The third issue of Ringside – which shines a light on the underbelly of the otherwise glitzy and seemingly glamorous business of professional wrestling – gives us a great glimpse into the tragic backstory of our main protagonist, Danny Knossos. Danny’s an old pro who’s been metaphorically and literally beaten by the industry – and now tries to take control of a genuinely dangerous and violent situation, in order to assist a partner he left behind to follow his dreams. He’s brought back down to earth with a bump – but may have found the assistance he needs.

Meanwhile, we get a peek at the tough world of the creative side of the wrestling biz, with a mature writer who’s new to the industry pitching a new angle to a very temperamental boss.

Once again, it all feels completely believable and makes great use of real world wrestling slang and terminology to sell its backstage story. The writers’ room scene is phenomenally written; the Vince McMahon-esque CEO throwing his toys out of the pram is a moment I’m sure many people have experienced in a professional capacity, in one way or another, making it all the more tense for those of us who’ve been on the receiving end of tantrums thrown by spoilt bosses who aren’t used to being challenged.

Again, Ringside is near enough flawless and I really can’t recommend the series enough. It’s a crying shame that it never seemed to get the commercial attention it deserved; whether or not you’re a wrestling fan, Ringside offers up some incredible drama and brilliant character work that goes above and beyond to make us care about its cast of believable, often broken personalities.

You can read the first issue of Ringside for free online at Image Comics here.