Vertigo is back, baby, and a new era of mature and creator-driven comics is alive and well at DC. One of the first books announced for Vertigo’s return, Kyle Starks and Steve Pugh’s End of Life is a story about a hitman named Eddie Stallion who has to lay low in his small hometown after he accidentally robs the leader of a group of assassins. End of Life embodies the very best of Vertigo’s spirit through its humor and no-holds-barred storytelling.

You may have first crossed paths with Kyle Starks and Steve Pugh through their hilarious limited series, Peacemaker Tries Hard! If that’s you, End of Life is likely right up your alley as it’s also a saga about a barely functional adult man in fancy red clothes being a doofus. But hidden beneath this irreverent premise is a heartwarming story about unconditional parental love and support that is a soothing balm for anyone who has ever felt like a Kyle Starks character, stumbling through life (I know I have). Because while Eddie Stallion, our hitman propelling the story forward, may be our marquee character in End of Life, it’s his elderly father, George, who is its heart and soul.

So, while End of Life is a thrilling crime story, it’s also an inter-generational comedy, which will remain an evergreen subgenre for as long as there are people going through the throes of parenthood. And this is an interesting genre crossroads, one that End of Life wisely takes advantage of, because most people hope that their dad or their paternal figure will someday be proud of their accomplishments.

But what would this look like for a guy like Eddie Stallion, a hitman who probably doesn’t even know his own social security number? What’s his dad supposed to be proud of? The garish red suit he has on? And yet, because George Stallion is a grumpy old gem, he still is proud of Eddie. Beneath that caustic exterior is a man who feels warmth towards his son, but lacks the ability to express it in words.

Eddie struggles to accept any form of sincerity, whether it’s someone thanking him or a local man at the farmer’s market telling him that he makes household items from reclaimed wood. And this, coupled with his more unlikable aspects (see: his idiocy), lands him in an interesting spot where we as the readers of End of Life wind up building a relationship with Eddie much like his father. Eddie is the protagonist of End of Life, no matter how dysfunctional he is, just as Eddie is George’s son, no matter how dysfunctional he is. We’re stuck with Eddie as our leading man, not unlike how George is stuck with Eddie as his son.

I think forging a relationship between reader and protagonist that mirrors the relationship between two characters in the story is especially beautiful in a book like End of Life because of how its narrative revolves around men finding it difficult to express their feelings towards one another. Just because someone doesn’t say “I love you” out loud doesn’t mean that there isn’t love to begin with. And while comics are full of all kinds of fathers, from the Highfathers of New Genesis to the Darkseids of Apokolips, it feels touching and refreshing to experience Eddie through a similar lens as his father George does. I’m not a dad myself, and I have no direct experience to compare with George’s in End of Life, so I hope I’m not too far off the mark here.

I don’t know what your relationship is like with your father, but part of my dynamic with my dad is me accosting him with the words “old man, take a look at my life, I’m a lot like you” while doing my best Neil Young impression. And while I’ve always done that as a joke, I think a similar sentiment genuinely applies to End of Life’s Eddie and George. Sometimes, in order to understand ourselves, we must understand our fathers. Or at least make an effort to.
 

End of Life Vol. 1: What’s Wrongdog? by Kyle Starks, Steve Pugh and Chris O’Halloran is now available in bookstores, comic shops, libraries and digital retailers as a softcover graphic novel. You can also read the series in full on DC UNIVERSE INFINITE.

Jules Chin Greene writes about comics, movies and superheroes for DC.com. Follow him on Instagram at @infinitevibes and Bluesky at @JulesChinGreene.

NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Jules Chin Greene and do not necessarily reflect those of DC, Warner Bros. or Skydance, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.