Term Life

by A.J. Lieberman, Nick Thornborrow (Illustrator)

If Nick Barrow can stay alive for 21 days he'll die happy! Everyone Nick knows wants him dead; Mob bosses, contract killers, and dirty cops. Performing the last act of a desperate man, Nick takes out a million dollar insurance policy on himself, payable to his estranged daughter. The problem? The policy doesn't take effect for 21 days... and Nick knows they'll be lucky to be alive for twenty-one hours!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 25, 2011

Reviews

[The Lion's Share · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd never heard of this story before but I'm glad I found out.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that this is the same writer who did Cowboy Ninja Viking and I loved that's series.

I would compare this story to the Brubaker series criminal.

It's about a guy who sells robbery plans to thieves and then walks, but he gets set up.

He has to then protect his daughter and give her something as a father if everything goes wrong.

On the edge of your seat thrills.

[Chad Jordahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story, good dialogue. Very interesting approach to structure. The sketchy style of the art suited the writing. There were a few execution problems and a couple of characters that were too goofy for the book, but overall I really liked it.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did it keep my interest? 4. A nice tight noir graphic novel

Did I enjoy the topic? 4. Very entertaining. With many graphic novels I find the flow disorienting. They have to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. But Term Life did an excellent job of building tension, even when jumping time lines.

Was the dialogue realistic? 3. Well, it is a crime noir. Realism isn’t the main goal. But it had Russian mobsters, dirty cops, witty dialogue and a decent father/daughter story

Would I recommend to Jen (smart, discerning reader)? 4. I’d tell her to give it a go

Would I have recommended to my Mom (read for entertainment)? 4. I think Mom would eat this up too

Quality of narrator? N/A

[Henry Fosdike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nick plans heists and then sells that information to criminals. Finding himself in trouble when a mob boss’s son winds up dead, he knows that he too will probably be sleeping with the fishes soon enough so takes out a life insurance policy so that his daughter can at least benefit from his crap life decisions. The problem? It doesn’t come into effect for 21 days so he has to at least survive until then.

A fun idea that is improved by the excellent, simple artwork. Told in a non-linear way, the story is occasionally confusing and takes a few flights of fancy but ultimately delivers in what it sets out to do. A decent yarn.

[Noah Appelbaum · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5? Real solid crime-y action/noir-y stuff. I'm surprised I haven't heard people make a bigger deal about this given how much everyone seems to love Criminal Editions. It's got a similar television crime story feel to Brubaker, too, but way less broody, which was a plus for me. It's not a plot that is going to wow you with twists and turns, and at times it feels a little gratuitous, but it does the job the genre demands admirably.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very Good art and the overall story was also good, It might be my own preference but the chopping up of the story and putting it together sort of like a puzzle, was not my favorite, it does get around to a finished story but it felt piecemeal at times. Final decision, This is a good Read, and would even make a pretty good show. I very much liked the characters. especially the interaction between daughter and dad.

[Harley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started off not the gretest but got better as story went along.

Pros
Good violence
Referencesto punk bands
Intreging story
Cons
At the beggining it was slow.

Conclusion
Good read loved it great ending as well

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast, fun crime story.

[Lu ⋆⁺₊⋆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5☆
Ha estado meh, hay partes que no entendía y así.
Muy meh todo.

[Ranette · Rating 3 out of 5]

A con man takes out a large insurance policy on his life for his daughter. They are estranged but strangely grow closer as the adventure of out running the thieves is left to them.

[Virna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this very much.

[Courtney Myrden · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this comic. There are some copy editing errors (for some reason that's not uncommon with comics) but otherwise it's gorgeous. The disjointed storytelling takes a bit to get used to but the way all the threads come together by the end is beautiful. Lieberman writes a compelling take and Nick's art suits the atmosphere so damn well. I love all of Nick's comic work (a lot!) but the way his art cooperates with AJ Lieberman's story is absolutely perfect here.

[Cheung Ming]

This comic is so good. It is full of education value and an emotional plot. It shows a father reconnecting to his daughter and protecting her and them adjusting to each other. On their journey hiding from bad people, they learnt a lot from and about each other and realised that all they needed was each other.

[Artur Coelho · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tem um estilo narrativo interessante mas repete sem inovar o velho tema do criminoso simpático que se envolve em situações perigosas com final infeliz. O estilo gráfico é interessante, perto do gritty mas puxando pelas cores quentes.

[Deyth Banger · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's life, what's about, what happe... the truth and many other features!