Review - Executive Assistant: Assassins #3

Apparently, there is life after death. At least, there is in the case of the opening story arc for Lily in Aspen's first ongoing series Executive Assistant: Assassins, now in its third issue.

Executive Assistant: Assassins #3 is written by Vince Hernandez, with pencils by Jordan Gunderson, inks by Charlie Mok, colors by Teodoro Gonzalez and letters by Josh Reed.

Lily is clean, detoxed and ready to assist executives again. Well, not quite, as she has a bit of an employer problem. Considering an employer named Mazutsu wants her dead. He'll go to great lengths to see it done as well and it could be a new Executive Assistant in Lilac that does it.

In the meantime, Lily is paired up with Cope, the man trying to get her cleaned up and in a better state. The pair are planning to get Lily off the grid, but since this is an ongoing series, things don't go according to plan.

This is the third part of the "Life After Death" arc and Hernandez has used it well to set up the series as a whole. Lily is tired of doing what she does, but by the end of the third issue she's forced back into it. Her reaction to violence is instinctive and is even more violence, which means we'll see her fully unleashed before it's all said and done.

The introduction of Lilac will create an interesting tension in the series. Their paths will inevitably cross at some point and the fireworks will go off. Lily's motivation for getting back into her old way of life is also clear cut and makes sense. She's not doing it for the convenience of the plot, which is nice.

Gunderson's pencils are okay. Some of his panels are actually drawn really well, while others look a little less finished. He has limited settings to work with, meaning that it doesn't move to any exotic locales. Just about every location in the comic is a rundown garage, apartment or rooftop.

Fans of Executive Assistant will want to check out Executive Assistant: Assassins #3. It keeps with the narrative created in the other books bearing the series name and Hernandez has a handle on the concept of Executive Assistants that double as assassins. The end of the first story arc has moved characters into place for the ongoing series and it could feature some interesting conflicts.

Executive Assistant: Assassins #3 is in stores now with interiors below.






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