Domino Patrick: Daughter of the Domino Lady

I first discovered "Domino Lady" in the comic books published by Moonstone some years ago.  I have purchased and read all of the comics published about her, and I've picked up and read the several books starring the pulp heroine.  Recently, Moonstone published an anthology about Domino Lady's daughter, Domino Patrick, set some twenty years after the adventures of Domino Lady herself.  I recognized a few of the authors (Mel Odom, Trina Robbins, and editor Nancy Holder), so I figured it had to have some good tales in it.  And I was right!

Domino Patrick: Daughter of the Domino Lady has ten short tales about the adventures of Domino Patrick, a private investigator in Los Angeles.  While she has her mother's beauty and charms, as well as her mother's love for adventure, Domino Patrick does not don a costume and mask to fight crime; rather, she has earned her P.I. license and helps people out within the confines of the law (well, to a certain extent).  She has her own contact within the police department, and she has definitely learned how to use her womanly wiles, just like her mother, to help district and defeat the hard-nosed criminals of California and beyond.

The stories vary in length, style, and subject matter.  From blackmail and strip clubs to wild west theme parks and sabotage to mobster daughters on the run and secret, forbidden relationships that end in death, Domino Patrick faces them all.  Some of the stories are told from first-person point of view, while others are third-person, and the final story, guest-starring the Green Hornet, is told from a mixed POV - Domino's side of things are told from third-person, while Green Hornet's portions are first-person (and, surprisingly enough, it does not make it more difficult to read).  Honestly, none of the stories are bad - they are all engaging in some form or fashion; however, I will readily admit that I definitely liked some more than others. 

"Number One with the Bullet" by Trina Robbins is probably my favorite of the bunch.  Not only is Domino hired to provide protection to an up-and-coming singer who is being stalked, but the story provides a very interesting mystery of who killed the stalker?!  When the woman stalking the lead singer of the band winds up dead at her table in the middle of a crowded restaurant, it's up to Domino to figure out whoddunnit.  There's a lot of drama going on - the back-up singers are upset the lead singer is leaving them; the lead singer has fallen for a local band boy with the intent of starting a new career with him; and the singer's manager is hellbent on making sure she doesn't lose her money-making client.  Lots of motives and lots of means, but only one of them did it - the question is, which one?

"The Education of Domino Patrick" by Colin Harvey comes next in my line of favorites, as it is a very different kind of story.  A teacher at a private school commits suicide, and his wife is confident that a fellow teacher persuaded him to do it.  It seems her husband discovered the other teacher in a compromising position with a female student, and to protect his career and the girl's reputation, he badgered the woman's husband until he killed himself.  So, Domino goes undercover as a substitute teacher to uncover the truth - but what she finds is something far different than what the widow could have ever suspected - a truth that, in the 1960s, would have had dire consequences for all involved.  It's actually a touching story of love, from a number of different angles, and how that love can affect those left behind.

"Everyone Knows It's Windy" by Tim Lasiuta is a fun story, probably one of the shortest in the book, but definitely Domino in style all the way.  While shopping at her favorite clothing store, Domino faces down a crew of thieves who have been holding up a number of shops in the area.  Only, this time, they have to face Domino and her unique style of bringing down the bad guys.  This story features a bit of humor along with the obligatory fight scenes, and it's brief and to-the-point, so that Domino can get on with her day.

"Menage a Trap" by David Boop is the longest of the stories in this collection, and it is the last story in the book (probably due to its length). This is the story that features a team-up with the Green Hornet and Kato, as Domino Patrick travels to Detroit at the request of newspaper man, Britt Reid, who wants her to help him uncover the identity of the Green Hornet (and, of course, she has no idea Britt is actually the masked vigilante!).  It's all a test to see just how secure his secret identity really is, and as Domino goes about trying to unmask the green-cloaked man, she slowly becomes aware that nothing is what she thought it was.  As can be expected, the two eventually team-up to battle the mysterious Mr. X in a climatic battle in the harbor that leads to the destruction of a bridge, the capture of a number of Mr. X's minions, and a friendship borne out of adversity between two next-generation heroes.

There are six other tales within the book, all of which have their own good qualities to them and are worth the read.  I hope this is not he last we see of Domino Patrick, and hopefully Moonstone will publish more stories about this luscious P.I. (maybe even a team-up with her mother, the Domino Lady herself!).

RATING:  9 old, beat-up photo albums out of 10 for good, old-fashioned pulp-style stories with another strong female lead - because, let's face it, we can never have enough strong female detectives out there!