The Goddamned #1 Story: Jason Aaron Art: R.M.Guéra Release: November 11, 2015 Rating: 4.5/5 Long Boxes "Writer JASON AARON & artist R.M. GUÉRA, the creators of the seminal crime series SCALPED, reunite for a new ongoing series of stark and brutal biblical noir, which begins with a SPECIAL OVER-SIZED DEBUT ISSUE featuring thirty pages of story. "And the earth was filled with violence." Genesis 6:11 It's 1,655 years after Eden, and life on Earth has already gone to hell. The world of man is a place of wanton cruelty and wickedness. Prehistoric monsters and stone-age marauders roam the land. Murder and destruction are the rule of the day. Humankind is a failed experiment. This is life before the Flood. The story of man on the verge of his first apocalypse. Welcome to the world of the Goddamned." |
Long time fans of the series Scalped will find themselves right at home with Aaron and Guéra presenting their biblical-noir action-adventure comic. I've never read Scalped (check out the Backlog page), but I am a really big fan of Aaron's recent work. Jason Aaron is quickly becoming one of those writers that a lot of comic book fans consider must read, rightfully so.
I won't dive too much into the plot with this issue as I think the character reveals were pretty exciting on my own read through. I certainly don't want to spoil that for any of you. Readers are introduced to a world, where things literally have gone to shit following the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. The main protagonist in The Goddamned is, simply put, a badass. A local band of savages have taken all of his belongings and you can very easily imagine what takes place in this first issue. Following an introductory confrontation containing panels of wonderfully drawn gruesome violence and brutal action, the story begins to expand in scope. The character reveals, both who our main character is and what his driving force is, as well as the character reveal on the last page, have effectively hooked me in as a reader.
Story and world building are done to a level readers would expect from Jason Aaron and although this series won't be for everyone, Aaron and Guéra quickly lay the groundwork for some future confrontations of biblical (ha) proportions. The world following the fall of man, pre-flood, is filled with violence, destruction, and despair and Guéra's art certainly captures the atmosphere of the damned, post-apocalyptic-like world.
Guéra's art is really what shines in this issue. Admittedly, Guéra's style isn't necessarily my preferred style, but it is good enough that I still find it fantastic. There are a number of text-less panels where Aaron takes a step back and hands the reigns over to Guéra. For nearly 7-8 pages Guéra's art tells the story of this book in a very well done action sequence that I have found myself glancing over a number of times. Guera's art perfectly captures the brutal and ruthless nature of this world and the story Aaron intends to tell. So perfectly, that if you only had Guera's art and no character dialogue for the first 19 pages you would completely follow along and understand.
The Verdict: at 4.5 out of 5 long boxes The Goddamned was great. Make room in those long boxes, this series will be worth reading.
I won't dive too much into the plot with this issue as I think the character reveals were pretty exciting on my own read through. I certainly don't want to spoil that for any of you. Readers are introduced to a world, where things literally have gone to shit following the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. The main protagonist in The Goddamned is, simply put, a badass. A local band of savages have taken all of his belongings and you can very easily imagine what takes place in this first issue. Following an introductory confrontation containing panels of wonderfully drawn gruesome violence and brutal action, the story begins to expand in scope. The character reveals, both who our main character is and what his driving force is, as well as the character reveal on the last page, have effectively hooked me in as a reader.
Story and world building are done to a level readers would expect from Jason Aaron and although this series won't be for everyone, Aaron and Guéra quickly lay the groundwork for some future confrontations of biblical (ha) proportions. The world following the fall of man, pre-flood, is filled with violence, destruction, and despair and Guéra's art certainly captures the atmosphere of the damned, post-apocalyptic-like world.
Guéra's art is really what shines in this issue. Admittedly, Guéra's style isn't necessarily my preferred style, but it is good enough that I still find it fantastic. There are a number of text-less panels where Aaron takes a step back and hands the reigns over to Guéra. For nearly 7-8 pages Guéra's art tells the story of this book in a very well done action sequence that I have found myself glancing over a number of times. Guera's art perfectly captures the brutal and ruthless nature of this world and the story Aaron intends to tell. So perfectly, that if you only had Guera's art and no character dialogue for the first 19 pages you would completely follow along and understand.
The Verdict: at 4.5 out of 5 long boxes The Goddamned was great. Make room in those long boxes, this series will be worth reading.