Dylan’s time at the mental institution gives him a mission, even if the Demon has left him alone, as Kill Or Be Killed heads toward its final issue.

Kill Or Be Killed 17
Written by Ed Brubaker 
Art by Sean Phillips and Elizabeth Breitweiser 

Now that we know the latest Brubaker/Phillips collaboration will be coming to an end with issue 20, I want to savor every panel on every page. Dylan is no longer in New York City, killing bad people once a month to fend off the Demon he made a deal with after a failed suicide attempt. No, he’s still in the mental institution, and no one believes he was the masked vigilante in the red mask, because someone else had taken up the mantle.

Not that things went as well for the masked man 2.0 as they did for Dylan.

But the desire to put down bad guys hasn’t abated, regardless of the absence of the demon. Dylan, who has managed to avoid the medications that left him sedated, picks a new target when he sees an orderly at the institution rape a patient. Things don’t go smoothly here, but Dylan remains determined to dole out some justice.

With just three issues left, there seems to be a lot of loose ends with the story, most notably, who took up the vigilante work after Dylan was institutionalized? I don’t expect all the loose ends to be tied, but at the very least that one should be wrapped up. But will it be with Dylan back in the City? So much ground to cover in just three issues.

But what happens then? How long will we be without a new monthly comic from Brubaker and Phillips? Not very long.

Exciting times.