In our review of Narco #2, Marcus finds himself being accused of Jess’s murder. But he may be able to help the police find the real killer.
Narco #2
Writer: Doug Wagner
Art and Main Cover: Daniel Hillyard
Variant Covers: Daniel Hillyard
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: April 15, 2026
This review contains spoilers
Narco #2 begins after a brief dream where Marco’s with Jess. He wakes up to find her blood on his hands and the scene being investigated. He passes out as he’s being read his rights, before waking up in the interrogation room.
As it turns out, his job has gotten him an FBI file. In that file, the detectives find out about how he’d lost his parents at a young age, his fainting spells and narcolepsy, his hobby of messing with conspiracy nuts. The only thing not in that file? A clear motive to kill Jess, even though he had blamed himself before passing out.
Kase shows up eventually with a lawyer, and with the detectives having all of their questions answered for now, they allow Marcus to leave (but tell him to keep in touch). His other friends Bindi and Pania are waiting outside, and he collapses into the group hug. They have a sleepover, and while everyone else is asleep, Marcus does a little bit of hacking and emails his findings to Detective Kindle.
After this, he takes a bit of time to himself and heads outside, with just the cherry pop-tarts and his opposum buddy for company until Kase checks in on him. That’s when Detective Kindle calls, wanting to talk more about a potential collaboration.
They meet up with Violet, before heading to Jess’s ex’s house. Ben demands a warrant, and is very less than pleased to see Marcus there with the two detectives. He tries to force Violet out, but she’s got no tolerance for his misogynistic BS. He’s busted for assaulting an officer, and claims he’ll be out in a day, before threatening Marcus.
Where to start with this one…I know that between Narco #2 and the first installment, I had gone into it without looking at the creative team and felt that I’d recognized the art style in some of the expressions. Then I saw that it was part of a full universe, part of which was I Was A Fashion School Serial Killer, which I’d enjoyed wholeheartedly. So I was more than happy to dig into the “Narco” part of the Plasticverse, as well, and fully intend to track down the other titles in it as well.
There’s just something I love about how the expressions are done in Narco #2, and how everyone is written.
Also, just two issues in, and I can already see how close Marcus is with his friend group. They show up as soon as possible when their buddy is arrested for a crime he didn’t commit. With the revelation that comes up about his parents both dying when he was 15, it gives the impression that these three aren’t merely friends to him. They’re the closest thing he’s got to a family. I mean, their priority when he breaks down and clings to the three of them is to make absolutely sure that he’s not alone for the night. And there’s that implication that it’s not the first sleepover all four have had together.
The FBI file the detectives produce looks to be about the size of a short novel, which makes me wonder if all of their files on those in his profession are like that, or if they’ve been keeping especially close tabs on him…
Looking back at Narco #1, some of his comments on the conspiracy theorist boards bring up the possibility of a serial killer being in a position of authority. Would that have been emphasized for the sake of showing what he does in his spare time, or is there something shady about Detective Kindle?
Main reason I bring him up is because he’s read the file and would know a lot about Marcus as it is. He jumps on the chance to work with him, while Violet shows a bit more hesitation due to Marcus being a suspect. Though the one problem with that theory is motive. As far as anyone knows, he wouldn’t have enough of a connection to want Jess dead.
The most obvious suspect with Jess’s murder would be Ben, of course. He was shown to be abusive toward her, and just a raging misogynist in general. Him saying he’d be out in about a day after assaulting an officier of the law…experience, perhaps?
But he might be too obvious of a suspect. It may be just that simple in reality, but it may be different in this particular reality. Very curious to see where things go from here.
Final Thoughts
Narco, with its first two issues, is definitely worth a read. May cause rampant theorizing, but that’s half the fun (other half being the artwork). Narco #2 is an excellent continuation of the story, and I do love a nice juicy mystery.
