Red City #3 by Daniel Corey picks up where #2 left off, but a lot has changed.  Most significantly, issue three is drawn by Anthony Diecidue (whom readers might recognize from his work with Corey on Moriarty).  Even as he steps in to fill original artist Mark Dos Santos’ shoes, Diecidue brings a freshness and energy to the comic that really makes Red City #3 pop.  Corey brings his typical wit and humor to the story progressing the genre, while still offering a heartfelt homage.

We find our hero, Cal Talmage, still stuck trying to solve an intergalactic mystery and, ultimately, bring peace to a warring solar system.  With Angel, the tough-as-nails femme fatale, in the driver’s seat, the determined duo continue roving the Mars desert for leads, but it seems like the more stones they overturn, the murkier the water becomes.  This issue seemingly overflows with life as the relationship between Angel and Cal crackles with humor and heat, Corey fills in some more details about Talmage’s past, and, up againstCal’s relentless investigation, the schemes within schemes start to split at the seams.

If you like hard-boiled thrillers with a science fiction twist, check out Red City #3 from Image Comics.