Dark Circle Comics 2015
Written by Frank Tieri
Illustrated by Felix Ruiz
Coloured by Kelly Fitzpatrick
Lettered by Rachel Deering
Hangmen have been around for centuries, collecting souls of those that no longer deserve to live on earth. Once one Hangman fills his quota of souls, he is given the chance to redeem himself of his former sins and ascend from Hell to a better plane. Then it is time for a new Hangman to fulfill that role—and this time it’s Mike Minetta’s turn. He has two choices: become the new Hangman or remain in Hell and watch his family be brutally murdered.
It seems like it shouldn’t be too hard for Minetta to step into the role of the new Hangman, alongside his scribe—a man named Jack Tenant—but a demon named Asmodeus who has disguised himself as a child has other plans for him…
Ah this would be so much better if had been coming out regularly. I mean the whole idea behind it is incredible and this updated version of the Hangman is one I was excited for. Here’s hoping that this won’t end here and we’ll be seeing more of this since it was supposed to be an ongoing monthly when it was introduced. Plus with the way it ends it does seem that there will be another arc.
This issue firmly cements Mike as the Hangman and it’s done extremely well. With his meeting with the devil, who appears in the body of a six year old girl, and the reveal that Asmodeus is making his own power play against the devil well things get rather interesting rather quickly. While still leaving a lot of open holes that need to be filled, something that will undoubtedly come down the pike. Still I like that Frank has chosen two children, a boy and a girl, to be the vessels here as it’s really easy to overlook that creepy children strike a chord in readers like none other. Also raise your hand against one and people will take notice I mean they are kids after all, right?
The work that Felix and Kelly are doing here really fits the whole tone, mood and feel of the story. There’s this attention to detail while still being somewhat abstract at times that shouldn’t work together but totally does. The use of backgrounds here makes me a happy camper as it really does a lot to flesh out the scenes the panels are in. The use of page layouts with angles and perspective are handled beautifully. Plus the switch between innocent and evil in the kids is stunning to witness.
The main reason Mike took up the gig was to save his family. This issue we see him cross the line in doing so. Not that either the Devil or Asmodeus will really mind in the long run but it will make for a sticky situation and that ramifications of his actions this issue are one I cannot wait to see unfold.
The Hangman in this iteration is a fascinating character study and while we’ve seen evil to snuff out evil before the concept here has a few more layers to it than we’re used to seeing. It’s a great opportunity to really delve into the supernatural underworld workings of things and how manipulation and control of an agent is going to be essential. Plus there’s the power struggle between two demons that will have an ongoing effect as well.
This is definitely one of the better reimaginings of the classic Dark Circle characters.