The first issue of Chaos was okay. It didn’t blow my hair back or anything, but it was a nice return of a franchise that I somewhat remember. The series could be bigger, it could be more dangerous, but instead it’s opting for a safe return and I can accept that. This issue begins with our “Chosen” breaking into a morgue to talk to the spirit of the dead guy that Ernie killed in the last issue. They raise him, but something pulls him back before they can get any answers.
The story switches over to Chasity as she makes a move on Purgatory’s Vegas complex. The scene is what you’d think it is; Chasity attacks and gets her ass handed to her, but in the process reveals to Purgatory the threat that they all discovered in the last issue. This puts their beef on hold why they deal with a bigger threat.
On the Evil Ernie side of things he goes after a new victim in police custody, but during his attack the guy is shot. This pisses Ernie off and he kills someone that wasn’t a sinner (according to Smiley).
Mirka Andolfo’s art is good, but it doesn’t excel with all of the characters. Chasity and Purgatory come across the best with the Chosen group right behind. Ernie on the other hand looks pretty bad. There’s nothing creepy about the character and Smiley is barely noticeable. It would be nice to have at least one close up a page of Smiley to remind you that he’s taking. I didn’t even notice he was on Ernie’s hat until writing the review. Since Ernie is the driving force of the plot, it would be nice if the same level of care was put into his design. But you’ll probably forget that when you see Chasity and Purgatory again.
Tim Seeley’s writing is solid. As I said in the opening it all feels safe. I know there’s an impending doom, but because of how strange the events of this series are it’s hard to be scared. This is a reboot of a series so who’s to say if any of them will live or die or if the franchise will be visited again. It’s strange so I can understand why Seeley is playing it safe, but it would be great to see this universe shine and it’s not currently.
Sadly this is another average comic book. I’ll likely check out the next issue, but I’m not expecting anything from it. I want to be wow’d, I want to be blown away and hey maybe some people are, but for me this is just so-so. It’s not risky and frankly if I was bringing back a defunct comic company in the form of one shared mini-series… well I would be risky, bold and maybe a little crazy in order to win readers over.
Score: 3/5
Writer: Tim Seeley Artist: Mirka Andolfo Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment Price: $3.99 Release Date: 6/4/14 Format: Mini-Series, Print/Digital