This comic has once again proved to be one of the best debuts out there. It captures my attention on every level. First the writing is just perfect. I’ll be honest, the comic, as a whole, is moving pretty slow. But Brian Holguin and Todd McFarlane get you so invested with Savior, that it doesn’t matter. They make the reader think that Savior, which I will be calling him from now on, is God too. The writers make him mysterious by giving him few lines and by giving him this intense flashbacks where we don’t fully understand what is going on. Secondly, the art just adds to Savior’s mystery. Clayton Crain gives him these high cheek bones, tossed brown hair, and muscular body. It all adds up to him looking like a perfect human being, exactly how we would want God to look. But the most important thing Crain does for Savior is with his eyes. Since the comic is so realistic, it is easy to get sucked into the character’s emotions more easily. Savior has these clear focused eyes that tell more of a story than his words do. It is amazing to me that when Savior is speaking with Cassie how much Crain shows us just in his movements, but especially in his face. Cassie is invested with him now, and so are we, as an audience.
Last time we left Savior, he was asking Cassie for help. I don’t know why he picked her, but again I think he probably has an intuition about her. Even though she is a reporter, we still trust her. She doesn’t seem after an angle with people she meets, but rather wants people to know the truth. She is one of those good reporters, but it still makes me nervous that this will get Savior in trouble eventually.
The other main story that we see unfolding is with Malcolm. This kid has tons of problems. He is waiting for a sign from God. For what? I’m not sure. I think just a sign so he can believe in something. Doesn’t he know God works in mysterious ways. Malcolm meets Annie, who is apart of this cult. Plan and simple. The cult is trying to protest the funerals of those who were lost in the plane crash. Trying to explain what cults believe is challenging, but they think God made this crash happen. So these people deserved to die or some bs like that. Well of course Malcolm is going to run into these people. I love this side of the story because not only does it pique my interest in this new society but it also offers the brewing debate that will come about. It is adding fuel to the fire, and I have a feeling that more people may end up joining this cult.
There are some smaller stories going on, but they all seem to flow together in this issue. Cassie and the Savior are linked and now Malcolm with the cult. Again, the plot is slow-moving but with so much intrigued with these main stories, the slow plot only builds the reader’s suspense of what is come next. Holguin and McFarlane will no doubt keep this up while continuing to deliver an impressive story based around faith. So now it is just a matter of finding out who Savior really is…?
Score: 5/5
Savior #4 Writer: Brian Holguin & Todd McFarlane Artist: Clayton Crain Publisher: Image Comics Price: $2.99 Release Date: 7/8/15 Format: Ongoing, Print/Digital