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Review: “Shutter” #3

Published

10 years ago

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“Shutter” is finally getting to a place where I feel safe to jump on board. The course of each issue has drastically changed from month to month making it hard to feel like, as the reader, I am in trusty hands. What I initially thought would be an adventure comic featuring a strong but flawed female ex-world-explorer now feels very little about that at all. But if the comic stays the course after this week’s issue, I’ll definitely be along for the ride.

Shutter_03-1WRITTEN BY: Joe Keatinge

ART BY: Leila De Duca

PUBLISHER: Image

PRICE: $3.50

RELEASE: June 11, 2014

Review By: Bree Odgen

Like I said, the first issue of “Shutter” was slower and focused on establishing a character profile for our heroine, Kate Kristopher. In a painfully bizarre out-of-the-blue twist, we are thrown into a fight between robots, anthropomorphic rats, and mobster cats. The shift from character building to world building was so insane that all the attributes felt out of place, misused. There was no organic lead into the new storyline so I got lost. Not until this month’s issue do things start to settle in.

The plot of issue #3 seems to appropriately shift focus to the two most interesting story elements thus far: the Mahees Lane Gang and Kate. More importantly, it sets out to start Kate down the rabbit hole of her family history. And it leaves us on a delightful cliffhanger, making us wonder if she’s safe even with the people she grew up trusting. At this point, you wonder if anyone is truly on her side.

Each issue of “Shutter” has a variety of storylines that are set apart via differing illustrations. While I love this type of storytelling in theory, the actual shifts in the story feel so abrupt and different that it pulls me out. I appreciate the boldness in this storytelling, but sometimes the boldness must give way to continuity.

The world-building is another sticking point for me. I’ll admit, I’m getting used to it, it’s starting to work. But overall I feel like there is no continuity in the world-building. Basically anything and everything can be and is anthropomorphized. The giant mobster felines mixed with steampunk robots were hard enough to blend together, but the pumpkinhead nurse was just not gelling with the others. I’m of the school of thought that even fantasy must have a rhyme or reason to it, there must be something relatable, and some element of it must be grounded in reality. Unfortunately I don’t feel that way with much of the “Shutter” world-building.

All-in-all I was excited about the main two storyline in this week’s issue and I think they makes comic worth checking out in the months to come. Given that this comic has drastically improved from even just last month’s issue, I’m excited to see where it brings us in the following issues.

 

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Comics

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

Published

17 hours ago

on

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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