The Revenant (Desperado / Denton / Giffen / Worley / Santolouco)
The bad men of Sapphire City have forgotten what it means to be afraid. They’ve risen to power by ruthlessly cutting down all who stand in their way. Now, one they’ve long thought dead and buried has returned, a ghoulish gunslinger with unfinished business. This is vengeance! This is fear!! This is THE REVENANT!!!
There are too many reasons to love this book, I am sorry I put off this review for so long. Being a fan of supernatural and pulp, it would seem that The Revenant was written with me in mind! Before I get too far along here, I want to qualify, while this book certainly has some characteristics that are “horroresque”, I would not categorize this book as horror, but rather as a pulp action, with a horror exoskeleton. At the heart of the book, we have a story of noir revenge that I think Maxwell Grant, Harry Steeger and all the classic writers would be reading today if they could.
Our protagonist, a supernatural kick-ass force that is not taking prisoners, is slowly taking out all the gangsters and bosses that are in Sapphire City and Jade Harbor, and turning the entire crime world on it’s ear. As we find out, his motives might not be as altruistic as some of our classic pulp heroes – he was originally one of them and got double crossed – but that doesn’t stop you from cheering him on as he cleans house. The book is a thrill ride… page to page action! The break-neck pacing is supported by some beautiful art that pops in all the right ways… from urban landscapes to decapitations, every page is on the money. This book is like the Sopranos meets the X-files with and integration of classic pulps that does nothing but enhance everything present. The Revenant is a great mixture of genres and Mat Santolouco’s art is almost a genetic match for Rob Worley’s plot.
You can check it out yourself…
And remember JUL08 3913 is the Diamond ordering code! Talk to you local comic shops!
Grade: no-brainer A
Pullbox Warning: due to some graphic details, both story wise and visual, this is not one for the kids… you know we always put these on, but in my heart of hearts I always hope parents are doing their jobs out there and not buying their eight year old books without previewing them, but then again I saw a four year old at Dawn of the Dead, so I guess we got to keep saying it!
