American Mythology Productions 2019
Written by Mike Wolfer
Illustrated by Alex Miracolo
Coloured by Beezzz Studio
Lettered by Natalie Jane
The explosive conclusion to ZORRO: SACRILEGE is here!
Faced with the prospect of either exorcising the possessed inhabitants of the town or killing them all to free their souls, Zorro must sacrifice everything to destroy the evil once and for all! This is blazing supernatural action like you have never seen before as a legendary hero must face the very legions of Hell!
This single issue feels like it's changing the way Zorro sees his world forever. Don Diego has played the part of the playboy for so long that in this role he has never done more or less what is merely on the surface. He has his workshop where he creates, invents, new weapons to use in crusade against injustice and never once did he stop and think where his family's money came from.. I absolutely love the fact that this man, Don Diego De La Vega, is confronted by an enemy whose existence is older than even the natives of this land. This enemy, this Diablo, has done more for not only furthering the emotional side of Don Diego but has enlightened him in ways that no one else has yet been able to do.
Mike has proven his skills and talent as a writer many times over and yet here we are with an issue that has the emotional punch of Canelo Alvarez hitting you in the jaw. This changes how we see Zorro as well as he sees himself and to be able to do this while in the midst of this battle is beyond anything I could have wished for. The story & plot development for this is amazingly well done and how we see the information released so that we don't grasp what is truly happening until Zorro does is marvellous to see. The character development with Zorro and Muat is dynamic and impactful in so many ways. That it's always moving and feels like liquid running down a slope in ways that you cannot predict. With the pacing and how it allows the reader to see the twists and turns and the revelations make the ebb & flow of the story just pure dynamite.
The interiors here are superb. The linework we see is exquisite and how the varying weights are manipulated and utilised to bring forth this attention to detail is rather stunning. The faces, facial expressions and body language not only bring us more characterisation but also provide a sense of movement and fluidity. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a strong and talented eye for storytelling. The only thing I want to see more of are backgrounds, when we do see them they are sensational for enhancing the moments and providing a sense of size and scale to the book. The use lines to show movement isn't necessary and instead I'd love to see backgrounds utilised. The colour work is beautifully done as well. It is nice to see the darkness and heaviness of the situation come through in how the colours are utilised.
If you have ever been a Zorro fan, wanted to see what he's all about, or just want to read some of the finest storytelling around you need to be asking your shop for this. It also sets up the Lady Zorro comic that'll be out soon as well. The respect to the past, tradition as well as the present and even the future are all within these pages so do yourself a favour and find this today.