The Fall

by Ed Brubaker, Jason Lutes (Illustrator)

Kirk, a down on his luck convenience store clerk, uses a stolen credit card and gets himself caught up in an unsolved murder case almost ten years old. Featuring illustrations by Jason Lutes (BERLIN, JAR OF FOOLS), THE FALL is a lo-fi thriller in the tradition of Jim Thompson and Roman Polanski.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Ebooks, Bande Dessinée

Paperback

First published January 9, 2001

About the author

Ed 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.

Reviews

[~:The N:~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmmm... I was expecting some complicated plot twist but it was just a straightforward murder mystery. A bit disappointed to be honest.

2.5/5 ⭐

[Hadia · Rating 3 out of 5]

*2.5 🌟 a rather boring/average murder mystery

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but straightforward and uncomplicated so it pales compared to EB's later work.

[Bahar meow · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a disappointment!
A short boring mystery.

[Ayantika · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible book about how a man is obsessed with a woman after discovering her purse 10 years after she was murdered. Weirdly gets drawn into searching for the killer but has the personality of a wet mop. Tries to run away at the first sign of conflict and the ending is ofc predictably a woman wanting to bang him?! Lmaoooo. My fault for diving in with the only knowledge that it is a murder mystery. One star for the art.

[Santiago L. Moreno · Rating 2 out of 5]

Una cosita de andar por casa, una historia que se lee en diez minutos. Brubaker haciendo una faena de aliño y Lutes ni eso. A mitad de tebeo los fondos desaparecen y las viñetas pasan a ser cada vez más minimalistas. Como un episodio de principio de temporada de Caso abierto. Dos grandes desganados.

[Redwan Orittro · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick thriller that I finished reading in one sitting.

[im_just_vidu · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is nice. It's short & interesting. The art style is also good. Good for a quick easy read.

[Miguel Poveda · Rating 4 out of 5]

En esta obra se juntan dos auténticos cracks del mundo del cómic, creadores de obras maestras como Sleeper (Ed Brubaker) o Berlín (Jason Lutes). En esta historia se ven claros los roles: el guión es un ejemplo claro de la mano de Brubaker con una historia de suspense, intriga y género negro, mientras que el dibujo en blanco y negro, conciso y claro es responsabilidad de Lutes. Un gran cómic, aunque se hace muy corto, da la sensación de que el doble de espacio habría permitido un resultado mucho más completo y redondo.

[Sal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been a fan of Jason Lutes work ever since I stumbled across Jar of Fools. The Fall isn't groundbreaking storytelling. It's a very short crime graphic novel that's full of noir tropes, but much like Denis Johnson's "Nobody Move," it's a fun read despite the cliches. Recommended between heavier reads to break things up a bit.

[Adam McPhee · Rating 2 out of 5]

A convenience store clerk in 90s Seattle gets extorted after using a stolen credit card and winds up uncovering evidence of murder committed by a misogynistic cop. Clean, perhaps overly simple art (though it has its moments) and a straightforward story. The characterization feels real though, like they mostly got at how people actually act in these situations without much in the way of unnecessary melodramatics.

[JNuclear Rodriguez Lopez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poco interesante. Aun así, fue entretenido en algunas partes de la trama.

[Josh Friedlander · Rating 2 out of 5]

Noirish, predictable but fun graphic novella.

[TJ Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brubaker writing a short crime story with Jason Lutes illustrating. Nothing stellar but fun read nonetheless.

[Jared Bird · Rating 4 out of 5]

not on cbr

[Roshan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Fall (2001)
Writer – Ed Brubaker
Illustrator – Jason Lutes

Synopsis: A man finds a purse, linked to an old forgotten case, following an arrangement with a woman he met at the store

The Fall is a mini mystery written by Brubaker and features another intriguing crime thriller which is his forte.
The story is very much straightforward and keeps a very tight pace on the story telling. The mystery in itself is a good crime thriller although pretty short.
Unfortunately, the story is also pretty loose on wrapping up story arcs. The main character is bland and jaded, and something about his dive into this mystery comes off as unnatural to his character. This is due to the lack of any build up to the characters in this story.
Artwork by Jason Lutes is good and is able to draw the readers into the world of the story.
Overall, The Fall, is a pretty decent crime story from the mind of Ed Brubaker.

RJG Rating – 3.25/5
Goodreads – 3.01/5

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating to see how many people seem to really dislike this one. I disagree. Could it possibly be better with more pages and another wrinkle? Perhaps. Or maybe it would just be padded out. It's a neat little short story, not a long, twisted noir. So yeah, it is a bit straight, but it plays out clearly and logically - aside from maybe the initial very-noir moment when June coerces Kirk into being her handyman. And honestly, rereading this for the first time in ... maybe twenty-five years? ... I'm just THRILLED to have more Jason Lutes artwork to absorb. The detail of human condition - emotion, body language, setting - that Lutes puts into everything he draws makes him one of the great and under-sung masters of the medium. He lifts the entire project up, for sure.

I mean, I pulled this out with the intention of rereading it and then yard-selling or library-donating it. Gotta say, I put it up on a shelf. I might want to read it again some day.

[Marc Bosch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Con guion de Brubaker y dibujos de Jason Lutes, me las prometía felices cuando encontré este cómic en la biblioteca de Can Fabra. El trazo de Lutes no decepciona, pero Brubaker queda muy lejos de crear una historia coherente dentro de los parámetros del género negro. Se acepta bien que la falta de juicio del protagonista y sus decisiones absurdas sean las que empujen la trama y precipiten la historia, pero no todo vale para cerrarla. Sacrificar la lógica del personaje sin ofrecer nada a cambio siempre acaba dejando una sensación de vacío.

[Jordan · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be honest, nothing really happens in this book. The story is generic, the mystery fell flat, and the overall narrative just felt bland.

The only thing setting it apart is the environmental art. While the character designs feel like an imitation of a sloppy comic noir style, the backgrounds are genuinely impressive. There are some fantastic angles, beautiful landscape drawings, and the composition of the buildings is top-notch. The driving scenes, in particular, were very well done.

2.25/5. The scenery is doing a lot of heavy lifting here.

[Jared · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic short 42 page crime story. I enjoyed this one when I first read it decades ago in Dark Horse Presents and it holds up well. The crime story is straightforward and involving. A young man stumbles onto a cold case and gets more than he bargained for. The writing is stripped down and spare while the black and white art is lush and sophisticated. I’m glad I reread it.

[Rick Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little too insubstantial by Brubaker's or Lutes' standards, but still enjoyable enough. While Brubaker can often spin crime fiction clichés and tropes in entertaining ways, The Fall feels much more entrapped by them. Not a bad story by any means, but also not one that I'd be in a hurry to recommend to even the more ardent fans of his works.

[Zet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too simple for a mystery novel. I found the protagonist's curiosity rather random. Kinda feel so bad for the clueless new roommate, he died in vain. Welp, maybe the moral of the story is hidden crime will come to light in the end, goodness prevail?

[Ci · Rating 3 out of 5]

straight-up murder mystery, no shocking twists or turns.

[Hafeez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cracking an old murder case.

[hiromi · Rating 2 out of 5]

*2.5

[Irene Lázaro · Rating 4 out of 5]

La historia me gusta y está bien narrada, pero hubiera preferido que hubiera un poco más de misterio.

[odelia (odeng) · Rating 3 out of 5]

slightly compelling but lackluster? not sure what to make of it, but realistic

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Detective

[Haruka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting storyline. Great read!

[JaumeMuntane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cómic correcto e interesante para ver la evolución de Ed Brubaker en el género negro (en el que nos ha regalado tantas y tantas obras maestras).