Thursday, April 05, 2012

Human Target: Chance Meetings by Peter Milligan, Edvin Biukovic (Illustrator) and Javier Pulido (Illustrator)

Collects the first 10 issues of Human Target in one collection

Christopher Chance was a soldier-of-fortune, a man who would disguise himself as someone marked for death then step in front of a bullet, betting his life that his skills and mind were sharp enough not only to save his life but the life of the person that had hired him as well. People called him the Human Target, and the nickname stuck. However, no one could ever guess at the huge price Chance had to pay to become someone else. The Human Target didn't just change his looks when he assumed an identity; he also changed his thoughts and feelings, becoming the person he was trying to protect.

Now, Chance is semi-retired and he has a young protégé named Tom McFadden stepping into his shoes. Only Tom is struggling with the whole Human Target gig too-struggling so much that he sometimes forgets who he is and can't remember how to be who he really is. Earl James is a militant black preacher drawing a line in the sand against the local drug dealers, headed up by Dee Noyz. Emerald is an assassin-for-hire, every bit as dedicated and driven as Christopher Chance, and she's been contracted to kill the Human Target. Christopher Chance is caught in the middle of a vicious crossfire: he wants to save himself and Tom McFadden, who feels he must save Earl James. At the same time, Chance has to stay out of the line of fire from Emerald and Dee Noyz. Chance is working against the clock. How can he find the man he trained-someone who can be anyone?

2nd part is Final Cut

Bodyguard to the stars Christopher Chance is a kind of extreme actor, who uses makeup and mimicry to transform himself into the people he protects. Milligan's (Enigma) twisted, deceptive work is a humorous tale about fame, betrayal and the Tinseltown wannabes that get left behind. Chance is hired to impersonate an aging movie star who's been targeted by a murdering extortionist. When the threatened actor refuses to pay, the killer strikes, only to discover the able and deadly Chance awaiting him. In the ensuing fight, Chance kills the extortioner. Or does he? The same extortioner is believed to have kidnapped a child star, whose parents hire Chance to find him. In the process of trying to locate the kidnapped teen, Chance takes on the identity of this killer (who turns out to be a nutty failed screenwriter), only to find his own sense of identity, and that of the killer's, merging into one confusing multiple personality. By the tale's end, Chance learns that one never really knows who anyone is.

Human Target was one of my favorite TV shows that no longer airs.  So I was intrigued to try out this graphic novel collection.  It is nothing like the TV show but fun to read never-the-less.