Since I started reading comics from more independent publishers, I’ve been reading some really good crime comics.

You might think I consume a lot of crime content since I write about crime, but I actually don’t. I don’t read true crime books all that much. I could probably count on one hand how many true crime podcasts I’ve listened to. I’m even done with TV crime dramas. But crime comics? I’m so there.

Some of the previous crime comics I’ve enjoyed are Mugshots, a UK mob drama, Kosher Mafia, a dramatization about the Jewish Mob fighting Nazism in 1930s USA, Sanction, a 1980s Russian detective tries to find a serial killer, and, of course, the Murder Inc. series, where the mob has taken over major parts of America. Now that I look at that list, that’s a lot of mob-related comics.

Anyway, this past week, I read the first issue of Out of Alcatraz. This is a dramatization about the infamous 1962 breakout from Alcatraz Prison. In real life, it’s believed the escapees drowned in San Francisco Bay. The comic tells a story about what if the escapees survived.

The first issue ends on a great cliffhanger, which has me looking forward to the next issue. The challenge is if it can keep my attention for the rest of the series.

I’ll be back with a final review when the series is over.

UPDATE 8/6/2025: Ok, I’m back. I finally finished the five-issue series.

To be honest, I thought the story kind of meandered through issues 2-4. At first I didn’t care for the subplot either, not because it’s ‘too woke’ or anything like that. I just felt like it was tacked on at first.

Then the final issue came out, and it tied every story thread up in a surprisingly entertaining package.

What I’m saying is, Out of Alcatraz did what a lot of limited series don’t do much anymore. It stuck the landing.

I highly recommend it.