Happy! Volume 1: Grant Morrison, Darick Robertson, Richard P. Clark, Tony Avina, and Simon Bowland

Release Date - May 2013

Grant Morrison
Darick Robertson
Richard P. Clark
Tony Avina
Simon Bowland
Image Comics

Book Review by Tracy Farnsworth

Nick Sax lost his job as a cop and now makes a living as a hit man. His problems with alcohol become the least of his issues when a hit goes wrong and both the mob and police are hot on his tail. Worse, there's a flying blue horse named Happy that keeps appearing to Nick saying that a little girl desperately needs his help. Nick knows one thing, as much as he wants Happy to disappear, Happy is equally determined to get Nick to save the day.

There are things I loved about Happy! and many of them extend beyond the actual story. Nick Sax is a dark man with many issues and many skeletons in his closet. In panels with Nick, the mood is captured perfect with darker drawings. Then Happy arrives and the little horse brings in bursts of color.

The drawings are amazing. They can be quite bloody from time to time, but that fits the story. This is not a pretty story and Nick is a smart, yet cunning killer who gets the job done when he has to. Images of brains being blown out must have taken the creators hours to draw. The talent shines through.

The story is just as good. It is definitely a crime story with a dark feel.I can't say I liked Nick at first. He's a killer and a drunk and I do have issues with people who drink excessively. I've seen them ruin far too many families. Happy adds humor that helps lighten the mood from time to time, but one things starts to become clear, Nick truly does have a human, emotional side and when it came into play, I really became attached to his character.