After being very impressed by last month’s issue of Hexed, I found myself looking forward to this month’s issue and not just for Dan Mora’s impressive artwork. If you enjoyed the first issue then good news, this second issue is an extension of everything from the debut. That includes the good and the bad. Interestingly enough the story starts with the intern and Ms. Brisendine. The intern or Raina if you prefer, wakes up with glowing symbols on her face and a sense that Lucifer is in trouble. I point out again that a female character named Lucifer is still pretty damn cool.
Meanwhile we see what’s up with Lucifer as she ventures to the Shade. It’s a realm that’s a twisted reflection of our world and is populated by spirits that didn’t want to move on to whatever afterlife was waiting for them. To get there though… she had to kill herself. Her goal is to find the Roman soldier’s soul that she used for the intern after our baddy from the last issue ate it. Her soul that is, ate her soul.
Speaking of our baddy he takes a visit to the Harlot and yes that is what she’s called. She’s the woman who has named Lucifer as her heir. He wants to remove a tattoo from his body, something that gives his scary ass sister power over him. Unfortunately for him there’s no way to remove it, but the Harlot does tell him of an item that he can retrieve and wouldn’t you know it… it’s in Ms. Brisendine’s possession.
As I said the good and the bad have followed this issue. The good being that the characters are rich with development and characterization, but the bad being that the story still feels rushed in parts. In particular when Lucifer is in the Shade, what should be an intense and action packed segment of the story is reduced to a few panels of running and never does it feel like there’s a threat to Lucifer’s life by being there.
One thing that continues to be a success of the series is the dialogue that Michael Alan Nelson provides. Particularly with Lucifer because what she says and what she narrates reveals two parts of her personality; the vocalized aspect of her being a tough front that she puts on, while the narration reveals a softer and more relatable side.
Mora’s artwork continues to be impressive and shines brightly with this issue. The only thing was again the Shade. What we get to see of it is very cool looking and full of rich details, but it would have been nice to see Mora really explore this realm with the artwork and build it as a setting. The artwork looks shackled and really this was the perfect opportunity to showcase his artwork and the world of Hexed. As great as his artwork is, the world is interesting enough on its own for people to latch onto it.
I might have some strong criticisms, but it’s only because this series is very good. It has the potential to be great and it’s on the cusp for sure. Even with its misses this is still one of the best issues I read this week and I can’t wait for next month to get my hands on more.
Score: 4/5
Creator/Writer: Michael Alan Nelson Artist: Dan Mora Publisher: BOOM! Studios Price: $3.99 Release Date: 9/10/14 Format: Ongoing; Print/Digital