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Criminal
Criminal, Vol. 7: Wrong Time, Wrong Place
BRUBAKER and PHILLIPS return to their multiple award-winning series for two interlinked tales of the Lawless family in the 1970s. Teeg Lawless is trapped behind bars with a price on his head, doing anything he can to survive, while Tracy Lawless celebrates his twelfth birthday riding shotgun on a mission of death.
113 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2015
17 people are currently reading
469 people want to read
About the author
Ed Brubaker
1,799 books3,030 followersEd Brubaker (born November 17, 1966) is an Eisner Award-winning American cartoonist and writer. He was born at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland.
Brubaker is best known for his work as a comic book writer on such titles as Batman, Daredevil, Captain America, Iron Fist, Catwoman, Gotham Central and Uncanny X-Men. In more recent years, he has focused solely on creator-owned titles for Image Comics, such as Fatale, Criminal, Velvet and Kill or Be Killed.
In 2016, Brubaker ventured into television, joining the writing staff of the HBO series Westworld.
Brubaker is best known for his work as a comic book writer on such titles as Batman, Daredevil, Captain America, Iron Fist, Catwoman, Gotham Central and Uncanny X-Men. In more recent years, he has focused solely on creator-owned titles for Image Comics, such as Fatale, Criminal, Velvet and Kill or Be Killed.
In 2016, Brubaker ventured into television, joining the writing staff of the HBO series Westworld.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 143 reviews
September 9, 2024
I want more.
If Brubaker and Philips could just never be done with their Criminal series, I feel like it would set things just a little more right in the world.
In 1976 Teeg Lawless pulls off an armored truck robbery with his crew, then gets sent to jail after a fight at the bar that evening gets him arrested on a bench warrant - for failure to appear in traffic court.
Womp, womp.
Sucks, but all he should have to do is ride out his 30 days and then collect his portion of the take from his partner.
Except someone wants him dead and is willing to pay to see it happen. You almost feel sorry for him but it's hard to drum up any sympathy for Teeg.
Fast forward to 1979 and we follow a young Tracy Lawless as he is pulled along for the world's worst road trip as his father goes after someone.
This one is just heartbreaking. You really feel for Tracy, just wanting to be a normal kid with normal experiences, but he's never going to be anything but old beyond his years.
I loved the addition of the fake pulpy comics that ran alongside both Teeg's and Tracy's stories. Teeg is reading something called Zangar the Savage and Tracy is reading Kung Fu Werewolf.
I have to admit I was kind of into that werewolf story and wouldn't mind if Brubaker and Philips wanted to do a limited run with that one.
I can't be the only one...
Highly Recommended.
If Brubaker and Philips could just never be done with their Criminal series, I feel like it would set things just a little more right in the world.
In 1976 Teeg Lawless pulls off an armored truck robbery with his crew, then gets sent to jail after a fight at the bar that evening gets him arrested on a bench warrant - for failure to appear in traffic court.
Womp, womp.
Sucks, but all he should have to do is ride out his 30 days and then collect his portion of the take from his partner.
Except someone wants him dead and is willing to pay to see it happen. You almost feel sorry for him but it's hard to drum up any sympathy for Teeg.
Fast forward to 1979 and we follow a young Tracy Lawless as he is pulled along for the world's worst road trip as his father goes after someone.
This one is just heartbreaking. You really feel for Tracy, just wanting to be a normal kid with normal experiences, but he's never going to be anything but old beyond his years.
I loved the addition of the fake pulpy comics that ran alongside both Teeg's and Tracy's stories. Teeg is reading something called Zangar the Savage and Tracy is reading Kung Fu Werewolf.
I have to admit I was kind of into that werewolf story and wouldn't mind if Brubaker and Philips wanted to do a limited run with that one.
I can't be the only one...
Highly Recommended.
February 6, 2026
2/4/26: Reread, the most nostalgic and heartbreaking of the stories so far. One of the things I am struck by particularly in this reread is that all these criminals grew up reading and contnue to read comics--fantasy, scifi, adventure, crime comics, often featuring (sexy? ill-clad? sexualized?) women. Teeg Lawless reads comics in the county lock up and discusses them with the jail librarian. And when he takes his son Tracy on the road to "finish a job" (aka, kill a guy who screwed up on that job), both read comics along the way.
Original review, 10/7/16: This volume was released at the tenth anniversary of the opening of the Criminal series, and is an homage to pulpy crime and adventure comics, though if you are thinking it will be a sentimental ride, a tender little father-son story? Nah, not quite. It is in the father-son tradition of Road To Perdition (itself a tribute to father-son samurai series Lone Wolf and Cub). In all three stories a killer on the road takes his son along for the ride, as driver/lookout and implicates him (educates him, as a father might do!) forever in the criminal process.
The first story features Teeg in prison, who discovers he has a hit on him. Brutal, gory, violent, there's not much story here and it's short, but it is gritty and fits the seventies pulpy comic scene these guys (and I) love. The second story is the road father/son story where Tracy takes a central role, watching his violent father mop up a deal gone bad, with crime after crime. Teeg is not the good guy/bad guy killer of Road to Perdition; he has no family/religious principles to drive him. But Tracy learns from Teeg how to be a bad guy just as Michael, Jr. learns from Michael, Sr.
The main feature of these two issues is that Teeg is a reader of seventies pulp comics that in some ways mirror his own sex-and-violence interests and tendencies. His son Tracy also loves comics, visits a comic book shop, meets a girl on the road who befriends him and also reads comics. This is just as the boy in (and on) The Road to Perdition reads westerns. How have comics fueled their imaginations, their desires?
The name of the first issue in Criminal, Volume 7, Wrong Time, Wrong Place, is The Savage Sword of Criminal, which fits a Conan the Barbarian-type comic Teeg is reading. and that we get to read, too,. Teeg, a savage, in prison and on the road, is reading Savage, and we do, too, the stories alternating and reflecting each other. The second issue features Tracy reading "Fang: Kung Fu Werewolf." And again, you get to read alternating excerpts from the comic as the story proceeds, connecting to the main story. You know, this also reminds me of the pirate comic-within-the-comic in Watchmen.
Criminal: Wrong Time Wrong Place is a masterful love letter to pulp comics by the crime comics masters who return to the Criminal world with even better skills than they began the series ten years ago. Highly recommend! Just terrific. A classic.
Original review, 10/7/16: This volume was released at the tenth anniversary of the opening of the Criminal series, and is an homage to pulpy crime and adventure comics, though if you are thinking it will be a sentimental ride, a tender little father-son story? Nah, not quite. It is in the father-son tradition of Road To Perdition (itself a tribute to father-son samurai series Lone Wolf and Cub). In all three stories a killer on the road takes his son along for the ride, as driver/lookout and implicates him (educates him, as a father might do!) forever in the criminal process.
The first story features Teeg in prison, who discovers he has a hit on him. Brutal, gory, violent, there's not much story here and it's short, but it is gritty and fits the seventies pulpy comic scene these guys (and I) love. The second story is the road father/son story where Tracy takes a central role, watching his violent father mop up a deal gone bad, with crime after crime. Teeg is not the good guy/bad guy killer of Road to Perdition; he has no family/religious principles to drive him. But Tracy learns from Teeg how to be a bad guy just as Michael, Jr. learns from Michael, Sr.
The main feature of these two issues is that Teeg is a reader of seventies pulp comics that in some ways mirror his own sex-and-violence interests and tendencies. His son Tracy also loves comics, visits a comic book shop, meets a girl on the road who befriends him and also reads comics. This is just as the boy in (and on) The Road to Perdition reads westerns. How have comics fueled their imaginations, their desires?
The name of the first issue in Criminal, Volume 7, Wrong Time, Wrong Place, is The Savage Sword of Criminal, which fits a Conan the Barbarian-type comic Teeg is reading. and that we get to read, too,. Teeg, a savage, in prison and on the road, is reading Savage, and we do, too, the stories alternating and reflecting each other. The second issue features Tracy reading "Fang: Kung Fu Werewolf." And again, you get to read alternating excerpts from the comic as the story proceeds, connecting to the main story. You know, this also reminds me of the pirate comic-within-the-comic in Watchmen.
Criminal: Wrong Time Wrong Place is a masterful love letter to pulp comics by the crime comics masters who return to the Criminal world with even better skills than they began the series ten years ago. Highly recommend! Just terrific. A classic.
January 11, 2018
Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips churn out so many excellent comics that I managed to completely miss that they did this one which was absolutely ‘criminal’ of me.
(Yeah, I know. I apologize for that one.)
We’re back with the Lawless family in the ‘70s as Teeg spends some time in jail reading comics and killing inmates who are trying to cash in on the price that’s been laid on his head for some reason. Once released Teeg takes his young son Tracy on a road trip during which Teeg is hunting people while Tracy is on the prowl for a particular comic.
As always the crime story and art here are top notch, but the extra treat is that we get to read bits of the ‘70s style comic magazines along with Teeg and Tracy. Teeg’s story is about a Conan style barbarian with all the nudity and violence that era’s black & white mags could offer while Tracy is reading the adventures of Fang, the Kung-Fu Werewolf. And now I really want Brubaker and Phillips to actually do a whole run of that title because who wouldn't want to read a comic about a kung-fu werewolf?
(Yeah, I know. I apologize for that one.)
We’re back with the Lawless family in the ‘70s as Teeg spends some time in jail reading comics and killing inmates who are trying to cash in on the price that’s been laid on his head for some reason. Once released Teeg takes his young son Tracy on a road trip during which Teeg is hunting people while Tracy is on the prowl for a particular comic.
As always the crime story and art here are top notch, but the extra treat is that we get to read bits of the ‘70s style comic magazines along with Teeg and Tracy. Teeg’s story is about a Conan style barbarian with all the nudity and violence that era’s black & white mags could offer while Tracy is reading the adventures of Fang, the Kung-Fu Werewolf. And now I really want Brubaker and Phillips to actually do a whole run of that title because who wouldn't want to read a comic about a kung-fu werewolf?
June 28, 2016
Five years after Volume 6: The Last of the Innocent, Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips’ award-winning signature series Criminal is finally back with Volume 7: Wrong Place, Wrong Time! The book collects the two Criminal one-shot specials: last year’s The Savage Sword of Criminal, which celebrated Criminal’s move from Marvel’s Icon imprint to Image Comics, and last April’s special that celebrated Criminal’s 10th Anniversary this year. Both comics are superb too making this volume arguably the best in the series so far.
The Savage Sword of Criminal is set in 1976 where Teeg Lawless is in the slammer for a month, planning on keeping his head down and doing his time - except someone’s put a hit out on him and the inmates are lining up to collect! The 10th Anniversary special is set in 1979 where Teeg takes his 12 year old son Tracy on a ride-along to the countryside while he looks for someone who’s screwed him over.
Those stories alone are fantastic - brutal, dark, violent and gripping, the kind of gritty crime stories you’d expect from Criminal - but Brubaker/Phillips throw in an unexpectedly playful element: homages to corny ‘70s genre comics! The Savage Sword of Criminal is so-called because of the Conan the Barbarian-type comic which intersperses Teeg’s desperate survival story, and the 10th Anniversary special has pages from Kung Fu Werewolf, the story of ordinary student Dane Draven who transforms into a Kung Fu Werewolf vigilante at a full moon!
Brubaker and Phillips write/draw these sections in a knowingly cheesy ‘70s style which they’re clearly fans of, having grown up in the ‘70s, and they’re definitely fun and unusual additions to a very grounded series like Criminal. But the stories of Zangar the Savage and Fang the Kung Fu Werewolf also uncannily mirror those of Teeg and Tracy, cleverly reinforcing the themes while also providing an eye-catching angle to prospective readers. It’s an inspired approach by the creators who beautifully execute the different styles.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book from the action-packed viciousness of Teeg’s story to the more thoughtful and tender perspective of young Tracy who makes his first friend. Brubaker and Phillips are both on top form producing some of their best work here and, coupled with Elizabeth Breitweiser’s colours, Wrong Place, Wrong Time is easily one of their finest collaborations to date. Fans of this series won’t need any prompting but I’d recommend this to everyone who likes comics - quality like this will appeal to anyone. Criminal’s back and it’s better than ever!
The Savage Sword of Criminal is set in 1976 where Teeg Lawless is in the slammer for a month, planning on keeping his head down and doing his time - except someone’s put a hit out on him and the inmates are lining up to collect! The 10th Anniversary special is set in 1979 where Teeg takes his 12 year old son Tracy on a ride-along to the countryside while he looks for someone who’s screwed him over.
Those stories alone are fantastic - brutal, dark, violent and gripping, the kind of gritty crime stories you’d expect from Criminal - but Brubaker/Phillips throw in an unexpectedly playful element: homages to corny ‘70s genre comics! The Savage Sword of Criminal is so-called because of the Conan the Barbarian-type comic which intersperses Teeg’s desperate survival story, and the 10th Anniversary special has pages from Kung Fu Werewolf, the story of ordinary student Dane Draven who transforms into a Kung Fu Werewolf vigilante at a full moon!
Brubaker and Phillips write/draw these sections in a knowingly cheesy ‘70s style which they’re clearly fans of, having grown up in the ‘70s, and they’re definitely fun and unusual additions to a very grounded series like Criminal. But the stories of Zangar the Savage and Fang the Kung Fu Werewolf also uncannily mirror those of Teeg and Tracy, cleverly reinforcing the themes while also providing an eye-catching angle to prospective readers. It’s an inspired approach by the creators who beautifully execute the different styles.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book from the action-packed viciousness of Teeg’s story to the more thoughtful and tender perspective of young Tracy who makes his first friend. Brubaker and Phillips are both on top form producing some of their best work here and, coupled with Elizabeth Breitweiser’s colours, Wrong Place, Wrong Time is easily one of their finest collaborations to date. Fans of this series won’t need any prompting but I’d recommend this to everyone who likes comics - quality like this will appeal to anyone. Criminal’s back and it’s better than ever!
November 12, 2016
After 5 years Criminal series is released and we also got new installment. After all these years Criminal hasn't lost anything from it's magic, volume 7 is as good as the rest of the series. This bleak noir still remains one of my all time favorites.
Now that we have revival of Criminal series maybe some day we can get Gotham Central again? Man can dream, right?
Now that we have revival of Criminal series maybe some day we can get Gotham Central again? Man can dream, right?
January 10, 2019
Fifth book of 2019.
When the new series of Criminal was announced I suddenly remembered I still hadn’t read the last collection. ‘Better sort that out’. I thought, and picked it up from Comixology.
I’m glad I did; this is another stellar book from Brubaker and co. Dark as midnight, beautifully rendered, a little twisted and intelligently written. I also really liked the comics-within-a-comic; a Conan analogue and a Kung-Fu Werewolf! Great stuff.
When the new series of Criminal was announced I suddenly remembered I still hadn’t read the last collection. ‘Better sort that out’. I thought, and picked it up from Comixology.
I’m glad I did; this is another stellar book from Brubaker and co. Dark as midnight, beautifully rendered, a little twisted and intelligently written. I also really liked the comics-within-a-comic; a Conan analogue and a Kung-Fu Werewolf! Great stuff.
August 8, 2018
The loveless family is back! This is Teeg Lawless story now.
So Teeg is a asshole. We get to see him serve his jail time. Trust me, it doesn't do him any favors in the image department to who he was and why his kids are ruined. Then he gets out and you see just how much of a shitty person he really is to his family. One tale is mostly time in jail, second is about Tracey, our favorite loveless, is mostly focused on his 12 year old adventures around a town filled with secrets and his father.
Good: Love, love, LOVE the art as always. Sean is amazing. I also thought getting a bit background with Teeg made for a strong case and interesting look into his past. I liked the 2nd story a lot and it really hit home for me.
Bad: The comic stuff within the stories kind of felt tacked on. Unlike the two different looks in the last volume it felt very forced here. Wasn't a big fan sadly.
Overall a very solid entry. Not as amazing as the last but it's still great. A nice goodbye to a fantastic series though. I love you Ed and Sean! Never stop making comics. A 4 out of 5.
So Teeg is a asshole. We get to see him serve his jail time. Trust me, it doesn't do him any favors in the image department to who he was and why his kids are ruined. Then he gets out and you see just how much of a shitty person he really is to his family. One tale is mostly time in jail, second is about Tracey, our favorite loveless, is mostly focused on his 12 year old adventures around a town filled with secrets and his father.
Good: Love, love, LOVE the art as always. Sean is amazing. I also thought getting a bit background with Teeg made for a strong case and interesting look into his past. I liked the 2nd story a lot and it really hit home for me.
Bad: The comic stuff within the stories kind of felt tacked on. Unlike the two different looks in the last volume it felt very forced here. Wasn't a big fan sadly.
Overall a very solid entry. Not as amazing as the last but it's still great. A nice goodbye to a fantastic series though. I love you Ed and Sean! Never stop making comics. A 4 out of 5.
May 13, 2019
Every time I read a Criminal book I am like "This is the best Criminal book!". Vol. 7 collects two oversized anniversary issues/annuals and both are centered around Teeg Lawless.
In the first one Teeg ends up in county jail and there's a target painted on his back for some reason. He has to survive for a month in there and find out who wants him dead.
I the second one Teeg is on a road with 12-year-old Tracy and the story is more focused on the boy and life of a criminal's kid.
In the first one Teeg ends up in county jail and there's a target painted on his back for some reason. He has to survive for a month in there and find out who wants him dead.
I the second one Teeg is on a road with 12-year-old Tracy and the story is more focused on the boy and life of a criminal's kid.
September 9, 2016
Unexpectedly, yet another great volume of Criminal is out. It contains two long issues, and they're both superb — some of the best Criminal stories, I'd say. Sean Phillips does some gorgeous imagery here as usual, and Elizabeth Breitweiser keeps doing incredible things with color. Overall, it's a great book, one of the best Criminal volumes, and is recommended to anyone interested in a crime/noir genre. The volume is pretty much a standalone, too, so if you've never read Criminal, you won't be lost anyway. My only complaint is that it's pretty short — it's only two issues, after all, even if they are longer than your standard issues. Quality over quantity, eh?
December 29, 2021
Oustanding two-parter featuring a pulp comics framing device and the sordid doings of Teeg Lawless in the Seventies.
I'm glad there are more volumes on the way!
I'm glad there are more volumes on the way!
December 18, 2016
The last and final chapter from criminal, a fantastic series in its own right.
As always the artwork from Phillips is out of this world, but somehow the story just lacked a bit on this one.
I enjoyed how the story focused around the relationship the son had with his father and how he read all these comics. Still a good story, it just wasn't as good as the other volumes.
As always the artwork from Phillips is out of this world, but somehow the story just lacked a bit on this one.
I enjoyed how the story focused around the relationship the son had with his father and how he read all these comics. Still a good story, it just wasn't as good as the other volumes.
August 9, 2020
A comic book where one of the background things is Teeg reading comic books and getting his son Tracy reading them. Pretty cool. But the rest was sad. Teeg Lawless is out of jail. But while in there he realized someone out a hit out on him. Now that he’s out, he needs to hit the road and try to find out who out the hit out. His wife pleads with Teeg to take at least one of the kids with him. So him and Tracy head out.
Most of this story is Teeg and Tracy traveling, stopping at this small towns while Teeg does what he does and has Tracy do some stake outs and recon work. At one point Teeg leaves Tracy in a hotel for a few days and Tracy befriends this girl, Gabby. The slowly get cool and start to run around the town having fun. That’s the sad part. At one point gabby uses her finances to get something for Tracy and even leaves something special for him in it. But Tracy has to rush her away for fear of his dad finding he broke the rules of not talking to anyone. I don’t know, that whole thing with Tracy and Gabby got to me.
Most of this story is Teeg and Tracy traveling, stopping at this small towns while Teeg does what he does and has Tracy do some stake outs and recon work. At one point Teeg leaves Tracy in a hotel for a few days and Tracy befriends this girl, Gabby. The slowly get cool and start to run around the town having fun. That’s the sad part. At one point gabby uses her finances to get something for Tracy and even leaves something special for him in it. But Tracy has to rush her away for fear of his dad finding he broke the rules of not talking to anyone. I don’t know, that whole thing with Tracy and Gabby got to me.
May 2, 2020
Do you remember a time when the Criminal crew ever let you down? Me neither. So, after a long break Brubaker and Phillips come back supercharged with two "tenth anniversary" one shots. Both are noirish and violent, the second one being a bit sad too. Since now you know the characters, the road trip Tracy Lawless undergoes with his father when he's twelve says a lot about his future self 20 years later.
Both stories are also an homage (and kind of a private joke with the reader) to 70's comic books (both stories take place in the late 70's), a Conan-like barbarian and a kung-fu master werewolf stories being read by either Teeg or Tracy during the books, giving slanted insight to the story and the characters.
That's probably why I like Brubaker so much: we're about the same age, grew up with more or less the same pop culture (I'm no doubt a bantam weight compared to him but it wasn't so easy to find comics and stuff back then in France and I kinda caught up since ) so most of his references go easy on me and it's a treat to read something good from an author with the same referential background as you.
Artwise Phillips and Breitweiser give it all so it's darn good.
A happy birthday, indeed.
Both stories are also an homage (and kind of a private joke with the reader) to 70's comic books (both stories take place in the late 70's), a Conan-like barbarian and a kung-fu master werewolf stories being read by either Teeg or Tracy during the books, giving slanted insight to the story and the characters.
That's probably why I like Brubaker so much: we're about the same age, grew up with more or less the same pop culture (I'm no doubt a bantam weight compared to him but it wasn't so easy to find comics and stuff back then in France and I kinda caught up since ) so most of his references go easy on me and it's a treat to read something good from an author with the same referential background as you.
Artwise Phillips and Breitweiser give it all so it's darn good.
A happy birthday, indeed.
January 10, 2020
(4,7 of 5 for this comics goody)
Oh Ed, how? How are you so good with this series? Seven paperbacks and three of them go straight to the "favourite" shelf. The fifth, sixth and seventh - this one. One where we came back to Lawless "clan" - this time Teeg in his best criminal years and Tracy as young boy dragged along Teeg's errands. The first half of the book is Teeg, second is Tracy.
I can't say I love the story because this is not much to it. It's more like a memoir, captured memories of a certain part of life, focused on the persons and context. In this direction, the book has a different feeling than the previous one. Brubaker along the whole Criminal series created world and characters which feels very much alive and real. And he uses that to strengthen the atmosphere of every next book. With this "last" book (not so last now, with new series) it culminates to something beautiful. As a reader and silent observer of the Criminal world, I felt like an old acquaintance, living along the Undertow and it's customers a long time, knowing everyone by name. So I enjoyed Teegs story, but much more I enjoyed the story of young Tracy. I enjoyed it very much. And the art compliments it. Phillips does his best and picking Elizabeth Breitweiser as a colourist is a great choice. I dare to say that it raised the impression from the art one level up. And I find myself overall in love with Breitweiser's colouring. She should have her name on cover of every book she worked on. And that should be a law or something.
Oh Ed, how? How are you so good with this series? Seven paperbacks and three of them go straight to the "favourite" shelf. The fifth, sixth and seventh - this one. One where we came back to Lawless "clan" - this time Teeg in his best criminal years and Tracy as young boy dragged along Teeg's errands. The first half of the book is Teeg, second is Tracy.
I can't say I love the story because this is not much to it. It's more like a memoir, captured memories of a certain part of life, focused on the persons and context. In this direction, the book has a different feeling than the previous one. Brubaker along the whole Criminal series created world and characters which feels very much alive and real. And he uses that to strengthen the atmosphere of every next book. With this "last" book (not so last now, with new series) it culminates to something beautiful. As a reader and silent observer of the Criminal world, I felt like an old acquaintance, living along the Undertow and it's customers a long time, knowing everyone by name. So I enjoyed Teegs story, but much more I enjoyed the story of young Tracy. I enjoyed it very much. And the art compliments it. Phillips does his best and picking Elizabeth Breitweiser as a colourist is a great choice. I dare to say that it raised the impression from the art one level up. And I find myself overall in love with Breitweiser's colouring. She should have her name on cover of every book she worked on. And that should be a law or something.
September 11, 2020
"Criminal volume 7: Wrong Time, Wrong Place"
This volume contains two interlinked stories set in 1976 and 1979. In the first story the self destructive Teeg Lawless is in jail. Two weeks before he gets released things become difficult for him because someone has put a bounty on his head, so everyone tries to kill him. In the second story, Teeg and his son Tracy travel across the country and engaged in criminal activities. At some point they stop at a small town. There Teeg is absent for the majority of the days and Tracy becomes friends with a girl one year older than him.
This volume might not be the best, but it certainly is great. The main themes in those two stories are family ties, violence, friendship and self-destructiveness. The writing by Ed Brubaker is great as always. At this point we are very familiar with the protagonists of these stories, but in this volume we learn even more things about their characters and their past. Personally I really love both characters. My favorite is certainly Tracy, but I can really understand Teeg, so I forgive him for what he does and I really feel sorry for him. Both characters are extremely relatable, but I connect more with Teeg for a variety of reasons. The artwork by Sean Phillips is phenomenal. He is really one of the best artists in the industry right now. The artwork is really elevated by Elizabeth Breitweiser's amazing colors. She is an amazing colorist, one of my top 10 favorites of all time.
10/10
This volume contains two interlinked stories set in 1976 and 1979. In the first story the self destructive Teeg Lawless is in jail. Two weeks before he gets released things become difficult for him because someone has put a bounty on his head, so everyone tries to kill him. In the second story, Teeg and his son Tracy travel across the country and engaged in criminal activities. At some point they stop at a small town. There Teeg is absent for the majority of the days and Tracy becomes friends with a girl one year older than him.
This volume might not be the best, but it certainly is great. The main themes in those two stories are family ties, violence, friendship and self-destructiveness. The writing by Ed Brubaker is great as always. At this point we are very familiar with the protagonists of these stories, but in this volume we learn even more things about their characters and their past. Personally I really love both characters. My favorite is certainly Tracy, but I can really understand Teeg, so I forgive him for what he does and I really feel sorry for him. Both characters are extremely relatable, but I connect more with Teeg for a variety of reasons. The artwork by Sean Phillips is phenomenal. He is really one of the best artists in the industry right now. The artwork is really elevated by Elizabeth Breitweiser's amazing colors. She is an amazing colorist, one of my top 10 favorites of all time.
10/10
February 24, 2021
A couple of throwback Teeg Lawless stories, set in the '70s. In the first Teeg fights to survive a short stint in prison with a contract on his head. In the second he takes disillusioned young son Tracy (seen as an adult in Lawless and The Sinners) on the road as prop for a mob hit.
I can't say enough good things about Criminal. Phillips is terrific, moody and bleak. There are beautifully conceived POV panels that look like we're watching the main characters from inside a cell; it's immersive. Phillips has fun with a segment that sees Teeg dosed with LSD, and again when splicing in spot-on pages from comics that his characters are reading (a Conan knockoff; a Spiderman-ish kung fu werewolf).
I do miss the cover art style of earlier volumes. This two-shades-of-purple thing looks cheap.
Man, it's hard watching Teeg through the eyes of his son. Learning that he can't trust anyone, that even his old man doesn't care about him, that the world is shit. It's a death-of-innocence story.
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SECOND READ:
"That's when he taught me to drive...last year, when I was just a kid." Tracy is eleven when he says this. It's a poignant moment that speaks volumes.
I can't say enough good things about Criminal. Phillips is terrific, moody and bleak. There are beautifully conceived POV panels that look like we're watching the main characters from inside a cell; it's immersive. Phillips has fun with a segment that sees Teeg dosed with LSD, and again when splicing in spot-on pages from comics that his characters are reading (a Conan knockoff; a Spiderman-ish kung fu werewolf).
I do miss the cover art style of earlier volumes. This two-shades-of-purple thing looks cheap.
Man, it's hard watching Teeg through the eyes of his son. Learning that he can't trust anyone, that even his old man doesn't care about him, that the world is shit. It's a death-of-innocence story.
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SECOND READ:
"That's when he taught me to drive...last year, when I was just a kid." Tracy is eleven when he says this. It's a poignant moment that speaks volumes.
December 31, 2017
Great to have more Criminal from Brubaker and Phillips, but I have to say, this is probably my least favorite of the seven volumes. Cool to see the relationship between Teeg and Tracy Lawless. And having them both reading comics was a neat touch. As a follow-on to the series, not liking this so much, even if they are two great stand alone stories.
January 31, 2018
I think I need to read the other volumes in the series; I'm getting the impression that I'm looking at something like the Stray Bullets one-shot in the Noir: A Collection of Crime Comics, where I'm missing a lot of the context.
April 28, 2017
Heartbreakingly awesome cutting edge crime noir and more!
January 31, 2019
Probably the weakest of the bunch. Teeg and Tracy are the main characters here. The short comic burst stories were a nice change of style but not syre it added much with them.
October 7, 2019
I don't know that I can add anything more helpful than others have said. These guys deliver exactly what I want. The perfect blend of pulp and depth. Love it.
May 17, 2025
Criminal: Wrong Time, Wrong Place delivers exactly what the title promises—two brutal, tightly wound stories about people making the worst possible choices at the worst possible moments. Brubaker and Phillips are in peak form here, blending sharp storytelling with that signature grim, lived-in noir vibe. It’s tense, tragic, and totally engrossing. If you like your crime stories dark, punchy, and character-driven, this is a must-read.
February 15, 2020
Another great volume of the Criminal series, this one featuring two interrelated stories focusing on Teeg Lawlwss and his son Tracy, along with comics within comics cameos from Zangar the Savage an Fang, the Kung Fu Werewolf.
January 16, 2019
4.1 stars
May 5, 2024
This is the only weak volume in the set.
December 24, 2019
It's a real testament to the quality of Brubaker's writing that I picked this up a full 7 years after last reading Criminal Deluxe Vol. 2 and still felt completely captivated by it. I couldn't remember which Lawless was which, and definitely didn't catch any overlap with the original series (though there was clearly some in here), but still, this is just some A+ character writing.
This trade, the only one of the original Criminal run not collected in the deluxe editions, contains two stories from the one-off Criminal magazines Brubaker and Phillips published some time after supposedly ending the series. They're just quick peaks at the lives of Teeg and his son Tracy Lawless, connected by the fact that they both love reading comics. The comics in these stories build out a kind of meta-narrative not unlike the Black Freighter in Watchmen, and also help ground these deeply flawed, lifelong criminals by showing how normal their interests are. It's a genuinely great read.
Not only that, but I was very glad to have read these before diving into Bad Weekend, which turns out to directly reference one of the in-universe comics found here.
So, while this is a pretty short collection, and each story is over right when you're starting to really settle into it, I still highly recommend it for fans of crime comics. Here's hoping they collect this in some sort of deluxe edition with the new issues soon!
This trade, the only one of the original Criminal run not collected in the deluxe editions, contains two stories from the one-off Criminal magazines Brubaker and Phillips published some time after supposedly ending the series. They're just quick peaks at the lives of Teeg and his son Tracy Lawless, connected by the fact that they both love reading comics. The comics in these stories build out a kind of meta-narrative not unlike the Black Freighter in Watchmen, and also help ground these deeply flawed, lifelong criminals by showing how normal their interests are. It's a genuinely great read.
Not only that, but I was very glad to have read these before diving into Bad Weekend, which turns out to directly reference one of the in-universe comics found here.
So, while this is a pretty short collection, and each story is over right when you're starting to really settle into it, I still highly recommend it for fans of crime comics. Here's hoping they collect this in some sort of deluxe edition with the new issues soon!
June 11, 2021
I loved this story following a younger Teeg and Tracy Lawless. Teeg is his usual irresponsible con self as Tracy’s dad, but finally seeing Tracy the stoic enforcer as an impressionable adolescent is especially great. His interactions with a young Harriet the Spy type are so cute, and the conclusion of this peek into his life is quietly heart-breaking without being dramatically tragic. I also love the formal experimentation of interspersing in the sepia-toned pages of the fictional 70s pulp comics Teeg and Tracy are reading, and how those stories reflect their own. It’s reminiscent of the Black Freighter sections of Watchmen, only bite-sized. Philips’s drawing is great throughout and Breitweiser’s coloring might be my favorite of the earlier Criminal books.
“I used to feel sorry for him when he got like that.. Like he was hurt somehow, that you remembered all the bad stuff. Like for a minute he thought we were the Brady Bunch or something…And you just ruined it. But I don’t feel sorry for him anymore. Not ever.”
“I used to feel sorry for him when he got like that.. Like he was hurt somehow, that you remembered all the bad stuff. Like for a minute he thought we were the Brady Bunch or something…And you just ruined it. But I don’t feel sorry for him anymore. Not ever.”
April 14, 2020
The Lawless family are a source of constant entertainment. Criminal can exist partly because Brubaker and Sean have made a very interesting family dynamic inside an even more interesting world. It’s brilliant and my time spent reading criminal has been one of the best, most influential reading experiences I’ve had. So it’s only fitting that this has become my 500th read book on goodreads I guess!
Criminal is a comic would suggest to anyone who likes to read, even for people who aren’t generally fans of this medium. This is a perfect example of what a comic can do, and how it can push the boundaries of storytelling.
Criminal is a comic would suggest to anyone who likes to read, even for people who aren’t generally fans of this medium. This is a perfect example of what a comic can do, and how it can push the boundaries of storytelling.
October 3, 2016
This book collects two Criminal stories, both involving Teeg Lawless and his son Tracy.
The second story, "Wrong Place" I already read and reviewed here.
The first story 'Wrong Time' takes place several years earlier and follows Teeg Lawless as he tries to survive in lock-up. It's brutal, violent and gorey. It's Brubaker and Philips, what more could you ask for?
It's a nice set-up for the more emotional story that follows, a good constrast between Teeg and his son. Why isn't this a TV show?
The second story, "Wrong Place" I already read and reviewed here.
The first story 'Wrong Time' takes place several years earlier and follows Teeg Lawless as he tries to survive in lock-up. It's brutal, violent and gorey. It's Brubaker and Philips, what more could you ask for?
It's a nice set-up for the more emotional story that follows, a good constrast between Teeg and his son. Why isn't this a TV show?
November 23, 2020
This volume collects two short stories providing a little peak into the past of the Lawless family, one featuring Teeg Lawless trying to survive a bounty on his head in county lockup and the second focusing on his son Tracy accompanying him on a crime-ridden road trip. Both stories are solid little tales with surprising homages to classic pulp comics, but they do seem a little rushed at times in the writing.
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