Hard Boiled Angel: Blue Angel Book 1

Hard-Boiled Angel Book one is a Korean Manhwa (Manga) that follows the cases of a tough as nails female detective Jiran Ha. Ha is with the Hard Crimes unit and this book presents four separate stories by Hyun Se Lee who doubles as writer and artist. The stories all have that gritty, American crime drama feeling to them that fans of Cop shows will recognize and enjoy. There are four stories and they are all exceptional. Ha is as stoic and tough as any male cop and keeps the others on their toes with firm slaps to the groin, adding some comic levity to the tales. All of the stories are exceptional but the first and last truly stand out. In "Autumn of a Man", Ha finds herself being stalked by a degenerate creep who has no idea that she is a cop. He watches her night and day from his building, seeing her leaving at all hours of the night and getting the VERY wrong impression. When he tries to molest her in a park, Ha turn the tables on him and arrests him. But evidently the creep has friends in high places and works for a senator and is soon out on the streets. He lures Ha in a deadly game of cat & mouse into a remote wilderness for a final confrontation. In the last story, Detective Ha pays a visit to an old teacher of hers only to find him bed ridden from Palsy. His wife tells Ha that their son, Hawsung, who is now in high school, has run away from home. Ha is determined to find the boy. Her investigations lead to the discovery of a young gang of vigilantes that Haesung may be involved with coupled with organized crime who are forcing under-aged girls into slavery unless their families can buy their freedom. Hyun Se Lee obviously seems to have been influenced by American film as his tough Detective Ha seems to be a female cross between Clint Eastwood and Bruce Willis. Lee's course but gorgeous artwork fits perfectly with the types of stories he's telling. The book contains bios of all the main characters as well as Lee's own notes. Very enjoyable! Reviewed by Tim Janson

As a big fan of Frank Miller's SIN CITY and DC Comic's 100 BULLETS, I was looking forward to HARD BOILED ANGEL, and I wasn't disappointed. The lead character is a female detective in Korea, and she's a kick-ass, no-nonsense cop who'd give Dirty Harry the jitters. This is an amazing book with just the right amount of dialogue, and if you've seen any other books by Hyun se Lee, you'll know that his pictures speak louder than words. Although the entire book revolves around the lady cop, the individual chapters are like little, self-contained detective stories. This book is well over 300 pages, and is a great value for the price. A very recommended, exciting read.