to life.

Pearl III #2