Adam Green’s Hatchet Vengeance #2
American Mythology Productions 2019
Written by James Kuhoric
Illustrated by Puis Calzada
Coloured by Emmanuel Ordaz Torres
Lettered by Natalie Jane
Voodoo vengeance created Victor Crowley and it may destroy him too! When a drug lord engages the power of a voodoo priestess for revenge, something ancient and terrible rises from the swamp to kill Crowley and everything in its wake. It's a clash of swamp titans and anything in their path is fair game for the wanton slaughter to follow.
This has to be one of my favourite franchises that comes out of American Mythology. Believe me there are plenty too but somehow this one with it’s campy and series take all at the same time. While in the vein of many a slasher franchise I personally enjoy seeing the many different ways that James has to come up with to kill people. While it’s silly and out there it also has a certain edge to it where people actually believe they can beat whatever it is that’s happening to them.
I think the way that this is structured is extremely well done. Lonzo’s got that female detective on his ass, his sister on her way to save him and his dad going to levels that surprise himself considering the station he holds himself at. For intents and purposes if you remove the Crowley angle then you’ve got and don’t take this the wrong way a legitimate story of love, vengeance and the criminal underworld. Add into it the whole supernatural aspects of Crowley and the voodoo priestess that we meet and well New Orleans takes on a whole different aspect.
So few horror franchises can successfully make the leap into comics, Hellraiser did it beautifully, and it takes a skilled mind and hand to find that balance which allows the series to really come to life and be taken seriously and have a blast with the improbability of it all. James is pretty brilliant when it comes to this however and the fact that I am enjoying this as much as I am should come as no surprise. I do like the complexity of the storylines that occur here and how each of them intertwine and meet up in ways that no one is truly prepared for. I mean really now Lonzo’s sister doesn’t know, believe or have any real clue what she’s getting into while Papa is off to the Sorciere Marecageuse and as a true gangster lets his daughter go off to slaughter.
Puis does some excellent work on the interiors here. The people we see are incredibly well done and I love the linework that’s being utilised to do so. It really is so nice and crisp and clean and shows a strong hand that’s capable of creating this attention to detail. I do wish Crowley were a tad more creepy and the new monster a heck of a lot more scary. There is a lot of violence and death in these pages and yet the gore is kept to a low level which is appreciated by myself. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show off a very good, solid eye for storytelling. Heck even how backgrounds are being utilised here makes me happy.
American Mythology is like the little engine that could. They have some wonderfully solidly well conceived and executed books. This being among them. When you want books that can make you cringe, a little fearful and happy all at the same time we’ll you’ve pretty much found a lost city of gold or this series. Either way why not make yourself happy and enjoy this?!? Make sure your local shop orders these because you know what it’s time to break away from the machine and enjoy comics again.
American Mythology Productions 2019
Written by James Kuhoric
Illustrated by Puis Calzada
Coloured by Emmanuel Ordaz Torres
Lettered by Natalie Jane
Voodoo vengeance created Victor Crowley and it may destroy him too! When a drug lord engages the power of a voodoo priestess for revenge, something ancient and terrible rises from the swamp to kill Crowley and everything in its wake. It's a clash of swamp titans and anything in their path is fair game for the wanton slaughter to follow.
This has to be one of my favourite franchises that comes out of American Mythology. Believe me there are plenty too but somehow this one with it’s campy and series take all at the same time. While in the vein of many a slasher franchise I personally enjoy seeing the many different ways that James has to come up with to kill people. While it’s silly and out there it also has a certain edge to it where people actually believe they can beat whatever it is that’s happening to them.
I think the way that this is structured is extremely well done. Lonzo’s got that female detective on his ass, his sister on her way to save him and his dad going to levels that surprise himself considering the station he holds himself at. For intents and purposes if you remove the Crowley angle then you’ve got and don’t take this the wrong way a legitimate story of love, vengeance and the criminal underworld. Add into it the whole supernatural aspects of Crowley and the voodoo priestess that we meet and well New Orleans takes on a whole different aspect.
So few horror franchises can successfully make the leap into comics, Hellraiser did it beautifully, and it takes a skilled mind and hand to find that balance which allows the series to really come to life and be taken seriously and have a blast with the improbability of it all. James is pretty brilliant when it comes to this however and the fact that I am enjoying this as much as I am should come as no surprise. I do like the complexity of the storylines that occur here and how each of them intertwine and meet up in ways that no one is truly prepared for. I mean really now Lonzo’s sister doesn’t know, believe or have any real clue what she’s getting into while Papa is off to the Sorciere Marecageuse and as a true gangster lets his daughter go off to slaughter.
Puis does some excellent work on the interiors here. The people we see are incredibly well done and I love the linework that’s being utilised to do so. It really is so nice and crisp and clean and shows a strong hand that’s capable of creating this attention to detail. I do wish Crowley were a tad more creepy and the new monster a heck of a lot more scary. There is a lot of violence and death in these pages and yet the gore is kept to a low level which is appreciated by myself. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show off a very good, solid eye for storytelling. Heck even how backgrounds are being utilised here makes me happy.
American Mythology is like the little engine that could. They have some wonderfully solidly well conceived and executed books. This being among them. When you want books that can make you cringe, a little fearful and happy all at the same time we’ll you’ve pretty much found a lost city of gold or this series. Either way why not make yourself happy and enjoy this?!? Make sure your local shop orders these because you know what it’s time to break away from the machine and enjoy comics again.
RSS Feed
