Playboy Hosts ‘Vertigo Crime’ Online

Once a staple of the spinner rack before the Comics Code spoiled the party, crime comics have recently started coming back with a vengeance, even spurring Vertigo to launch its own crime imprint headlined by best-selling crime novelist Ian Rankin and Brian Azzarello of "100 Bullets" fame.

Deliciously sordid stories of bad men and beautiful women certainly have the potential for crossover appeal, and Vertigo Crime is wisely aiming for it with exclusive previews on Playboy.com.

Every day this week, Playboy will be posting preview pages from both Azzarello's "Filthy Rich," about a bodyguard trying to keep a spoiled little rich girl gone wild out of trouble, and Rankin's "Dark Entries," where John Constantine of "Hellblazer" finds himself trapped in the hell of reality television. If you've been wanting to try out the new line, here's your free sample.