Le Petit bleu de la côte ouest #[nn]

A tense, noirish collaboration between writer Manchette and artist Jacques Tardi, this Futuropolis hardcover announces its mood immediately: a grim-faced man grips a large pistol in the foreground, blood spatter visible on his jacket, while shadowy figures and parked cars loom behind him in a palette of murky greens and blacks. Tardi's cover art distills the atmosphere of French polar fiction into a single charged image — danger close, consequences closer. Fans of hard-edged crime comics will find this 2008 edition a compelling showcase of Tardi's unmistakable draftsmanship.