11/1/25: I read this again in a beautiful hardcover collection of the first three volumes with an introduction by comics great Jim Steranko.
Original review 4/8/15: This is the second volume of Blacksad, originally released in 2003, though the order doesn't really seem to matter. Start anywhere. I liked the first one fine, in part because the characters-as-animals approach was so well done, and it was so fresh for me. It's a better story than the first, as it deals not only with typical noir tropes, but deals with issues of race in surprising ways. Still, I thought it was a little too much story for 56 pages, I think, but as with all of these in this series, the storytelling and dialogue take second place anyway to the amazing Juan Guarnido artwork, which is all by itself worth picking it up. Guarnido brings characters, even animal characters, to life, and uses watercolors with a sense of flair and style. Gorgeous artwork.
The story is a potentially rich one, focused as it is on southern racism of the 1950;s, involving a kind of KKK white supremacist organization, and Blacksad as (mostly) black works his way into the tale as not only investigator but object of derision. The tale involves a kidnapping, (maybe) pedophilia, and a mixed marriage.
But even if you just look at the artwork, you will be amazed, so I will continue to find all the other volumes. It sort of is standard noir type telling, very much in the fifties noir style, which I like, generally, but it's just okay as story in spite of its relevant theme.