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Review: ‘Furious’ #2

Published

10 years ago

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“Furious” #2 sets out to expose the mystery surrounding Cadence Lark through exploration of her backstory in a sequence of well–placed flashbacks. But as “Furious” #1 set the bar impossibly high, I found myself wanting more depth in both storyline and character evaluation. Though a bit superficial, “Furious” #2 eventually comes out swinging with several revealing scenes and high-octane art.

WRITTEN BY: Bryan J. L. Glass
ART BY: Victor Santos

PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics

PRICE: $3.99

RELEASE: February 26, 2014

The Beacon is on a warpath. With police scanner in tow, she dons her disguise and sets out to mess up some bad guys. While the present-day plot is commonplace in superhero terms, it’s subversively so. It’s not the present-day plot that we are meant to pay attention to. It’s the flashback scenes that aim to steal the show. We are allowed a detailed peek into the life of Lark, from early childhood to late teens, from losing her mother and sisters to losing her independence to losing her innocent niavety.

In the present-day plotline, we get a lot of action and a good amount of violence. We are guided through this plot by The Beacon’s inner monologue, detailing her personal issues with absolution. She can’t kick her guilty conscience so she kicks ass instead. She purposefully targets those who are running away from their past by committing crimes because she relates to them, except that she’s turned to vigilantism instead of crime—which in this comic, as in most, draws a blurry line. Her lesson to criminals is that ‘you can’t escape your past’ even though this is her modus operandi in life, also a goal she realizes she’ll never achieve.

Though we are treated to a fairly comprehensive slide show of her life pre-superhero, I found it to ere on the side of emotionally superficial. I would have loved to feel a greater emotional connection with Lark and her present incarnation as The Beacon aka Furious, but instead I was drawing comparisons between her and stars like Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton. I wasn’t quite pulled into the warm cocoon of compassion for the character. It’s quite possible that Glass is taking the scenic route. There are a lot of open endings that leave us unsure of the character’s motives. We’ve only seen her past life up until she is eighteen-years-old, so there is still much to explore.

How did she become The Beacon? What “come to jesus” moment brought her to this reckless place of no return? What happened to Lark, emotionally and physically, to allow her to take on this superhero persona? Though lacking in depth it’s certainly not lacking in intrigue. Therefore, issue #2 proves to be a solid jumping off point for the rest of the series.

“Furious” has grand potential. The writing is tough and existential, while the art is electrifying. The meta-like structure that breaks the proverbial 4th wall combined with hyper-real elements of the 21st century give some genuine thrills and make this a comic to keep your eye on.

3/5 Skulls

Reviewed by – Bree Ogden

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Comics

‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics

Published

5 days ago

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April 18, 2024

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Witchblade cover

Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.

Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.

In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”

The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”

Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”

“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.

Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”

Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.

  • Cover A: Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto (Full Color)

  • Cover B: Giuseppe Cafaro and Arif Prianto (Full Color)

  • Cover C: Blank Sketch Cover

  • Cover D (1/10): Dani and Brad Simpson (Full Color)

  • Cover E (1/25): Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto, Virgin Cover (Full Color)

  • Cover F (1/50): J.Scott Campbell (Full Color)

  • Cover G (1/100): Bill Sienkiewicz. (Full Color)

  • Cover H (1/250): Line art by Marc. Virgin Cover, Inks (B/W)

Witchblade #1 will also be available across many digital platforms, including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play.

Witchblade comic panel Witchblade #1 cover image

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