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Review: ‘Army of Darkness vs Hack/Slash’ # 2

Published

11 years ago

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Ash continues to bumble behind Cassie Hack in another fantastic chapter of Tim Seeley’s “Army of Darkness vs Hack/Slash.” Seeley creates a perfect balance of comedy, confusion, and action with an issue entirely narrated by the one and only Ashley J Williams.


WRITTEN BY: Tim Seeley
ART BY: Daniel Leister
PUBLISHER: Dynamite
PRICE: $3.50
RELEASE: Sept 4, 2013

Ash’s voice is incredibly difficult to nail. He is a big character that commands most scenes. He speaks in a ridiculous fashion, and has a passion for one-liners. Tim Seeley has a portal to Bruce Campbell’s psyche. The dialogue and narration in this issue is spot on. You feel as confused with Ash, as Cassie Hack pulls us along.

Ash is the star of the show here, and he is the best kind of reluctant hero. He does what he does to stay alive, and he does so haphazardly. This is made clear by watching any of his films, or through reading this issue. Ash’s narration shows you a general disillusion with the plan at hand. His story jumps around in time, and is pretty loose on the details, unless of course said details are in relation to Cassie’s body.

The story kicks into high gear immediately. Ash is in danger, and feels the need to tell a story. He retraces his steps with Cassie, and we learn that there is another evil clone on the loose. The team sets out to find this evil clone, and everything (literally) goes to shit from here.

Seeley does an amazing job at blending the two worlds together. The crossover feels like a natural extension of both series, and the story is entirely routed in Army of Darkness mythology. This allows fans to get their due service, while newcomers shouldn’t feel overwhelmed. The story is still wildly original, and manages to put Ash in situations fans thought they’d never see. Cassie’s world seems to take a back seat for this series. It’s disheartening a little for Hack/Slash fans, but I’m sure Seeley has a plan for his characters. Cassie still drives the story, but the story is of Ash’s world.

Leister’s art is strong this month. His pencils are tight and his lines are solid. His depiction of Ash’s flashback was expertly done on page 4. The use of symmetry in some of his panels makes the book pleasing to look at, while never bordering on overwhelming. His action pages are handled incredibly well as he manages to balance out the fighting with small and big panels alike.

The pacing in the art that never really lets up. The issue is incredibly heavy on narration this month, so the art has to do a lot of the lifting to keep readers interested. Leister more than delivers. Just wait until you see Cassie and Ash fight the naked skinheads in the prison.

Tim Seeley is doing something fantastic with this book. He is clearly the man to write Ashley J Williams, and is going to give Steve Niles’ new ongoing “Army of Darkness” series a hard act to live up to. Not to mention the story is a compelling chapter in Hack/Slash mythology. With a little more attention to Cassie this series could hit its stride.

Rating 3.5/5 Skulls.

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Comics

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

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16 hours ago

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April 17, 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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