Back to Brooklyn, by
Garth Ennis and Jimmy Palmiotti, with art by Mihailo Vukelic, is the story of mobster Bob Saetta, and his journey to rescue his wife Penny and son Michael from his brother, mob boss Paul "The Wall" Saetta.
Tropes:
- Abusive Parents: Bob's wife Penny is this to their son Michael, offering him up to her murderous brother-in-law Paul.
- An Aesop: There is nothing honorable or glamorous about the Mafia; those associated with it are thugs at best, monsters at worst.
- All for Nothing: The cops let Bob loose in Brooklyn in exchange of all the information on Paul's network. Which is rendered useless after Bob killed his brother and most of the mobsters he has dirt on.
- Angry Guard Dog: Bob unleashes a few on the mobsters, instantly removing Churchill as a threat along with his hand.
- Anti-Hero: Bob himself is a mobster. The only reason he was willing to cooperate with the cops is because he didn't want his family's name dragged in the mud by Paul's pederasty, otherwise he would have just killed everyone from the get go.
- Big Bad: Paul "The Wall" Saetta. When he hears his brother is willing to talk to the cops after finding out his Snuff Film fetish he kidnaps Bob's family.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Bob's mother is as racist as they get and would rather favor her son Paul who is a monstrous gangster than Bob who married a Mexican.
- Penny appears to be a loving mother and wife but she actually is complicit in Paul's snuff films.
- Black-and-Gray Morality: Bob's a mobster, the cops use racial slurs, but the villains are REALLY bad.
- Boom, Headshot!: Several times, most notably on Penny.
- Cain and Abel: Paul and Bob. Although both think themselves as the Abel and feel forced to kill their brother because of their actions, Paul's point of view is complete lunacy.
- Cold-Blooded Torture: Churchill loves to do this.
- When he tracks Bob to an old store Bob used to frequent, he tortures the elderly owner with a straight razor. After carving him to bits, Churchill has the place set on fire, informing the old man he can carry his bedridden wife out to save her after Churchill has left him in no shape to even walk.
- Churchill later captures Bob's best friend Vinnie and tortures him, only cutting it short with a bullet to the head when he realizes Vinnie will never betray Bob.
- Cop Killer: Paul kills multiple police officers.
- Defiant to the End: Vinnie's last moments are spent detailing how he cuckolded the mobsters about to kill him. Even with Churchill telling the goons he's goading them into killing him quick, they fall for it. That seems to be his go-to when he is about to get tortured by angry husbands.
- The Dragon: Churchill, Paul's "pet psychopath".
- Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Paul's last words before dying is to ask Bob to take care of their mother. Unaware that Bob killed her after she disowned him and helped Paul kill Bob's old friend.
- Even Evil Has Standards:
- When his brother Bob discovers a videotape of Paul raping and murdering a little boy, it makes him disgusted enough to turn on Paul.
- Paul's only standard is that he cares about family, he won't touch his nephew despite Penny's offer and feels like he is the one being betrayed as his brother couldn't look past his pederasty.
- Eye Scream: The final fight scene.
- Gag Penis: Vinnie is also known as "Thermos", and uses it to sleep with just about every single mobster's wife and girlfriend.
- I Have Your Wife: Paul kidnaps Bob's family with the implication he will murder Bob's young son Michael if Bob crosses him. It turns out he only kidnapped half of the family.
- Moral Myopia: Paul is angry at Bob for not having just killed the Russian and pretend nothing happened, as being family means siding with them even if they are monsters and it makes you one. Likewise, he sees his mom as a saint while in reality she is a racist and all-around horrible person. He just can't register that his brother, who stood by him as he became a kingpin, could draw the line at pedophilia and child murder, and thinks Bob is the asshole in that situation.
- Papa Wolf: Bob's motive. Played straighter after The Reveal of Penny's betrayal.
- Racist Grandma: Bob's mom. The main strain in their relationship is that Bob married Penny, a Mexican, whom she disapproves of.
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Bob's mom, regarding her disapproval of her son's marriage to Penny. She turned out to be right, but not for the reason she thought, i.e., her anti-Mexican racism.
- Roaring Rampage of Rescue: Bob goes on one to save his family.
- Sadistic Choice: Churchill can keep squeezing the stump of his hand to prevent himself from bleeding out, but the only thing preventing the dogs from eating the rest of him is the fact that he's holding onto the scaffolding with his good arm.
- Snuff Film: Paul makes these with young boys which are recorded by Penny.
- The Sociopath: Churchill and Penny, who mocks Bob for his morals and is willing to have her own son raped and killed by Bob's paedophile brother For the Evulz,
no less. - "The Villain Knows" Moment: Bob is horrified to discover his brother Paul is a pedophile, but not as much as when he reveals this to his wife and she contemptuously asks "Who do you think was holding the camera?". Not only that but she wanted to film Paul raping her son, and he'd been the one to refuse.
- Wham Line: "Who did you think was holding the camera?" Penny was.
- Would Hurt a Child:
- Paul rapes and kills kids and has it videotaped.
- Churchill is the one who set a deal with Russian mobsters to always provide Paul with immigrant boys.
- Penny was the one who taped Paul's crimes and was willing to let him have his way on her own son.
