Elena is an interesting mixture of new ideas and well-worn plotlines. It works, but it’s still rough around the corners. In our current world climate, the world feels at home. Throughout the two issues we come to learn about Elena’s backstory vis flashbacks that are tied into the scenes the proceed them. She’s a Russian orphan with strange powers. Her mother had her father killed and she knows about it because she can telepathically “hear” technology.
That’s her gift which is very handy in our modern age. She’s paired with others that have powers to fight Yuri, which I can only assume is “evil” powered people. I put “evil” in quotes because it’s the government that’s fighting them and when’s the last time you fully trusted the government?
The first issue introduces a threat that was called in and when the unit arrives they find a banner basically advertising a bomb on a train. The two field agents Elena and her boyfriend are accompanied by their liaisons into the field. They come up against a dude with a gross ass face and lots of body enhancements.
The second issue reveals the point of the terrorist act, which is of course a distraction to steal. We also meet the bad guys that aren’t the Yuri we’ve heard so much about, but they are super powered. I’m assuming that the Yuri are super powered people by the way, it just makes the most sense.
Overall the story was fairly interesting. Sure it’s just super powered people and this time they happen to be working for the government or the extremely rich, but there is a lot of our current world’s society and mentality structured into the story. Again, it’s a mix of new and old ideas, but overall it’s an entertaining read.
Elena as a character is a bit shallow. I don’t mean she’s actually shallow, but there’s no depth to her character. She’s kind of coddled by all of the other characters. They’re all trying to protect her and some come across as feeling pity for her. It’s weird because in the flashbacks she’s a strong character, but in the present she just seems annoyed and lost. It’s an okay start for her, but they really need to cut her loose and let her grow as a character.
The line work is okay. It looks like it was all digitally drawn and with this comes some problems. There’ a lot of extra shadowing and at times faces are completely covered. Some of this is intentional for the room the character is in, but the rest of it is just excessive. The coloring is okay. It’s heavy on the orange and blue hues which gives it a movie poster vibe. There’s a lot of times when it could add some depth to the scene and instead makes it look rather flat and lifeless.
The first two issues of this four issue mini-series aren’t bad. It’s not that original of an idea, but I enjoyed enough of what it offered to finish the mini-series. I definitely want to see Elena stop being protected and coddled though. It’s hard to buy into her badassness when every other character steps in to save her. Ultimately I would finish reading the series.
Score: 3/5
Elena: Divinity Rising #1 & #2 Writer: Darren Pearce Artist: Stuart Jennett Publisher: Alien Apple Studios Format: Mini-Series; Digital