Dynamite Entertainment 2015
Written by Warren Ellis
Illustrated by Colton Worley
Coloured by Morgan Hickman
On the whole I could never really get into the Project Superpowers story arc it was too much, too many characters and for too convoluted but here Warren isn’t taking on too much he’s introducing people a few at a time and while yes this is dark, by that I mean creepy and ominous not at all angsty but just more menacing in nature so it’s that much more interesting to read. Colton and Morgan have embraced this and the way we see their work on the page really does give off a classic supernatural vibe where nothing is truly what it seems and again this makes it a much better read than you’d expect, though with this team I expected a lot and they’ve surpassed all my expectations.
We open with Marietta in the hospital with Bob who had that package blow up in his face. This freakin great stuff her narration and honesty about who she is and was well that’s just icing on the cake here. As they talk in the darkness of his room you see a shadowy figure hovering above him. I love her assessment that they are being haunted which is a pretty accurate assessment though she was the only till now to accept another passenger, Lady Demon. Bob’s ghost enters him during this chat and the two up and leave the hospital, i’m sure without telling anyone.
Agent Hill decides to brief two cops here in Blackcross and well you have to read this whole conversation because it’s so typical Government Agent who thinks his power is greater than it is and his disdain for mere cops in this area comes through but so does their own disdain for what they hearing and it really a merry go round of insults and threats of cooperation or lack thereof. The dialogue is really fantastic and these three folks really need to level with each other and work together if they are going to get to the bottom of things, which considering what is haunting these people isn’t going to be easy to do.
Aside from Marietta and Bob there’s the guy who lit himself on fire and one more person here in Blackcross have ghosts wanting to escape from their current prison. Not dead and not alive but trying to find hosts or vessels to inhabit so they can once walk the Earth yeah that’s the kind of dark stuff I live for. We do get to meet the last player in this drama Jeff Dumont and his entrance and what we learn from him being back in Blackcross well it’s just a few much needed pieces of the puzzle to better understand what’s going on.
This is the major turning point in the story that begins to make things clearer to us as readers but it still leaves plenty of room for more to be revealed as the series progresses. Thanks to what Marietta revealed I thought I knew who this ghost belonged to but now i’m not so sure but still a figure wrapped in green and a that’s a big clue to go along with the room they make contact.
The way this issue ends is guaranteed to surprise you and leave you wanting more immediately. With writing, characterization, plot development this intensely good and interior artwork to match this is how you reinvent classic characters bringing them into modern age.
Like Masks or Masks 2 then you’ll love this darker take!