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"Skin and Bone": It has been three years since John Oakes has been released from prison. He is now a successful tattoo artist living in San Francisco. A number of high-end clients and fashion models visit his studio, but John doesn't care for all of the attention.

Quote1 I could hear a faint sound from somewhere inside myself… like someone waking up to the sound of his own name. Quote2
John Oakes

Skin Graft: The Adventures of a Tattooed Man #2 is an issue of the series Skin Graft: The Adventures of a Tattooed Man (Volume 1) with a cover date of August, 1993.

Synopsis for "Skin and Bone"

It has been three years since John Oakes has been released from prison. He is now a successful tattoo artist living in San Francisco. A number of high-end clients and fashion models visit his studio, but John doesn't care for all of the attention. To make him even more frustrated, he receives a letter from Abel Tarrant. Abel misses him and tells him that when he gets out he wants to see John show off his work.

Days pass and John receives a visit from a woman named Yuko Kobo, the granddaughter of Master Kobo, the best Irezumi artist in the world and the mentor of Abel Tarrant. Yuko tells him that her grandfather is familiar with John's work and wants him to become his apprentice. Over the course of the evening, John and Yuko become very close.

The following day, a police inspector named Elliot stops in the shop and asks John some questions about one of his clients. Apparently, she was murdered and her tattoos were skinned from her body. Yuko provides John with an alibi, but Elliot is unsatisfied.

Over the course of several evenings, more of John's clients become victims. The perpetrators are actually members of the Yakuza who are specifically targeting women with tattoos. Inspector Elliot continues to apply pressure to John Oakes, but John is innocent.

John eventually encounters the killers and they try to take him out. The leader manages to injure John with a dagger. John calls upon the power of his tattoos and a black field of energy emanates from his body. Inspector Elliot bursts into the room, but one of the assassins throws a dagger at him. The Yakuza succeed in escaping.

Appearing in "Skin and Bone"

Featured Characters:

Supporting Characters:

  • Yuko Kobo (First appearance)

Antagonists:

  • Yakuza
    • Mizoguchi Kenji (First appearance)

Other Characters:

  • Abel Tarrant (Behind the scenes)
  • Angela (Single appearance; dies)
  • Cindy (Single appearance)
  • Lucy Owens (Single appearance; dies)
  • Terry (Single appearance)
  • Ursula Carroll (Single appearance; dies)

Locations:

Items:


Vehicles:



Notes

  • Tattoo artists for this issue are Jonathan Shaw and Richard Montgomery.
  • The assassin responsible for the skin slayings is Mizoguchi Kenji. His name will not be revealed until issue #3.

Trivia

  • Irezumi is a Japanese word that refers to the insertion of ink under the skin to leave a permanent, usually decorative mark; a form of tattooing.


See Also

Recommended Reading

Links and References

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