There isn’t a better storyline than murder mysteries. Unless they involve high officials. The key is to create a unique story, since most try to copy what everyone else has done. Then at this point, the story gets even more interesting and the audience usually invests more time into the details. Does Revelations hit these notes or repeat something we have seen? Well, a little bit of both. We meet Charlie, who speaks to the reader on a personal level. He doesn’t hold anything back to us. He is an avid smoker, which the story reminds of us on several occasions, a once Catholic church member, and an all-around honest guy. A typical chill character that will no doubt be thrown into some sort of scandal. I can’t say I was blown away with issue #1, but it caught my interest. First I will go into the bad. The issue was all around predictable. Charlie gets a visit from an old friend, Marcel. Marcel is a Cardinal at the Vatican. He enlists Charlie’s help to solve a death at the Vatican. Another Cardinal, William Richleau, is dead. Most think the man killed himself in a brutal jump out of a window onto a spiked fence. Marcel isn’t so convinced. The story reminded me of that Angels and Demons movie right away. And that movie sucked. If you are going to immediately remind a reader of something make sure it is a good something else. So the experience put this sour taste of the movie in my mouth.
The church is clearly hiding something, and the comic makes no doubt about that. Another higher up Cardinal is pissed about Charlie’s arrival and the two have this undertoned “fight” with each other. I was annoyed with how the characters’ actions were all so expected. Just cracking open the issue you could see the archetype forms taking place.
Ok now let me move on to the good. Although the story has some typical characters seen in the murder covered up by corporations baseline, it also brings up a lot of questions. For instance, why was this Cardinal’s murder covered up? Plus what role does Marcel play in not being part of the cover up? The mini-series could take several directions and with only six issues, the plot will be intense from here on out.
The second thing I highly enjoyed about this issue was how beautifully it was laid out. It had that right balance of gore, spiritually, and horror. The deep reds bring all of that suspense to the forefront. I just love how each character is drawn and the dark eyes that each of them are given. It somehow tells a lot about the emotion in the series.
I would give this issue a 3, because it was average. There were things that foreshadowed a copycat murder. And there were things that brought a much more riveting plot surrounding by a mysterious setting. The Vatican will always be this elusive place and perfect backdrop for some revelations. So stick with this mini-series, and I hope my doubts will soon fade with this artistic masterpiece.
Score: 3/5
Writer: Paul Jenkins Artist: Humberto Ramos Publisher: Boom Studios Price: $3.99 Release Date: 12/31/13