Written by: Ollie Masters
Art by: Ming Doyle
Colours by: Jordie Bellaire
Letters by: Clem Robins
Cover Art: by Becky Cloonan
Published by: Vertigo
Saying that Ollie Masters and Ming Doyle’s The Kitchen is the real mobwives of 1970’s New York would be an apt but rather superficial description. Masters and Doyle paint a world that feels much more graphic, tough, and uncompromising.
Jimmy Brennan and his crew are serving their prison sentence and are off the streets so everyone is left to wonder who will take their place? Jimmy and crew leave behind their territory and their wives but Jimmy’s wife Kath isn’t going to just sit and wait for them to come back. After all, the extortion racket won’t run itself. With the sheer amount of mob stories out across all sorts of mediums, this is focus on the wives is certainly a nice change. Kath, Raven, and Angie are familiar with the mob life but running it is a different matter entirely so it will be interesting to see their growth as leaders.
Ming Doyle’s art (and Becky Cloonan’s covers) are what really drew me to the series at first, and I’m so happy that it didn’t disappoint. I really loved Doyle’s art on Mara and you can really tell that her style has grown since then. Doyle’s panels with close up expressions are especially amazing in their details. These women seem like multi-dimensional women. They can look strong and sexy but can still look weary and worn from their domestic life struggles. With Jordie Bellaire on colours the art in this issue really looks dirty in that truly 1970s grit style.
Seeing as it’s the first issue of an 8-issue series, Masters paces it incredibly well. There’s exposition but not so much that it takes over the actual story. It’s a really solid first instalment and I’m looking forward to seeing how it plays out. Appropriately named “Sharpen Your Teeth,” we really only see Kath try to make it as her husband’s replacement as leader. I can’t wait to see if Raven and Angie can grow their own fangs and be the crew that Kath needs to make it as mob boss. There are so many possibilities given at this point and I really hope that these three women continue to support each other so that it doesn’t devolve into the Real Mobwives of Hell’s Kitchen.
Verdict
Buy it! If you’re interested in the time or in mob stories in general, you’ll love it. It’s a different take and I’m super excited to see where the story takes us in the next seven issues.
