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Painkiller Jane - Comic Number 2 Published by Dynamite Entertainment

• Published by Dynamite Entertainment
• Story by: Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmiotti
• Written by Jimmy Palmiotti
• Art by Lee Moder
• Colors: Chris Garcia
• Letters: Simon Bowland
• Cover: Joe Quesada, Amanda Conner, and Jimmy Palmiotti, Phil Noto, Lee Moder

Painkiller Jane is the story of Jane Vasko, a DEA agent who is recruited by a covert government organization tasked with capturing "Neuros"—genetically enhanced individuals who possess superhuman powers of the mind. During the course of her first investigation with the team, Jane inexplicably discovers that she, too, possesses extraordinary abilities, which render her impervious to injury . . . but not pain. She develops miraculous regenerative powers, heals from every injury, and finds herself stronger than she had been before.

The comic series has been adapted as a television series, and will premiere on The SCI FI Channel in 2007, with Kristanna Loken in the title role.

Second Issue Synopsis by Marc Mason

NYPD Officer Maureen Fernandez is standing on the roof of her precinct building, watching snow blanket the city and pondering her next move. She had learned that a young billionaire was smuggling young girls into the country and using them for horrific and perverse means, so she went to her former partner, Jane Vasco, and sent her in to kill the man. She succeeded, but unfortunately, the problems had just begun; Jane shot two undercover officers working for Fitzgerald in the process, and one of them lived to ID her.

Now Fernandez has been put in charge of the task force that’s been created to hunt down Jane and arrest her. Her partner Lou assures her that he is on her side and ready to create a wild goose chase to keep the cops away from Jane and they head off to meet their squad members. But before she gets back inside, Jane calls and gets the address where the rest of the Fitzgerald family is holed up. Fernandez gives it to her, but warns her that there are clean cops working that duty and that there can be no replay of the previous night.

The Fitzgerald family is surrounded by cops, but they manage to get them to clear the room for privacy purposes. Joan, the dead one’s mother, is pissed at her husband, demanding to know why he brought their son’s playthings into their house. He tries to reassure her that they are in a soundproof attic, but she demands that he get rid of them immediately. Her grandfather briefly tries to interject, but she shuts him down, too angry to do anything but deal with their present situation of police protection.

Jane has taken up position on a rooftop across from the Fitzgeralds’ building. Through her sniper’s scope, she can see the husband make his way into the attic with a scalpel, preparing to kill the girls. Vasco squeezes off six shots, drawing the attention of the police and media on the ground, but her efforts come to no avail; the window to the room is made of bulletproof glass. Back at her precinct, Fernandez gets the news: Jane has been spotted, and units are moving in to surround her. The detective knows that’s a mistake and expresses an odd moment of regret, telling Lou that she “should have walked away from the old lady.”

Jane is running across the rooftops, the police in pursuit and shooting at her. She doesn’t want to hurt any of them, as she was once a cop herself, and these guys are clean. She uses a bit of subterfuge to get them off their guard, but when she takes the fight to them hand-to-hand, one of the men is accidentally knocked over the edge of the building and begins to fall. Feeling like she has no choice, she follows, grabbing the man and bracing their landing so that he survives. The policeman ignores his injuries and attempts to arrest her, but only manages to do is shoot Jane in the gut and leave her bleeding in the street, there to be found by Fernandez.

The news reports on the television announce that the top of the Fitzgeralds’ apartment building was destroyed in an explosion. The cop Jane saved is interviewed on air, and not only takes credit for saving Jane from the fall, but also identifies her on air. Fernandez, knowing that the girls are now dead and the Fitzgeralds’ tracks are covered, tells Lou that they need to go back to her original source in order to finish what she started. He tells her that they also need to consider visiting the two NYPD detectives injured by the Fitzgeralds’ explosion, but that they should do it in the morning, as he has to pick up his kids from their babysitter. She agrees, and they leave Jane, sleeping and having nightmares, in the care of Dr. Seth.

Lou arrives home to discover his door kicked in and his family being held hostage at gunpoint. Before he can bring his weapon to bear on the man holding his sitter and kids, he realizes that his position is untenable, and a question is put to him: where did they take Painkiller Jane?

Jane awakens from her coma, and Seth catches her up on her damage. She starts to seduce him in order to get him out of her way, but before he can get close enough to her, the man from Lou’s apartment bursts in. He knocks out Seth and attacks Jane, causing her to drop his gun. The two crash through her window, Jane once again heading for a long fall.

Also See

• Painkiller Jane - Number 1
• Painkiller Jane - Number 2 Public article, open to additions and changes.
• Painkiller Jane - Number 3

External Links

Dynamite Entertainment