Mercy Sparx #3 – Review

By Josh Blaylock (Writer), Matt Merhoff (Pencils), and Bill Crabtree (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: The first two issues of Mercy Sparx hinted that there may be quite a bit of depth to the new series beyond the slick concept of a devil-girl hunting rogue angels. However, writer Josh Blaylock has so far seemed more interested in letting Matt Merhoff go crazy with drawn out fight scenes as opposed to actually getting to the real meat of what Mercy Sparx is going to be all about. While I have enjoyed the brutal, fairly creative devil-girl vs. rogue angel action, the story needs to move beyond that in order to keep me hooked for the long term. I know the debut mini-series ends next month in order to pave the way for the ongoing. Whether I make the jump to the ongoing will largely depend on how things develop as the mini wraps up.

The Story: A meeting with Pastor Collins leaves Mercy quite upbeat as it seems her task on earth is finally complete. The elation is short lived however as the she-devil learns that her task wasn’t exactly heaven sent. It turns out more is at stake than Mercy could have realized.

What’s Good: I hoped for more story and that’s exactly what Mercy Sparx #3 delivers. The character, world, and series instantly became a lot more interesting upon learning the true nature of Mercy’s job. And while the plot twist isn’t exactly original, the stylish artwork and interesting character design leaves me looking forward to the future of the series. In addition, the twist puts Mercy in quite an interesting position heading into the conclusion of the mini-series/ launch of the ongoing. In other words, it looks as though Mercy Sparx could have a very bright future.

What’s Not So Good: There is quite a bit still up in the air regarding the plot developing through the mini-series. A fairly large amount of questions have yet to be answered and while I’m sure they will be addressed in the future, it makes it difficult to judge how satisfying the mini-series will ultimately end up being. Another negative worth mentioning is how the plot twist is both predictable and quite generic. Sure, the whole idea works and lends itself well to an ongoing, but I hope that there ends up being more to the series in the long run.

Conclusion: Mercy Sparx continues to be a fun series that gets by largely on its cool concept and attractive, stylish visuals. If you’ve liked it so far, I’m sure you will end up liking where the series goes next. In my humble opinion, Mercy Sparx is a keeper.

Grade:  B

-Kyle Posluszny

Mercy Sparx #1 – Review

By Josh Blaylock (Writer), Matt Merhoff (Artist), and Eduardo Medeiros (Colors)

The Story: Mercy Sparx is a sexy demon from Sheol, a place located between Heaven and Hell. Her once dead-end life now has purpose as she serves as a bounty hunter for Heaven by bringing in rogue angels living among humanity. In this debut, Mercy Sparx is tasked with bringing in the muse Serendipity, currently living on earth as D.J. Dip. It doesn’t exactly go smoothly.

What’s Good: This comic instantly makes a good impression, thanks to the memorable visuals by Matt Merhoff and colorist Eduardo Medeiros. The look seems to inspired by tattoo artwork and it perfectly fits the tone that writer Josh Blaylock seems to be going for. Along with the amazing art, the idea of Mercy Sparx alone, is interesting, having us look forward to the character’s development. While she comes across as fairly one-dimensional in this first issue, it is not difficult to see how her attitude and lot in life could lead to some compelling scenarios. Especially considering the divine powers she is dealing with. With angels, demons, God, and the underworld in play, the story could easily become much more than the sum of its parts. The concept that this book introduces so far could easily become much deeper than your average bounty hunter story.

What’s Not So Good: As stylish and fun as this book is, it does have some flaws that could be damaging in the future if not addressed early on. The most glaring problem is that the bounty hunting action does not flow quite as well as it should, something that could prove distracting if the series winds up being full of action. The other thing I noticed is that Mercy’s bad attitude could easily come off as annoying to some readers. While I have no problem with her tone this early in the series, she will need some added depth in order to become truly endearing. Neither issue I pointed out crippling at this stage of the game, but they are things that should be taken into consideration for the future.

Conclusion: Mercy Sparx #1 is a promising, fun debut for a character loaded with potential. If a sexy, bounty hunting, metal-head of a demon sounds interesting, be sure to pick this one up.

Grade: B

-Kyle Posluszny

She-Hulk #28 – Review

By Peter David (Writer), Val Semeiks (Pencils), Dave Meikis with Victor Olazaba (Inks), Chris Sotomayor (Colors)

She-Hulk is in jail? What happened? Did I miss an issue? No, Peter David starts at the end and backtracks to how we got to this point,  which is an effective device. The book opens with a nice Byrne-esque splash page, too. She-Hulk and her Skrull colleague Jazinda head to Cleveland in search of Bran Murphy, wanted for blowing up a bar in a previous issue. The trail leads them to a Browns game and the hijinx ensue.

The scenes at the football game were good. Often I cringe when comics cross over into sporting events but this was well done with some amusing moments as our heroes ventured into the “dawg pound” in pursuit of their quarry. We have a bit of mystery established for the future as Bran seems to be not entirely himself.

I really like what Peter David has been doing here. She-Hulk has questioned and come to terms with her role as a heroine. She has been operating outside the normal confines of the law as a bounty hunter posing as an FBI agent while still standing for and upholding justice. With She-Hulk traveling as a bounty hunter the book does not have a permanent locale and this gives this gives the book a vibe somewhat reminiscent of the old Hulk TV series. The constant banter between She-Hulk and her Skrull partner Jazinda is always enjoyable and a highlight of the book. In this issue we are treated to a look into Skrull sexual mores, unless Jaz is exceptional among her people in her practices. The book promises a story arc that will reveal the reasons behind Jennifer Walters’ disbarment and a Hercules guest shot to follow that. I find plenty to like about this book at the moment and I am looking forward to continuing with it. (Grade: A)

– Arthur Cooke