Reviewed by Sidra Roman

Left on Misson is an espionage thriller more in the Jason Bourne vein than the James Bond vein. There are no gadgets and gizmos that make the main character Eric Westfall's life or mission easier. What's his Mission, you may ask? To bring in a former lover and former spy who's trying to bring the world of black ops down by selling its classified secrets to the Russian mob. Sure, the concept sounds kind of cliched and like it might be the plot for some Cold War Era spy movie, but Left on Mission lacks the jingoistic overtones of such formula driven dramas. Perhaps that's what makes the characters seem fresh in a very familiar setting. None of what has been seen so far has taken place on American soil, with the notable exception of Westfall leaving his wife and newborn baby to go on the mission. Before we start pondering the ethics of leaving your wife with a newborn to go gallivanting around the world in search of a rouge ex-lover, let me point out the target was originally unknown, and unlike Bond, Westfall doesn't appear to be trying to get into anyone's pants. I'm sure that makes his wife feel good with all the bodily danger he's put himself into in the last four books, but with this sort of genre fiction that is neither here nor there. Probably the most impressive thing about Left on Mission is the artwork and how good the artist is at drawing exotic locales in stunning detail. The quality of the art is beautifully professional and not done in the cartoon style that is very popular with small press books currently. Another impressive feature of these books is the author's ability to serialize the story. Each issue ends not exactly with a cliffhanger, but with just enough dangling to make you curious about what will happen next. In a lot of ways it's like watching a well done television series. If you like spy thrillers, you should definitely give this book a look. I'm not sure of the overall appeal. It feels very nuanced and geared toward men that like thinking action movies. For now it looks like some of the earlier books have been sold out, but shortly they will be collecting 1-5 into a trade paperback. The series really builds on itself. So you need the earlier books to fully appreciate the series. But if you like spy movies and thrillers, be sure to check this series out.

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