Against Pain #[nn]

Ron Regé Jr.'s *Against Pain* from Drawn & Quarterly arrives with a cover that's immediately hard to look away from — a wild-eyed, orange-haired girl in a patched green skirt and striped stockings swings a broom with such ferocity that debris and motion lines explode across the bright blue background. The raw, energetic linework Regé Jr. brings to both the pencils and inks gives the whole image a hand-crafted urgency that feels genuinely alive. At $24.95, this 2008 release is a compelling showcase of one of alternative comics' most distinctive visual voices.