This is a weird book. This, the second volume of Death Sentence, starts off with a bang, a term that can be used in several different ways when it comes to this title. For those who didn’t check out the first volume (and if you did, stop reading this and go get it), Death Sentence takes the very familiar superhero genre, tells it to go to hell, then does something even more interesting. Superpowers are totally a thing, and they occur when a very special thing happens: some good, old-fashioned sex. People have become infected with a disease called G+, and it does two things: gives the infected host superpowers and also kills them in right around six months, in most cases.

This premise is ingenious, because it adds a totally new wrinkle to the “powers” concept, as well as gives a lot of depth and imagination to the imagined world. It also allows for the creative team to be super depraved, raunchy, and sometimes vile, a sometimes vulgar concept that feels right at home here.

Volume 2 begins after the event of the first volume, with comedic icon-turned-mass murderer Monty getting destroyed by our heroes, Weasel and Verity, with the help of an experimental bomb. With him dead and the virus spreading, the city of London is quickly becoming a fiery mess of death, looting, and insanity.

Series creator Monty Nero has created an incredible world with this title, and I can’t help but be reminded of another bright mind with a penchant for episodic content: George Lucas. The way this and the last volume have been laid out is reminiscent of the original Star Wars trilogy, especially with the cliffhanger that this trade ended on. If the first volume of Death Sentence was A New Hope, this is Monty Nero’s Empire. A volume that, with no disrespect to the original, is a much more complete and engaging set of issues than its predecessor, especially in terms of visual storytelling.

With artist Mike Dowling moving on, Martin Simmonds joins the team, working brilliantly with Nero to create an action-packed romp through a continually degrading London. Dowling started the fire in the last volume, with Simmonds pouring gas on the flames and really raising the bar.

This is a book that really needs to be seen to be believed, and it’s also pretty fun. Titan Comics has a major success on their hands here, and the entire team should be very proud of the chaos they’ve created.