The Human Target: The Deluxe Edition

The Human Target #1-12

by Tom King, Greg Smallwood (Illustrator)

Christopher Chance makes a living putting his life in the crosshairs to protect his clients. But this time, his luck may have finally run out. In his latest assignment posing as Lex Luthor, someone has successfully poisoned “Luthor,” and there is no antidote. With only 12 days to live, Chance decides he will not go quietly into the night. He’s going to find out who wants Luthor dead so badly by following every lead and questioning every suspect, whether they’re an arrogant space cop or an elemental femme fatale. Told in the style of a noir whodunit, The Human Target showcases why writer Tom King and artist Greg Smallwood are two of comics’ most in-demand talents. This deluxe edition features a new cover by Smallwood, an introduction by King, and a “making of” section that reveals how this comics masterpiece was brought to life. Collects The Human Target #1-12 and Tales of the Human Target #1.

Genres: Dc Comics, Comic Book, Comics, Graphic Novels

456 pages, Hardcover

Published December 16, 2025

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 2 out of 5]

People seem to love this so I guess I'm missing something because I didn't find this interesting, mysterious, insightful. or entertaining. Tom King is so hit-and-miss he might as well be the NES Zapper being used on a flatscreen TV.

[Ashley King · Rating 5 out of 5]

Continues my favourite trend of Tom King taking an obscure DC character and breaking my heart over them. An absolute stunner of a book.

[Joshua Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. Just an amazing love letter to old-school detective stories and noir. A love letter to obscure DC characters. And some genuinely great writing and prose. This is not a children's book. It has all the typical comic censorship of swearing and stuff like that but it has lots of violent, sexual, and mature themes. In short, it's like a 30's detective novel.

Christopher Chance is the Human Target. You think someone is after you? Someone planning on killing you? You hire The Human Target. He'll disguise himself and take the shot for you. Then, he'll investigate and figure out who/how/why did it. But, who has killed The Human Target? While on a case stopping a murder, he accidentally is poisoned by a second murder plot. He has 12 days to investigate his poisoning and get revenge before he dies. Who could it be? And could it have even been one of the Justice League?

Tom King is very hit or miss for me. I love his Vision miniseries. I think his Batman run is average. Meh. But this is my favorite of his yet.

[Gus Casals · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I was settling in the rating for this book and I was thinking 4 stars. I like King in general and although clever, I did not find Human Target amongst his best. A 3 star rating seemed fair.
Now, the art. OMG the art, Smallwood did something so gorgeous and layered and with all the right references that had to be no less than 5 stars.
And then I saw the process pages that come as extras in the deluxe and I was somewhat disappointed on how Smallwood managed that gorgeous art and I thought that maybe it was not for 5 stars.
And at the same time King's script kept coming back to me, and yeah, it's 4 stars for each.

As for my art disappointment? well, maybe we shouldn't find out how the sausage is made. my bad.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Books like this are so fun. I don't know if I could read detective books all of the time, but if I can keep the frequency just right, the familiar beats read as "classic" rather than "cliché." Greg Smallwood's illustrations compliment the story perfectly, and, specifically, his coloring. The palette was perfect and the way the colors bleed outside of the lines is such a great touch. My only complaint is that end comes a little too early. I like my denouements at the very end.

[Jean J · Rating 3 out of 5]

4 issues of pretty good Ed Brubaker superneonoir mixed with 8 issues of water