Crossjack’s exes all have one thing in common: They’re each deadly in their own way. Your Major Spoilers review of Local Man: Bad Girls #1 from Image Comics awaits!

LOCAL MAN: BAD GIRLS #1

Writer: Tim Seeley/Tony Fleecs
Artist: Tim Seeley/Tony Fleecs
Colorist: Brad Simpson/Felipe Sobreiro/Brian Reber
Letterer: Tim Seeley
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: March 27, 2024

Previously in Local Man: Inga Johanning, Local Man’s ex-girlfriend and current archenemy, is on the run. Her journey will bring her face-to-face with her past, her crimes, and two of the other badass ladies in the Local Man Universe. Neon peers through the pink fog to reveal her dark, violent origin, while Frightside encounters Crossjack and tests the selfishness in his heart.

ON THE RUN

After the last issue of Local Man, Inga Johanning went on the run after her plot to harness and monetize the powers of young superhumans was revealed. She has taken a job in a diner in the middle of nowhere after causing a near-biblical flood to the town of Farmington, but that’s not enough to hide her from the consequences of her actions. When superhero Neon appears at one of her tables, Inga fears the worst, but Neon has come mostly to tell her an important story. Or more accurately, a fairy tale, the tale of how a young water sprite actually saved the world from what might have been a sixth extinction event. The story itself feels like a lost Image Comics crossover, but the upshot of it all is that Neon personally took the girl called Seascape to train with 4th Gen… and unintentionally left her in Inga’s hands. Taking Inga with her on a drive (one which Inga doesn’t expect to survive), she explains a couple of important misinterpretations on Inga’s part, including one that explains the origins of her powers and her unique viewpoint…

…and ends with a promise that, if Inga messes up again, Neon will tell Crossjack exactly where she is.

STRUCTURALLY FASCINATING

The narrative in this issue is deceptively simple, beginning with a conversation in a booth, then expanding into stories within stories. Getting into Inga’s car, an audiobook narrated by supervillain Frightside launches a flashback, with Neon interrupting to give her side of the story. It’s quite cleverly structured, leading naturally through the story. Each of the distinct points-of-view comes with its own color palette and style, once again creating the illusion that this book has been going since the beginning of the Image era thirty years ago. Crossjack’s story has a lot of old-school comic book tropes, but the treatment of the titular “bad girls” in these pages is remarkably subtle. We see the motivation behind Neon’s hippie airhead persona, the fear that drives the seemingly irredeemable Frightside, and the complicated rationales and self-deceptions that have driven Inga to be the overarching villain of the first two arcs.

BOTTOM LINE: THE BOOK YOU SHOULD BE SORRY YOU’RE NOT READING

Serving as the proverbial bookend/chapter break before the upcoming third arc, Local Man: Bad Girls #1 somehow manages to honor the goofy mid-90s trend whose name it shares, while providing sophisticated takes on the archetypes of the femme fatale, the flower child, and the woman scorned, with well-crafted art and dynamite coloring coming together for 4.5 out of 5 stars overall. Now, trust me, and start looking for some back issues.

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