Comic Review: Sex Criminals #25

Sex Criminals #25

Image Comics

Writer: Matt Fraction

Artist: Chip Zdarsky

Sex Criminals #25 concludes “Five Fingered Discount,” which has been the toughest arc for Jon and Suzie yet. Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky always do a remarkable job at capturing every little nuance about sex and relationships, and that doesn’t change here. This arc has been about more than breakups, as it also explores the pain that is unrelated to the end of relationships (That tends to only come after relationships for some reason).

Matt Fraction’s exploration of depression in Sex Criminals is profound. Both the protagonists and supporting characters seem to be stuck, coping in different ways. Following the tragic cliffhanger at the end of issue #24, our characters finally decide to challenge the people that are making their lives miserable.

While Suzie gets a few pages to herself, this issue mostly focuses on Jon and Myrtle. Almost the entire cast of the series to date is in this issue, following these two as they butt heads and try to figure out the best way to handle Kuber Badal. The character interactions are excellent, especially between Jon and Myrtle’s henchmen. Fraction uses a decent amount of this issue’s space to explain about particles and wavefunction as an analogy to explain Jon and Suzie’s relationship. While it sounds wacky, it’s actually effective, acting as both a science lesson and a build up to a silly punchline. Chip Zdarsky’s doodles of Jon and Suzie particles successfully make particles cute, which shouldn’t be possible. It’s incredible how this duo constantly finds new ways to surprise me.

Speaking of Chip, he continues to make Sex Criminals look as good as it possibly can. Fraction and Zdarsky have as much chemistry as the best in the industry. Chip Zdarsky uses as much of every page possible, inserting an astounding amount of detail. Readers can get lost looking for the little things that Chip thinks of, making every issue worth much more than the price of admission. The art itself is gorgeous as always and tends to be what really makes Fraction’s punchlines stick. Sex Criminals is one of the few titles that feels as much owned by the artist as it is the writer. It truly is a perfect blend of writing and art.

I usually don’t mention letter columns in my reviews, but for Sex Criminals, it always feels like the columns are a part of the experience. Lately, the columns have been an experience, and are absolutely worth going through. These columns are funny, heartfelt, and simply educational, and it’s clear that Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky use this space to make Sex Criminals more than just a comic book. It’s easy to appreciate how candid both the creators and the readers are, and this really shouldn’t go unnoticed.

Sex Criminals #25 is both the end of an arc and the beginning of the end for the series. The series will go on a short break and then begin the final, six-issue arc for Jon and Suzie. This arc wasn’t necessarily as fun as the previous arcs, but it has been important and thoughtful. Issue #25 on its own stands above the rest of the arc for its attention to detail and wonderful character interactions.