Customer Rating: 
Summary: Good, but something's wrong
Comment: This is a little bit of a departure for the character, as I suspect will be for the rest of the series. And to be quite honest, I'm not sure if she is the right character under the supposed description. Elektra kills, yes, but with good reason. According to Locke and the other characters that surround her, she kills relentlessly even if the person is not the intended target. That's not the Elektra Frank Miller created and crafted. Certainly not the Elektra Brian Michael Bendis provided depth for. This is also part of the problem towards the end of the story when Elektra makes a major confrontation with Locke.I found this characterization of Elektra to be quite out of character. First time readers probably won't understand this as they have not read any of the previous stories from Miller and the story Bendis wrote that kicked off the Marvel Knights portion of the series. They will think of her the way the characters throughout describe her. And to be quite honest, that's not fair.
Aside from the characterization problem I had, Rucka provides some nice action at the mid point when Elektra is left in a desert and then picks off mercenaries who want to kill her. For those who don't know, Rucka has a martial arts background and uses some of that knowledge to make this scene wonderfully awesome. The illustrations by Carlo Pagulayan improve a little bit from how Chuck Austen illustrated under Bendis' writing. However, it would have been so much better had cover painter Greg Horn create the interiors. Oh well, at least Carlo did a nice job.
This edition includes a story from an issue of Marvel Knights: Double-Shot called "Trust". Rucka does much better with this story and the interiors are painted by Horn. If anything, this was a pleasure to read through and showed exactly the kind of hired assassin Elektra is. Stealthy and creative, using a murder weapon that no one would ever think of. Perhaps Rucka should look back on this story and milk the characterizations as opposed to the Elektra he used in the main story.
"Introspect" is a fine read, but I just can't get over the major characterization change that really doesn't fit her. I'm not sure if long time fans of the character will agree, but I will stand by my decision on this. First time readers will probably not understand what I'm talking about unless they read Daredevil Visionaries: Frank Miller Vol. 2 and the first six issues of the Marvel Knights edition of Elektra as written by Brian Michael Bendis. I have faith that the Rucka stories further down are better, but he appears to be off on a rather questionable start.
Customer Rating:
Summary: I expected more from Rucka
Comment: In Elektra: Introspect, Greg Rucka poses the question, "What do world-renowed assassins do when they can't get work?"
The answer was less than satisfactory.
Elektra, the world's deadliest assassin, can't seem to get a job anymore. Many of her employers say that there is too much attention on her, and she's a risk. Without work and without money, Elektra languishes for a while before being hunted down and captured by the mysterious Mr. Locke, who heads a group of Elektra haters. It seems that Mr. Locke and his group have all lost friends or loved ones because of Elektra, and they want her to pay.
I didn't really have a problem with this book at all. Rucka stays true to the character and does put her in a rather sticky situation. However, I found that this work was less than compelling and sometimes even boring. The art by Carlo Pagulayan was OK, but wasn't very dynamic. The highlight of this book may have been the bonus issue included in the back, written by Greg Rucka and rendered in full Computer Graphics by cover artist Greg Horn. Your jaw will drop when you read and see that one.
In summation, Elektra: Introspect was a good enough story, but left a lot to be desired. Greg Rucka remains one of my favorite authors, but this is clearly not his best work. If you want to read an awesome Rucka Elektra story, read Elektra and Wolverine: The Redeemer instead.
