Thumbprint

Released by: IDW Publishing
Released on: December 11, 2013

This volume collects the three-issue run of the comic book adaptation of Joe Hill's novella of the same name.

The story here focuses on vet Mallory Grennan, an Army intelligence officer who, among other things, worked at Abu Ghraib. But the things she did there have a way of catching up, as she finds after being discharged and returning to her old home.

She gets a job at the local VFW watering hole as a bartender. She moves into her dad's old house as he passed away right before she got back Stateside. She tries to rebuild her life, choosing to not finish school and, rather, fight her PTSD demons on her own. She has sexual harrassment troubles with her boss who's also a petty thief.

But her biggest problems come in the form of anonymously-sent letters featuring a single bloody thumbprint she keeps receiving. She immediately takes this as a threat and that's soon justified as the notes begin appearing in closer and more intimate spaces.

What it turns out has followed her home is quite simply the personification of the sins she thought she left behind in the desert. The story escalates and the knife twists deftly on the reveal of the thumbprints' origins. The conclusion comes rapidly but the unsettled-ness of the whole affair and the lack of any real closure not only reflect the plight of many U.S. servicemen and women returning to civilian life but, also, mirrors the insanity, futility and ultimate cost of this country's military actions in places like Iraq and Afghanistan.

Jason Ciaramella handles the novelization here and keeps the themes ever-present while moving the character of Mal along nicely. Relying heavily on a type of flashback to detail how she got to this state, the story's conclusion becomes all the more devastating, delivering its punch right in the “now” of humanity. Vic Malhotra's artwork is detailed but basic in such a way as to not distract from the story, serving up the events as plainly as they're told here, letting the reader cast their own judgements exceptionally well.

This collection also features the original novella that was the basis for the story by Joe Hill as well as a cover and artwork gallery from the series. Also included is a special, never-published one-shot story by Hill and Jason Ciaramella called Kodiak. Featuring lush, colorful artwork from Nat Jones the story is simple but compelling, echoing the framework of Thumbprint as well as the emotional themes of human perseverance and inhumanity.

An unnerving, stark story of truth and consequences playing out against the backdrop of a lone soldier returning home after war, Thumbprint is part of humanity and just as telling and identifying as that physical characteristic.