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Crosswind #1-6
Crosswind, Vol. 1
Goodfellas meets Freaky Friday in this mind-bending new ongoing series from Fan-favorite creators GAIL SIMONE (Wonder Woman, Batgirl, Deadpool, Secret Six, Birds of Prey) and CAT STAGGS (Adventures of Supergirl, Smallville Season 11, Wonder Woman '77).
A slick and ruthless Chicago hitman.
A smart but downtrodden Seattle housewife.
When an inexplicable event strikes these two random strangers, their bodies, souls, and lives are switched--to potentially deadly effect.
Collects issues 1-6.
A slick and ruthless Chicago hitman.
A smart but downtrodden Seattle housewife.
When an inexplicable event strikes these two random strangers, their bodies, souls, and lives are switched--to potentially deadly effect.
Collects issues 1-6.
128 pages, Paperback
First published March 6, 2018
5 people are currently reading
254 people want to read
About the author
Gail Simone
1,078 books1,237 followersGail Simone is a comic book writer well-known for her work on Birds of Prey (DC), Wonder Woman (DC), and Deadpool (Marvel), among others, and has also written humorous and critical commentary on comics and the comics industry such as the original "Women in Refrigerators" website and a regular column called "You'll All Be Sorry".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
June 17, 2018
So take Freaky Friday, killers, foul mouth little kids, and some crazy shoot outs and you have Crosswinds.
This is the story of two characters, one is a killer assassin, the other is a housewife, and they switch bodies. You can only guess how out of place them seem once they do that. However, they begin to fit in to their roles the best they can. As the story ramps up, more and more people die, and it becomes a crazy roller-coaster of action and adventure.
Good: I actually loved 90% of the stuff with the mom's side of things. Her raising her step-son, dealing with her soon-to-be ex-husband, kids being assholes around her and more. All of that was great. I also thought the first half was fast paced and a ton of fun. The dialog also is very funny at times.
Bad: I didn't love the assassin's storyline (sorry name is slipping) I just thought it was okay and kind of cliche. I also didn't love the ending, it didn't feel well put together. I know there's supposed to be more, so maybe it'll work better once more comes out, but as it stands I wasn't super impressed. Also the art didn't really do it for me.
Overall this was a fun little book. It didn't blow my mind, and I think Gail has written better, but as it stands if want something that's often funny and charming this is one to check out! A 3 out of 5.
This is the story of two characters, one is a killer assassin, the other is a housewife, and they switch bodies. You can only guess how out of place them seem once they do that. However, they begin to fit in to their roles the best they can. As the story ramps up, more and more people die, and it becomes a crazy roller-coaster of action and adventure.
Good: I actually loved 90% of the stuff with the mom's side of things. Her raising her step-son, dealing with her soon-to-be ex-husband, kids being assholes around her and more. All of that was great. I also thought the first half was fast paced and a ton of fun. The dialog also is very funny at times.
Bad: I didn't love the assassin's storyline (sorry name is slipping) I just thought it was okay and kind of cliche. I also didn't love the ending, it didn't feel well put together. I know there's supposed to be more, so maybe it'll work better once more comes out, but as it stands I wasn't super impressed. Also the art didn't really do it for me.
Overall this was a fun little book. It didn't blow my mind, and I think Gail has written better, but as it stands if want something that's often funny and charming this is one to check out! A 3 out of 5.
April 9, 2018
I was really surprised with this graphic novel. Its exactly like the blurb says, freaky Friday mixed with Goodfellas. Great storytelling, cool artwork, not the most original of storys but I was hookes. I loved both the male and female leads, especially their transition as the kther character or body. Hopefully the team releases new issues soon.
July 20, 2018
I have seen several blurbs referring to this mess as a twist on Freaky Friday, but I think the gonzo Nic Cage/John Travolta action flick Face/Off would be more apt. As in that film, so much of the plot of this book relies on the main characters not acting as reasonable people would. Instead of delving much, the creative team just goes for the cool quip or moment of violence as they send their body-switched duo up against a couple of over-the-top bad guys.
I had to keep reminding myself this was written by a woman as the male character in a female body just slam dunked the change while the woman in a man's body floundered about helplessly for much of the story. He rocked the suburbs again and again, while her one big victory early on was cleaning up really well. I know this was driven by their one-note personalities - stud hitman and doormat housewife - but it still comes across as a negative signal to be transmitting.
The art bugged me too, as it seemed at times to be based on digital alteration of photographs like that Richard Linklater animated movie, Waking Life. Or perhaps the awful mottled coloring just made it look that way. Regardless, the pictures struck me as distractingly ugly and kept throwing me out of the story.
If not for the amazingly effective use of the word "transphobe" late in the book, I might even have gone for a one-star rating. That moment, and the end-matter interview with Charles Battersby made me realize how more interesting this story would have been told mainly from the point of view of the vastly underutilized transgender supporting character. I want to read that book, not this loosey-goosey action trash.
I had to keep reminding myself this was written by a woman as the male character in a female body just slam dunked the change while the woman in a man's body floundered about helplessly for much of the story. He rocked the suburbs again and again, while her one big victory early on was cleaning up really well. I know this was driven by their one-note personalities - stud hitman and doormat housewife - but it still comes across as a negative signal to be transmitting.
The art bugged me too, as it seemed at times to be based on digital alteration of photographs like that Richard Linklater animated movie, Waking Life. Or perhaps the awful mottled coloring just made it look that way. Regardless, the pictures struck me as distractingly ugly and kept throwing me out of the story.
If not for the amazingly effective use of the word "transphobe" late in the book, I might even have gone for a one-star rating. That moment, and the end-matter interview with Charles Battersby made me realize how more interesting this story would have been told mainly from the point of view of the vastly underutilized transgender supporting character. I want to read that book, not this loosey-goosey action trash.
September 14, 2020
BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 3.7/5
Okay, this was something. I did like it. It was fun in a thriller, action movie kind of way. I really liked the art style. It was different and added a cool kind of effect.
There's a lot of violence in this, a lot of bad language. Almost all the men are terrible, which I didn't necessarily find to be the most believable.
I wasn't expecting that ending. I'm interested to see where it goes next.
February 8, 2019
Fascinating premise -- a housewife and a hitman switch bodies; sloppy execution. (No pun intended.)
Not a single person in this book speaks or behaves like a real human being, and that's even making generous allowances for "mafia guys" and the whole bodyswap thing. Everything is eyeroll-inducingly over the top, and it makes it impossible to connect with either of the main characters.
Yet I kept flipping the pages. Yet I'm dying to read the next volume.
(Pun still...oh, why the hell not.)
Not a single person in this book speaks or behaves like a real human being, and that's even making generous allowances for "mafia guys" and the whole bodyswap thing. Everything is eyeroll-inducingly over the top, and it makes it impossible to connect with either of the main characters.
Yet I kept flipping the pages. Yet I'm dying to read the next volume.
(Pun still...oh, why the hell not.)
December 21, 2024
Gail Simone and Cat Staggs create an exciting, fresh, and groundbreaking new twist on the body-switching genre, and trans inclusion, with Crosswind.
Our protagonists are Cason Bennett, a Cuban-American hitman in Chicago who shoots his best friend in the opening pages, and Juniper Blue, a miserable wife and stepmom in Seattle who is verbally abused by all the men in her life, including a cheating, ungrateful husband. Cason and Junie find new freedoms and challenges once they wake up in each others’ bodies, but things become more complicated with Cason’s dangerous associates on their tails.
Cat Staggs has an interesting realist style. Her heavy outlines and a bold, almost watercolor like look but without much gradience in the colors feels almost like painted photos. There are some nice visual details – Carson, in Juni’s body, rips open Juni’s purse, reminds us visually they're strangers in their own bodies. Sometimes panels felt awkward, and occasionally a few characters looked expressionless; but otherwise I really enjoyed the different look.
A writer who has worked on all sorts of gender-forward books, Simone also plays with gender in Crosswind. Cason and Juni start off as 60’s stereotypes: the coldblooded hitman and the abused, lonely housewife. However, when they switch into each others’ bodies, the stereotypical body humor doesn’t come up (Cason in Juni’s body especially), aside from one moment, but with Juni in Cason’s body. When we see them sleeping in bed, in each others’ bodies, there is no cheap sexual joke here.
Because Case nosedives into Juni’s life without any grumbling about becoming a woman – in fact, he rather enjoys cooking his mom’s Cuban recipes every night. He's still an assassin and uses toxic masculinity to get his way (worst of all, he uses it as a teaching moment for Juni’s stepson).
But most importantly, Cason never once says that he feels weak for being switched into a woman’s body. He never questions his masculinity, his strength or essential self worth, and the reasons why Case enjoys being Juni are not sexual at all. If anything, he is the one who expresses relief about the switch rather than Juni. In a world full of toxic masculinity, this is really something.
It was refreshing and very intentional - more on that in a moment.
After Juni finds herself in Case’s body, she panics, and then gets her act together and cleans up a dirty crime scene. But when she has to interact with his associates, Juni consistently freezes. It makes sense - she has the harder transition here- but saving it for the end felt unearned.
Regardless, the fact that Case and Juni are immediately comfortable in each others’ bodies, reminds us how socially constructed and ridiculous the concept of gender really is. And even as we move forward in our society, we still deeply and subconsciously hold on to many of those conceptions.
But an interview between Simone and Charles Battersby, hidden in the bonus materials, actually totally changed my understanding of Crosswind as a whole. I REALLY wish it was easier to find.
Charles Battersby is a trans writer/actor who moderated a panel at NYCC about trans inclusion in comics. In this fascinating interview, Battersby explains that body-switching invites the characters - and invites readers - to experience the feeling of being transgender. In the genre, often a cisgender man and woman switch, and the man/woman learn about being the other. (This of course excludes nonbinary folks which is its own issue.) But actually, their involuntary switch, their physical and emotional discomfort – they're learning about being trans.
And yet, Battersby says, characters seek a magical way to instantly return, subverting the methods that trans people are forced to use (which are not so quick and magical, and often come with risks of discrimination, violence, financial hardship, and lack of legal protections) to feel at home in their bodies.
Simone and Staggs subvert the body-switching genre to make it a fresher, more interesting story, and more importantly, explicitly connect their story with being transgender.
Positive trans characters are becoming more mainstream, but it’s still unfortunately rare in comics. But a key moment in the book is when Case (in Juni’s body) visits Juni's neighbor, a trans woman named Maizy, and her partner Lilly. The first time, Case asks for makeup help – okay, he wants to fit in as a woman. But then he returns, and it’s not about physically fitting in – it’s a different, deeper, and truer question:
Juni seems to eventually like being Carson because of the respect and being listened to. But Case – he actually asks the question. And he, a man who switched into a woman’s body and feels right about it, asks a trans woman.
It’s FREAKING BEAUTIFUL.
And Maizy’s response, that he is always Case no matter what body he is in, is just a beautiful allegory for being trans. Your body doesn’t define your soul. And it’s fitting that Case and Juni are clearly more comfortable as the other, and not for sexual reasons at all. (Does that make them bigender, or gender queer? Or just human?) While it might not have been the story Simone wanted to tell, I wish Maizy and her partner Lilly could have had a larger role in the story.
spoilers this paragraph. The biggest stretch of the story is Vox, the coordinator of Juni and Case’s body switching. What is unfortunate is that not only does the existence of Viziers (people who can switch bodies) seem far fetched, but so too does his reason for targeting Juni and Case specifically. Seriously dude? You only asked two passengers for their flight? How is this a viable reason to ruin their lives and kill lots of other people in the process? Case and Juni could have switched for no reason at all and the book would have been better, without this convoluted distraction - less Vox, and more Maizy, please and thank you. But the idea of viziers hidden throughout the world, who might be able to switch Case and Juni, and others, into other bodies – could be a sign of more stories to come.
Crosswind is on hiatus, as is usually the case with Image-published comics in between arcs, but I can’t wait to pick up volume 2. Bravo, Gail Simone and Cat Staggs. And thank you.
Please check out more of my reviews at Reading Art!
Our protagonists are Cason Bennett, a Cuban-American hitman in Chicago who shoots his best friend in the opening pages, and Juniper Blue, a miserable wife and stepmom in Seattle who is verbally abused by all the men in her life, including a cheating, ungrateful husband. Cason and Junie find new freedoms and challenges once they wake up in each others’ bodies, but things become more complicated with Cason’s dangerous associates on their tails.
Cat Staggs has an interesting realist style. Her heavy outlines and a bold, almost watercolor like look but without much gradience in the colors feels almost like painted photos. There are some nice visual details – Carson, in Juni’s body, rips open Juni’s purse, reminds us visually they're strangers in their own bodies. Sometimes panels felt awkward, and occasionally a few characters looked expressionless; but otherwise I really enjoyed the different look.
A writer who has worked on all sorts of gender-forward books, Simone also plays with gender in Crosswind. Cason and Juni start off as 60’s stereotypes: the coldblooded hitman and the abused, lonely housewife. However, when they switch into each others’ bodies, the stereotypical body humor doesn’t come up (Cason in Juni’s body especially), aside from one moment, but with Juni in Cason’s body. When we see them sleeping in bed, in each others’ bodies, there is no cheap sexual joke here.
Because Case nosedives into Juni’s life without any grumbling about becoming a woman – in fact, he rather enjoys cooking his mom’s Cuban recipes every night. He's still an assassin and uses toxic masculinity to get his way (worst of all, he uses it as a teaching moment for Juni’s stepson).
But most importantly, Cason never once says that he feels weak for being switched into a woman’s body. He never questions his masculinity, his strength or essential self worth, and the reasons why Case enjoys being Juni are not sexual at all. If anything, he is the one who expresses relief about the switch rather than Juni. In a world full of toxic masculinity, this is really something.
It was refreshing and very intentional - more on that in a moment.
After Juni finds herself in Case’s body, she panics, and then gets her act together and cleans up a dirty crime scene. But when she has to interact with his associates, Juni consistently freezes. It makes sense - she has the harder transition here- but saving it for the end felt unearned.
Regardless, the fact that Case and Juni are immediately comfortable in each others’ bodies, reminds us how socially constructed and ridiculous the concept of gender really is. And even as we move forward in our society, we still deeply and subconsciously hold on to many of those conceptions.
But an interview between Simone and Charles Battersby, hidden in the bonus materials, actually totally changed my understanding of Crosswind as a whole. I REALLY wish it was easier to find.
Charles Battersby is a trans writer/actor who moderated a panel at NYCC about trans inclusion in comics. In this fascinating interview, Battersby explains that body-switching invites the characters - and invites readers - to experience the feeling of being transgender. In the genre, often a cisgender man and woman switch, and the man/woman learn about being the other. (This of course excludes nonbinary folks which is its own issue.) But actually, their involuntary switch, their physical and emotional discomfort – they're learning about being trans.
And yet, Battersby says, characters seek a magical way to instantly return, subverting the methods that trans people are forced to use (which are not so quick and magical, and often come with risks of discrimination, violence, financial hardship, and lack of legal protections) to feel at home in their bodies.
Simone and Staggs subvert the body-switching genre to make it a fresher, more interesting story, and more importantly, explicitly connect their story with being transgender.
Positive trans characters are becoming more mainstream, but it’s still unfortunately rare in comics. But a key moment in the book is when Case (in Juni’s body) visits Juni's neighbor, a trans woman named Maizy, and her partner Lilly. The first time, Case asks for makeup help – okay, he wants to fit in as a woman. But then he returns, and it’s not about physically fitting in – it’s a different, deeper, and truer question:
Juni seems to eventually like being Carson because of the respect and being listened to. But Case – he actually asks the question. And he, a man who switched into a woman’s body and feels right about it, asks a trans woman.
It’s FREAKING BEAUTIFUL.
And Maizy’s response, that he is always Case no matter what body he is in, is just a beautiful allegory for being trans. Your body doesn’t define your soul. And it’s fitting that Case and Juni are clearly more comfortable as the other, and not for sexual reasons at all. (Does that make them bigender, or gender queer? Or just human?) While it might not have been the story Simone wanted to tell, I wish Maizy and her partner Lilly could have had a larger role in the story.
spoilers this paragraph. The biggest stretch of the story is Vox, the coordinator of Juni and Case’s body switching. What is unfortunate is that not only does the existence of Viziers (people who can switch bodies) seem far fetched, but so too does his reason for targeting Juni and Case specifically. Seriously dude? You only asked two passengers for their flight? How is this a viable reason to ruin their lives and kill lots of other people in the process? Case and Juni could have switched for no reason at all and the book would have been better, without this convoluted distraction - less Vox, and more Maizy, please and thank you. But the idea of viziers hidden throughout the world, who might be able to switch Case and Juni, and others, into other bodies – could be a sign of more stories to come.
Crosswind is on hiatus, as is usually the case with Image-published comics in between arcs, but I can’t wait to pick up volume 2. Bravo, Gail Simone and Cat Staggs. And thank you.
Please check out more of my reviews at Reading Art!
March 1, 2018
This title came out of nowhere and totally blew me away! (It doesn't hurt that Gail Simone is involved as I'm a huge fan.)
Sure, the premise has been done (many times), but it's the visual art and and execution (coupled with smart writing) that really drives and sets this apart.
Sure, the premise has been done (many times), but it's the visual art and and execution (coupled with smart writing) that really drives and sets this apart.
March 26, 2018
Really fun book and can't wait for the 2nd part to start up again. The blurb of "Freaky Friday meets Goodfellas" is pretty much on the nose. A downtrodden Mormon housewife and Cuban hitman switch bodies at horrible times for both of them (in the midst of cleaning up a huge crime scene and trying to get dinner ready for the overbearing husband's boss)--but what was meant to be a punishment works to both their advantages. And I loved how both Juniper and Cason are both relieved and manage to extricate themselves from their problems (no matter how improbably they do so). Least this is supposed to be coming again this year--and rumors of a TV show too, which this would be good, if they kept the same humor and sensibility.
March 28, 2018
A body switch story about an abused and objectified housewife who ends up crossed with a foul mouthed hitman is somewhat conceptually funny. Unfortunately, the over-the-top language and the art made this nigh-unreadable to me.
Cat Staggs seems very talented at their art style. Unfortunately, it's one I can't stand. It looks like highly photoshopped pictures dipped in mud. It definitely takes talent to create this type of art, but it also takes talent to write limericks about licking Donald Trump's head but I don't ever want to be exposed to the work of someone with that talent.
I usually love Simone's storytelling, but this one missed the mark, as I could hear her giggling as she wrote some of the dialog the hitman (and later the hitman trapped in the housewive's body) used, but it was far too over-the-top for me.
The idea of exploring the false gender binary through these characters and their circumstance is theoretically interesting, but I just didn't believe a single character in this book enough to dwell on the social implications.
I recommend it for people who wish Quentin Tarantino wrote a Freaky Friday movie directly after he fell down a flight of stairs, people who fished their prized family photos out of a swamp and decided the pictures looked better that way, people who can't climax without using the Grunge effect on photoshop, people who like hitman stories where the writer focuses more on shock value than character development.
Cat Staggs seems very talented at their art style. Unfortunately, it's one I can't stand. It looks like highly photoshopped pictures dipped in mud. It definitely takes talent to create this type of art, but it also takes talent to write limericks about licking Donald Trump's head but I don't ever want to be exposed to the work of someone with that talent.
I usually love Simone's storytelling, but this one missed the mark, as I could hear her giggling as she wrote some of the dialog the hitman (and later the hitman trapped in the housewive's body) used, but it was far too over-the-top for me.
The idea of exploring the false gender binary through these characters and their circumstance is theoretically interesting, but I just didn't believe a single character in this book enough to dwell on the social implications.
I recommend it for people who wish Quentin Tarantino wrote a Freaky Friday movie directly after he fell down a flight of stairs, people who fished their prized family photos out of a swamp and decided the pictures looked better that way, people who can't climax without using the Grunge effect on photoshop, people who like hitman stories where the writer focuses more on shock value than character development.
January 13, 2022
A housewife and hit man swich bodies... In the very midst of an important dinner for hubby and an accidental death in a sleazy motel. Aaaaaaaand shenanigans. It's SO FUN! Very satisfying.
Now, it only slightly bothered me in the context of this world, but it must be acknowledged that there is some problematic violence against teenagers. Very mouthy, hostile, and even sexually threatening teenagers, but still, putting them in their place with hands and/or kitchen implements, while gleefully satisfying, is NOT OK in real life.
Now, it only slightly bothered me in the context of this world, but it must be acknowledged that there is some problematic violence against teenagers. Very mouthy, hostile, and even sexually threatening teenagers, but still, putting them in their place with hands and/or kitchen implements, while gleefully satisfying, is NOT OK in real life.
April 24, 2018
the ending lost me just a little, but I enjoyed it overall
June 11, 2019
Great tale
Ridiculous, over the top action tale.
Insane characters, but once you see the humor beneath this tale, you'll understand them.
Just a great tale.
Ridiculous, over the top action tale.
Insane characters, but once you see the humor beneath this tale, you'll understand them.
Just a great tale.
July 27, 2024
ok it wasnt that mid. but the artstyle straight up garbage 😭
May 10, 2020
3.5 stars. Great pacing, but there was a lot that felt kind of thrown in like sprinkles on a rainbow chip cookie. The cookie is already amazing but the sprinkles are just kind of hanging on between the grooves for dear life. It would be interesting to have more backstory on the main characters as only subtle (mostly too subtle) hints were made for a very cohesive picture. Great art.
Pretty much 3 stars, except I love body switching stories.
Pretty much 3 stars, except I love body switching stories.
July 24, 2018
Before I started reading this one, I completely forgot what it is about. And until the "crossing" happened I was wondering what story it would be. And I started to enjoy it. Swapping bodies is nothing new. A man with a woman, a boy with a girl, a young with an old, a poor witch a rich. And mob hitman with the housewife. Despite it's (gentle) campaigning for transgender people here and there (especial with single issues "bonus material") it is a well-written story, with few (unsurprising) twists and a decent ending. But I have a major problem with Crosswind too. It tries to look like a TV show a lot. by the scenes and style of panels, by the art, by the dialogues (and inner dialogue), it all evokes TV show's extremely detailed screenplay. And the art - it works here, but honestly - it is messy, sloppy and, well, fracking ugly. I needed to read fast because when I started to look into panels, it usually ended with the thought "Geez, that's hideous!" What can I say - the Crosswind is not bad comics. It is actually good comics, but with the style which was a bit annoying to me and, for me, hideous art.
September 12, 2018
Solid idea, poor execution. A mob hitman and a harried housewife switch bodies because...well, the reason doesn't matter. There are some fun moments where the hitman-as-wife toughens up her son and takes charge of her cruel husband. There are some baffling moments where wife-as-hitman pretty much instantly decides that she's okay with killing people. Like, I'm fairly certain the housewife would go straight to the police, so the whole things stretches credulity.
I think I would have been able to put up with the hard to fathom nature of the tale if there had been a better story. The few issues where the swapped characters essentially just have a good time in their new bodies - that was fine and fun. But when wife-as-hitman travels across the country to defend her old body from a different mob hitman...the story gets pretty thin. And the ending is completely meh. At least the art is largely decent, although I was a bit baffled why the harried housewife is so attractive, yet consistently belittled for her lack of looks and charm. Odd art choice there, like you can't sell comics without a hot girl character.
I think I would have been able to put up with the hard to fathom nature of the tale if there had been a better story. The few issues where the swapped characters essentially just have a good time in their new bodies - that was fine and fun. But when wife-as-hitman travels across the country to defend her old body from a different mob hitman...the story gets pretty thin. And the ending is completely meh. At least the art is largely decent, although I was a bit baffled why the harried housewife is so attractive, yet consistently belittled for her lack of looks and charm. Odd art choice there, like you can't sell comics without a hot girl character.
March 7, 2018
Gave this a try because I admire Gail Simone's writing so much, and I'm glad I did. The premise itself is not novel-----two souls switch bodes, in this case a gangster and a housewive. Not surprisingly, both use skills from their former lives to succeed in their new ones. What does make it work well is that Simone develops these characters so well and so quickly I don't really question at any point the choices the two make. I'd write more, but I don't want to give much away. This a great title for fans of crime-thrillers and don't mind a slight supernatural twist and some gender-bending explorations.
June 28, 2018
Creative, funny, and incredibly violent, this comic is one of the best body-swaps that I have ever read. A mafia hitman and a housewife changing places is naturally a vector for the comedy, but it is the similarities more than the natural differences that draw the reader in.
More than anything this is a story about having confidence in who you are and understanding that the trappings of identity are only window dressing. However, it is also a story about a large number of very violent deaths. I highly recommend this book to all comic readers who can deal with gratuitous violence.
More than anything this is a story about having confidence in who you are and understanding that the trappings of identity are only window dressing. However, it is also a story about a large number of very violent deaths. I highly recommend this book to all comic readers who can deal with gratuitous violence.
February 28, 2018
A really intriguing book. I read it almost like a novel, but it needed the visual element of a comic to really get across the bodyswapping angle. A little gory, but not terribly over-the-top considering the subject matter. And hey, it's Gail Simone. You know what you're in for there: great characters and an interesting story. Well worth checking out.
June 12, 2021
Well this wasn't very good at all. I'll give it this: as drivel goes, it was reasonably competently executed drivel. Spoilers ahead, but I'll cover the more generic stuff first.
Okay, the art was kinda neat, at first. Every panel was (apparently) traced from a photo, meaning faces were very realistic, body language and movement were relatively natural... But the trick wears thin pretty quickly, and you start to realize that the realism is all coming to you by shortcut. The effect begins to grate, kinda like a 3D movie with a lot of CGI. Once you realize the trick, it goes from impressive, to cheesy, to irritating, and you wish they would have just drawn a comic. Still, it was very well done, I just don't think I'm gonna bother with this artist anymore.
But let's talk about Gail Simone. I was curious to finally read some of her work, since she is the mind behind the Women in Refrigerators website/trope/culture gripe, that called out misogyny in comics. I was ABSOLUTELY expecting this to be a feminist piece, and I have no problem with that. (Previous feminist comics I've enjoyed include Persepolis, Dykes to Watch Out For, and I guess Promethea probably counts.) I've always thought Women in Refrigerators had a valid point. I walked into this thing a Simone sympathizer.
No more. [This is where the spoilers begin.] Hoo boy. It was like she was TRYING to be the classic man-hating feminist. Like, I was ready for subtext, but this was a goddamn TRACT. Every single male character was cartoonishly evil, at least upon their introduction. Every, literally EVERY male character was a murderer, potential rapist, irrational dickhead, cheating wife-beater, sexual harasser, sleazy toady, or revenge-obsessed monster. The two (count 'em, two) male characters that EVENTUALLY had character development and became sympathetic turned out to be gay and more-comfortable-in-a-woman's-body, respectively. I'm all for progressive pop fiction, but this was just lazy.
Seriously, the straw sexism started with the introduction of the first female character on page six, and was plastered on every subsequent page, right down to the reference to corporate tyrants 'plundering young vaginas' in the final epilogue. Come down off your cross, Gail, we can use the wood.
On top of that, the story was ludicrous. I mean, Freaky Friday-meets-Scarface was always going to be a tough sell, but that's not even my gripe. My issue is that the dramatic pacing was all wonky. I get that the writer was going for the pace of a pulse-pounding action movie, but that's not really how comics work. The main characters adjust to their magical body/soul-swap awfully quickly, until they are just killing it in their respective lives within 24-hours of the switcheroo, while meanwhile, the villain doesn't get any kind of development at all until the third act. Then, when they DO develop him, they strip away any sense of moral ambiguity by making him fiendishly evil, which wasn't really hinted at until we were well-into this. A story that could have been filled with moral grey turns out to be a straight up sexually politically charged melodrama.
I was going to give it one star, but the end failed to suck as bad as the rest of it, and was actually kind of satisfying, so they get a whole star back because of that.
Okay, the art was kinda neat, at first. Every panel was (apparently) traced from a photo, meaning faces were very realistic, body language and movement were relatively natural... But the trick wears thin pretty quickly, and you start to realize that the realism is all coming to you by shortcut. The effect begins to grate, kinda like a 3D movie with a lot of CGI. Once you realize the trick, it goes from impressive, to cheesy, to irritating, and you wish they would have just drawn a comic. Still, it was very well done, I just don't think I'm gonna bother with this artist anymore.
But let's talk about Gail Simone. I was curious to finally read some of her work, since she is the mind behind the Women in Refrigerators website/trope/culture gripe, that called out misogyny in comics. I was ABSOLUTELY expecting this to be a feminist piece, and I have no problem with that. (Previous feminist comics I've enjoyed include Persepolis, Dykes to Watch Out For, and I guess Promethea probably counts.) I've always thought Women in Refrigerators had a valid point. I walked into this thing a Simone sympathizer.
No more. [This is where the spoilers begin.] Hoo boy. It was like she was TRYING to be the classic man-hating feminist. Like, I was ready for subtext, but this was a goddamn TRACT. Every single male character was cartoonishly evil, at least upon their introduction. Every, literally EVERY male character was a murderer, potential rapist, irrational dickhead, cheating wife-beater, sexual harasser, sleazy toady, or revenge-obsessed monster. The two (count 'em, two) male characters that EVENTUALLY had character development and became sympathetic turned out to be gay and more-comfortable-in-a-woman's-body, respectively. I'm all for progressive pop fiction, but this was just lazy.
Seriously, the straw sexism started with the introduction of the first female character on page six, and was plastered on every subsequent page, right down to the reference to corporate tyrants 'plundering young vaginas' in the final epilogue. Come down off your cross, Gail, we can use the wood.
On top of that, the story was ludicrous. I mean, Freaky Friday-meets-Scarface was always going to be a tough sell, but that's not even my gripe. My issue is that the dramatic pacing was all wonky. I get that the writer was going for the pace of a pulse-pounding action movie, but that's not really how comics work. The main characters adjust to their magical body/soul-swap awfully quickly, until they are just killing it in their respective lives within 24-hours of the switcheroo, while meanwhile, the villain doesn't get any kind of development at all until the third act. Then, when they DO develop him, they strip away any sense of moral ambiguity by making him fiendishly evil, which wasn't really hinted at until we were well-into this. A story that could have been filled with moral grey turns out to be a straight up sexually politically charged melodrama.
I was going to give it one star, but the end failed to suck as bad as the rest of it, and was actually kind of satisfying, so they get a whole star back because of that.
June 11, 2018
Satisfying, utterly satisfying, is my best description for how this story of a hitman and a bullied housewife's body swap soon plays out. Case, the hitman, may be starting to feel a bit trapped by his life's circumstances that sees him having to carry out duties he would rather not, like shooting an old friend on his mob boss's orders, but generally life is good and he gets respect. Juniper on the other hand seems to be near to cracking. In a few pages we get snapshots of her daily routine that portrays the regular sexual harassment, bullying, and infantalisation that she gets variously from her neighbours, community members, and her husband. Juniper is not respected and this is reflected in her submissive/defensive body language.
But then the body/life swap happens (with an intriguing premise behind it that comes to light later and also touches on peoples dynamics with others) and the artist cleverly shows the new personalities coming to grips with their respective bodies. And with the new persona in each body comes the anticipation with how each character will navigate their new circumstances and oh my was it rewarding. Juniper in Case's body slowly grows in confidence while Case in Juniper's body is a joy as he deals out some retribution to her harassers the next time they attempted to attack her - that was just glorious to behold. Additionally, Case's taking Juniper's self hating, stepmom hating, stepson under their wing as their consigliere was kind of adorable.
The other element of this graphic novel, that also focuses on respect, is the portrayal of transgender characters. Not only is there the element of this when it comes to a body swap characters (well done and avoiding cheap transphobic jokes) but one of the neighbours is MtF and her portrayal is both beautiful, and kickass and as well rounded as it is possible to be with just a few pages (also her initial walk away throaway line made me grin)- it is impressive how much nuance you can portray in a couple of panels and I think the very realistic style of art here helps.
In an interview, at the back of the book, Gail talks with Charles Battersby, who has been out as transgender for 25years, about transphobic themes in body swap and about getting the portrayals right, for instance: "...a man who body swaps into a woman isn't experiencing life as a cisgender woman but as a transman who hasn't transitioned yet!"
Thoroughly enjoyed this from beginning to end and the only reason that I did not give it a 5 is that initially I found the gender portrayals, confident vs weak, a little bit cliche and simple. Also the realistic style of art while very effective is not my favourite - I tend to be more partial to the beauty of works like Monstress - though that may not have worked so well for this storyline.
But then the body/life swap happens (with an intriguing premise behind it that comes to light later and also touches on peoples dynamics with others) and the artist cleverly shows the new personalities coming to grips with their respective bodies. And with the new persona in each body comes the anticipation with how each character will navigate their new circumstances and oh my was it rewarding. Juniper in Case's body slowly grows in confidence while Case in Juniper's body is a joy as he deals out some retribution to her harassers the next time they attempted to attack her - that was just glorious to behold. Additionally, Case's taking Juniper's self hating, stepmom hating, stepson under their wing as their consigliere was kind of adorable.
The other element of this graphic novel, that also focuses on respect, is the portrayal of transgender characters. Not only is there the element of this when it comes to a body swap characters (well done and avoiding cheap transphobic jokes) but one of the neighbours is MtF and her portrayal is both beautiful, and kickass and as well rounded as it is possible to be with just a few pages (also her initial walk away throaway line made me grin)- it is impressive how much nuance you can portray in a couple of panels and I think the very realistic style of art here helps.
In an interview, at the back of the book, Gail talks with Charles Battersby, who has been out as transgender for 25years, about transphobic themes in body swap and about getting the portrayals right, for instance: "...a man who body swaps into a woman isn't experiencing life as a cisgender woman but as a transman who hasn't transitioned yet!"
Thoroughly enjoyed this from beginning to end and the only reason that I did not give it a 5 is that initially I found the gender portrayals, confident vs weak, a little bit cliche and simple. Also the realistic style of art while very effective is not my favourite - I tend to be more partial to the beauty of works like Monstress - though that may not have worked so well for this storyline.
September 10, 2018
It's not a big secret, I will buy pretty much anything Gail Simone writes. At least a few issues, because I love her humor and empathy. I actually read this in single issues as it came out, but I reread recently because I wanted to review it. I didn't see a lot of people outside of the comics community talking about it, and I wanted to give it some love.
June Blue is housewife in a suburb of Seattle. Cason Bennett is a hitman in Chicago. When an inexplicable event strikes, they swap lives. Yep, this is a body swap book, which is not really something that I have ever been particularly keen on. But I love this. It takes some unexpected twists, and the ending was a surprise.
One thing that was really interesting to me was an interview included that Simone did with a trans man she met when he was a moderator on trans issues in comics. He brought up the latent (or blatant) transphobia inherent in body swap stories, and it gave Crosswind a way to avoid those tropes or deal with them in a more sensitive way. It gives the story a layer of depth that I would love to talk about with people.
But this is one that the art sold me even more than the story. I don't think I have seen a lot of Cat Staggs work, but she does exquisite work here. (Can we talk about how annoyed I am that goodreads calls her an illustrator? She is the co-creator. Comic artists are more than illustrators, they are as important to the story as the writer, sometimes more important. OK rant over for now). The body language that differentiates between June and Cason is absolutely fantastic. It is clear looking at how each character stands who is in the body. The difference in facial expressions is another area that is utterly perfect. The body language overall from all the characters is amazing. The page layouts are interesting, chaotic when needed and claustrophobic at times. No separate colorist is listed, so I am assuming that is Staggs as well. Use of light is particularly effective, especially outdoor lighting. The opening page, a splash page in a remote wooded area during a snowstorm, is stunning. I have spent lots of time thumbing through the pages and looking at the art.
Content warnings. This is a violent book, lots of gun violence. Cason is a hit man, after all. And there are some really gross boys that live near June who are creepy and verbally assault her more than once. In fact, a lot of the men are really asshats in a variety of ways. June's husband is verbally abusive. Lots of misogyny.
This probably isn't going to be for everyone, but the story was good and the art was perfect for it. I really loved it. (Now y'all need to read it please so I have people to discuss it with)
June Blue is housewife in a suburb of Seattle. Cason Bennett is a hitman in Chicago. When an inexplicable event strikes, they swap lives. Yep, this is a body swap book, which is not really something that I have ever been particularly keen on. But I love this. It takes some unexpected twists, and the ending was a surprise.
One thing that was really interesting to me was an interview included that Simone did with a trans man she met when he was a moderator on trans issues in comics. He brought up the latent (or blatant) transphobia inherent in body swap stories, and it gave Crosswind a way to avoid those tropes or deal with them in a more sensitive way. It gives the story a layer of depth that I would love to talk about with people.
But this is one that the art sold me even more than the story. I don't think I have seen a lot of Cat Staggs work, but she does exquisite work here. (Can we talk about how annoyed I am that goodreads calls her an illustrator? She is the co-creator. Comic artists are more than illustrators, they are as important to the story as the writer, sometimes more important. OK rant over for now). The body language that differentiates between June and Cason is absolutely fantastic. It is clear looking at how each character stands who is in the body. The difference in facial expressions is another area that is utterly perfect. The body language overall from all the characters is amazing. The page layouts are interesting, chaotic when needed and claustrophobic at times. No separate colorist is listed, so I am assuming that is Staggs as well. Use of light is particularly effective, especially outdoor lighting. The opening page, a splash page in a remote wooded area during a snowstorm, is stunning. I have spent lots of time thumbing through the pages and looking at the art.
Content warnings. This is a violent book, lots of gun violence. Cason is a hit man, after all. And there are some really gross boys that live near June who are creepy and verbally assault her more than once. In fact, a lot of the men are really asshats in a variety of ways. June's husband is verbally abusive. Lots of misogyny.
This probably isn't going to be for everyone, but the story was good and the art was perfect for it. I really loved it. (Now y'all need to read it please so I have people to discuss it with)
March 22, 2020
The trans movement fits into the story like a steak with whipped cream, but it's there if anyone is interested. The latter part of the story turns heavily toward feminism, but it's pretty fun until the point where nothing makes sense any more. The ending is a steamy pile where the characters are bunched together for the final confrontation and a crappy... I mean happy end. So 5 stars for the first half and no stars for the second. I was inclined for a second to not average them out. 'Crosswind' turned into 'Asswind'.
A mysterious party chooses skilled hitman Cason Ray Bennett and soccer mom Juniper Elanore Blue for a mind switch. The experience is an intimidating one, but they both must act their new parts and quickly. Each of them is in the middle of an important task. Juni must clean a bloody crime scene before the FBI shows up, while Cason must cook a meal for Juni's husband's boss.
A mysterious party chooses skilled hitman Cason Ray Bennett and soccer mom Juniper Elanore Blue for a mind switch. The experience is an intimidating one, but they both must act their new parts and quickly. Each of them is in the middle of an important task. Juni must clean a bloody crime scene before the FBI shows up, while Cason must cook a meal for Juni's husband's boss.
August 27, 2020
A body swapping story written with more modern sensibilities that is fun... but also not too fun. Crosswind follows the story of a demure housewife and a hitman as they go about their ordinary business until they suddenly, magically, switch bodies! Body swap stories have been done plenty of times but a couple things make this one pretty interesting. The first and most obvious being the characters themselves. The most common body swap trope of all time is one character being rich while another is poor and they have to live in one another's lives for a time. Or something age-based. I don't know. The radically different lives lead by the two opens up the way for some great comedy when, say, a hitman has to prepare dinner for the husband's boss, or deal with her son being bullied. The housewife on the other hand is in a body that commands respect and is feared, but also has to do some really awful stuff and see some terrible things.
The main problem is that one of these stories is significantly more interesting than the other. While a housewife in the body of a hitman is a fine setup and gets off to a great start when the very first thing he has to do is use those stay-at-home mom skills to clean up a crime scene so there's not a hint of the gore explosion that took place there, the plot quickly turns into a whole lot of nothing and personal relationships that could have happened to anyone.
On the flip side, a hitman in the body of a housewife is comedy gold. Having little regard for what other people think about her, assaulting men who try to flirt with her, dressing sexy to impress the husband's boss, etc etc. It's all really great stuff and super fun to read through.
But like I said there's 2 main things that make this body swap story feel fresh. The other is that it's written very much from the perspective of what someone who's transgendered might be feeling. Dysphoria, the realization that maybe they like their new selves more than their old selves, etc etc. It's an interesting wrinkle onto what's an otherwise fairly bland story cause yeah, aside from the bits where Ms. Blue gets to be completely nuts there's not a whole lot interesting that takes place over these six issues. It ends on a big action finale and has a fun twist at the end to make things more fun, but it's overall just a mediocre package that I find hard to recommend.
The main problem is that one of these stories is significantly more interesting than the other. While a housewife in the body of a hitman is a fine setup and gets off to a great start when the very first thing he has to do is use those stay-at-home mom skills to clean up a crime scene so there's not a hint of the gore explosion that took place there, the plot quickly turns into a whole lot of nothing and personal relationships that could have happened to anyone.
On the flip side, a hitman in the body of a housewife is comedy gold. Having little regard for what other people think about her, assaulting men who try to flirt with her, dressing sexy to impress the husband's boss, etc etc. It's all really great stuff and super fun to read through.
But like I said there's 2 main things that make this body swap story feel fresh. The other is that it's written very much from the perspective of what someone who's transgendered might be feeling. Dysphoria, the realization that maybe they like their new selves more than their old selves, etc etc. It's an interesting wrinkle onto what's an otherwise fairly bland story cause yeah, aside from the bits where Ms. Blue gets to be completely nuts there's not a whole lot interesting that takes place over these six issues. It ends on a big action finale and has a fun twist at the end to make things more fun, but it's overall just a mediocre package that I find hard to recommend.
March 22, 2021
Crosswind is an Image book from Gail Simone and Cat Staggs. It is being pitched as “Freaky Friday meets Goodfellas,” which is an intriguing premise. After finishing this OGN, though, it seems like there is a lot of lost potential.
The story opens with Cason Bennett, a playboy hit man for what seems to be the mob, and Juniper Blue, a housewife seemingly trapped in her terrible life. We briefly get introduced to their status quos: Cason is tasked with finding out who ratted to the feds, and Juniper has to deal with her demanding, philandering husband while dodging aggressive verbal abuse from neighbourhood kids. As the end of the first chapter the Freaky Friday part hits and, spoiler, Cason and Juniper magically swap bodies.
There is not much to like in Gail Simone’s story. I think a serious body swap story would be hard to pull off, but it could be interesting. Here, Simone largely misses the mark. In an attempt go gritty and dramatic, she segues into melodrama. The dialogue, the action, the characters…everything is grim and bleak, but there is almost no nuance. One character is a bland stereotype, the other is a mafia stereotype turned up to 11. It is all laid on too thick to take seriously, but there are no winks or nods to indicate I should take the story any other way.
I found Juniper’s domestic abuse situation to be especially problematic. A story about abuse needs to be handled with sensitivity. Does a body swap really belong in that sort of story?
Cat Staggs’s art is also a pretty big miss in my opinion. She goes for a photo-realistic style, which is fine and fits the tone of the book, but my biggest issue was the colouring. Shadows, shading, highlights, nothing is blended. Instead, any efforts to give dimension to a figure ends up with blobs of color that sometimes look like a skin condition. This effect is called posterization, and clearly it was an artistic choice, but I’m not sure using it for a whole comic book was the best choice. I think scenes with Juniper tend to look a little better, but the dark, shadowy Cason-centric panels are pretty rough. To make matters worse, most of the posing is pretty stiff, without much energy or dynamism. And finally, there aren’t any interesting layout choices or spreads, so it is hard to really see what Staggs could do if she was “let loose.”
Overall, this is a swing and a miss.
The story opens with Cason Bennett, a playboy hit man for what seems to be the mob, and Juniper Blue, a housewife seemingly trapped in her terrible life. We briefly get introduced to their status quos: Cason is tasked with finding out who ratted to the feds, and Juniper has to deal with her demanding, philandering husband while dodging aggressive verbal abuse from neighbourhood kids. As the end of the first chapter the Freaky Friday part hits and, spoiler, Cason and Juniper magically swap bodies.
There is not much to like in Gail Simone’s story. I think a serious body swap story would be hard to pull off, but it could be interesting. Here, Simone largely misses the mark. In an attempt go gritty and dramatic, she segues into melodrama. The dialogue, the action, the characters…everything is grim and bleak, but there is almost no nuance. One character is a bland stereotype, the other is a mafia stereotype turned up to 11. It is all laid on too thick to take seriously, but there are no winks or nods to indicate I should take the story any other way.
I found Juniper’s domestic abuse situation to be especially problematic. A story about abuse needs to be handled with sensitivity. Does a body swap really belong in that sort of story?
Cat Staggs’s art is also a pretty big miss in my opinion. She goes for a photo-realistic style, which is fine and fits the tone of the book, but my biggest issue was the colouring. Shadows, shading, highlights, nothing is blended. Instead, any efforts to give dimension to a figure ends up with blobs of color that sometimes look like a skin condition. This effect is called posterization, and clearly it was an artistic choice, but I’m not sure using it for a whole comic book was the best choice. I think scenes with Juniper tend to look a little better, but the dark, shadowy Cason-centric panels are pretty rough. To make matters worse, most of the posing is pretty stiff, without much energy or dynamism. And finally, there aren’t any interesting layout choices or spreads, so it is hard to really see what Staggs could do if she was “let loose.”
Overall, this is a swing and a miss.
December 6, 2018
In brief: A housewife and a hitman wake up in each others’ bodies. It’s the best thing that ever happened to them. First in a series.
Thoughts: This is a weird premise handled well. Not perfectly, but well. Unlike a lot of body- and genderswaps I’ve read (mostly fanfic, to be honest), there isn’t much in the way of identity crisis or personality switch. The hitman doesn’t suddenly become super feminine, for instance, though he does embrace domesticity in his own way, and similar things go for the housewife. There’s also not as much about orientation or gender as I’d expected—they are who they are and they own it—and in general, the switch is treated believably and the writers make some good points about society and respect that I’m kind of surprised haven’t turned up in bodyswap work before. And I was pleased to see a prominent trans lesbian character, who is awesome but also helps reinforce that the body swap stuff is not the same as actual queer experiences.
(That said, I’m not mlm, wlw, or trans, so I can’t say for sure that this is all treated with the respect and care it requires or that it’s totally harmless and inoffensive. It doesn’t raise any red flags that I can recall, but … yeah.)
In terms of the story itself, it was fun! Lots of action and character growth, though it took me a few chapters to wrap my head around what was going on in the hitman’s (body’s) life. Plenty of commentary, which I’ve mentioned and I think was my favourite part, but lots of empowerment and badassery in other ways, and very feminist to boot. There was cheering in a few spots. I’m looking forward to where things go next and was kind of disappointed the second volume doesn’t seem to be out yet.
The body swap mechanism is probably my least favourite bit, but it’s treated as the violation it is, the characters deal with it appropriately, and, well, it’s essentially a MacGuffin so I can suspend my disbelief in any case.
Reccing this one but not too hard, because I’m not qualified to really vet this, and also, I didn’t love it, just liked it quite a bit.
Warnings: Gore and violence. Spousal abuse, sexual harassment, and misogyny. Some gender stuff that could’ve gone a bit further.
6.8/10
Thoughts: This is a weird premise handled well. Not perfectly, but well. Unlike a lot of body- and genderswaps I’ve read (mostly fanfic, to be honest), there isn’t much in the way of identity crisis or personality switch. The hitman doesn’t suddenly become super feminine, for instance, though he does embrace domesticity in his own way, and similar things go for the housewife. There’s also not as much about orientation or gender as I’d expected—they are who they are and they own it—and in general, the switch is treated believably and the writers make some good points about society and respect that I’m kind of surprised haven’t turned up in bodyswap work before. And I was pleased to see a prominent trans lesbian character, who is awesome but also helps reinforce that the body swap stuff is not the same as actual queer experiences.
(That said, I’m not mlm, wlw, or trans, so I can’t say for sure that this is all treated with the respect and care it requires or that it’s totally harmless and inoffensive. It doesn’t raise any red flags that I can recall, but … yeah.)
In terms of the story itself, it was fun! Lots of action and character growth, though it took me a few chapters to wrap my head around what was going on in the hitman’s (body’s) life. Plenty of commentary, which I’ve mentioned and I think was my favourite part, but lots of empowerment and badassery in other ways, and very feminist to boot. There was cheering in a few spots. I’m looking forward to where things go next and was kind of disappointed the second volume doesn’t seem to be out yet.
The body swap mechanism is probably my least favourite bit, but it’s treated as the violation it is, the characters deal with it appropriately, and, well, it’s essentially a MacGuffin so I can suspend my disbelief in any case.
Reccing this one but not too hard, because I’m not qualified to really vet this, and also, I didn’t love it, just liked it quite a bit.
Warnings: Gore and violence. Spousal abuse, sexual harassment, and misogyny. Some gender stuff that could’ve gone a bit further.
6.8/10
February 3, 2018
*Galley received from Image*
3.5 to 4 stars?
This was an interesting one and it delivered in all the ways it promised. The art style is unique, and I found myself enjoying the visuals throughout. The plot, though not entirely original, does feel fresh in the hands of this creative team.
In flipping the lives of a hit man and a housewife, the story takes unexpected turns--alternately humorous and dark--as the two lead characters find themselves both in over their heads. But they may also be more suited to their new lives than they originally expected.
With strong characters and an engaging plot, Vol. 1 has a lot of positives going for it. However, there are also moments throughout that just didn't sit right when I read them. It's definitely a mature story, and it has its flaws--but "Crosswind" is a comic that surprises, delivering complexity and occasional humor, while putting a unique spin on an existing concept.
3.5 to 4 stars?
This was an interesting one and it delivered in all the ways it promised. The art style is unique, and I found myself enjoying the visuals throughout. The plot, though not entirely original, does feel fresh in the hands of this creative team.
In flipping the lives of a hit man and a housewife, the story takes unexpected turns--alternately humorous and dark--as the two lead characters find themselves both in over their heads. But they may also be more suited to their new lives than they originally expected.
With strong characters and an engaging plot, Vol. 1 has a lot of positives going for it. However, there are also moments throughout that just didn't sit right when I read them. It's definitely a mature story, and it has its flaws--but "Crosswind" is a comic that surprises, delivering complexity and occasional humor, while putting a unique spin on an existing concept.
September 9, 2018
This looked interesting, but I knew going in that I'd already seen the idea with "Your Name" (Anime) male-female body switching, not so much Freaky Friday which is female-female. Still, thought I'd give it a try given Staggs' eye catching artwork. The story is quite quick and to the point. The story doesn't mess around. That's what I liked and ironically what I didn't like. The first 75% was great, loved the humour especially even though there is a serious and violent tone to the story. But the last 25% goes downhill as the story quickly tries to wrap up and a lot of the elements that kept the story interesting were given the 'end justifies the means' treatment. All too convenient fixes in order to arrive at the ending. Had the story kept the same pace and momentum as the first 75%, I would have loved it. Still, a good read for a story that doesn't have the benefit of multiple volumes (yet). I'll be on the lookout out for future releases.
August 9, 2018
Have a hit-man switch bodies with a suburban housewife. And then have each of them decide they like their new lives/bodies better. That's basically what this book is, albeit with a lot more detail (and brutality). It's an interesting take on the genre that is intentionally informed by LGBTQ+ critiques of the trope, and shows that the concept can be respectful of their concerns and still tell a strong story. The level of comfort both Cason and Juniper both show when in the alternate bodies is different, but powerful. The catalyst behind the switch and the motivation are the weakest part of the story. But in spite of that, the conflict that ends up bringing the two threads together leads to an explosive finale. The back-matter is a worthwhile read, too, as it offers a little more depth for several characters and the entire concept.
January 10, 2018
I have to recognize that I wasn't fully into this story til the second issue, and that I find this kind of coloring a little bit repetitive. But once I undestood what this plot is about, I fell in love with it and with these two and the story that Simone was telling me. This is fun, smart and refreshing. An original piece using a pretty common motto, body switching. I've had a great time reading this volume and some laughs. I had never thought of the transgender implications of body switching stories, but I think that this way of introducing such a delicate and mistreated matter is simply brilliant. I'm looking forward to read the second volume
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