Prohibition, busting bad guys and Eliot Ness.

No, this is not the “Untouchables”; this is “Torso”, another story about the cult-hero Ness, who is notorious for his historical and fictional representations, and for arresting infamous gangster Al Capone.

“Torso” is based off a true story told in six chapters and can be found in a collected graphic novel form. It tells a story of Ness coming to Cleveland, Ohio, to clean up the town, only to find himself drawn into a murder case that has most of the city living in fear of a killer that dismembers his victims with precise, cold-calculated style.

“Torso” is a story written by Brian Michael Bendis and Marc Andreyko. The art is drawn by Brian Michael Bendis and real photos are used from the crime scenes of the Torso murderer case.

The art is interesting and well developed. The art is repetitious in some scenes, but it serves its purpose well. The mixture of drawings and real photos gives the book an eerie feel to it and sense of how real the murders were. Also, the art is broke up often, which helps the storytelling. The art is in black and white, as well as the old photos, which gives the book a unified look. It also ages the date, making it appear that it belongs in the time the events occurred in.

The writing is also good. This work landed Bendis a job at Marvel after the release of this book, which also won the 1999 Eisner Award for Comic books. But awards or not, the book deserves its credit with the interesting style and decisions to keep it erratic, yet fluid to keep the reader’s interest. With the art, the storytelling never stays linear, it is broke up and the dialogue is thrown about the page. The dialogue also has the slang and feel of what the old films about crime had in them, which is a nice touch. The story also has some real depth to it and some good character development for some of the characters.

Ness is the most developed character as we see his marriage crumble within the span of the novel. We also see what makes him tick. He is a colorful character put into black and white pages. Also, the story is grounded in reality beyond the crime drama. Homosexuality is brought up when one of the detectives admits he is a homosexual after becoming angered at his partner’s constant negative comments and judgments about the Torso murderer being a “perverted homosexual.” The story reaches beyond what the history of this officially unsolved case had records of to make a message about hate crimes. Though, this may have or have not have really happened, it does make the graphic novel more realistic and gives it more depth to both the story and characters.

Though, the art direction and story direction are done well, it sometimes did not combine that well. It is a bit confusing. Sometimes following the story becomes difficult because of the directions, but depending on how involved the reader is, most of the confusion can be remedied by just taking an overview of the page first. The scene where Ness speaks to the suspected Torso killer, the art spins in a circle and to follow the story the book. Though, it can be difficult to read, it is an effective tool, since it seems to be a reference to the mind of the suspect being interrogated.

The book is well done overall. It is not an everyday sort of pick up at the bookstore. It has good writing and great art that is diversified throughout the six chapters. It is a history lesson that entertains, and it is well worth a look. A film adaptation is looking to be made in the near future with attached director David Fincher.