Product Description: Rankor Island is a carnival of social ills. A Tilt-A-Whirl of manic violence and police corruption. Into this wasteland comes two men, saviors for a nihilistic age; the serial killer, Family Man and hyper-violent vigilante, Citizen Pain.
Much promised, some delivered I dug the Illuminati/ world conspiracy background to this exploration of free will and social control. It's clear what our vigilante protagonist is supposed to represent. Yet, his fall, or awakening, or redemption is not as dramatic as it should be, because the points of his epiphany are no suprise at all. He's a Punisher figure who looks like he's wearing Spiderman's Venom suit (as several jokes in the book remind you). Furthermore, does Pain really give up anything that he valued? If so, it wasn't developed as much of value before it was lost. The same critique applies to the female cop. She tells the secret of her past, and we see her spells of fear, but those are also undeveloped, pretty much. So, when the house of cards explodes at the end, I did not feel much of a revelation, awakening, or salvation on the emotional side coming off the page. The story is unique, but not so unique in that some the important parts were left untold or under-told.
Fresh Blood for the New Generation this book was visually stunning and written like a dream (or nightmare)! the story wasn't complicated and didn't drive me buggy with how all the characters were self absorbed in their own mysterious and unknown backgrounds. it was a straight forward, kick you in the ass at the end story. I feel that this writer was able to convey a very grizzly and dark story while also showing that he can write sympathy and heartache in the same breath. Being able to write various moods and themes and making them blend is a rare to come by talent in today's comic industry. I think anyone who's tired of the cookie cutter heroes and villans should pick up this book. Even if you LOVE cookie cutter heroes and villans, this book will ROCK YOUR WORLD! Of course this book wouldn't do so well if it wasn't for the art and color. There are a lot of shadows in the art, which I think is supposed to hint at something from the writer. The expressions the artist conveys on the characters are so realistic and screams volumes even if the character says nothing. I think perhaps this book wouldn't be so great if the writer didn't have the artist to flesh out the story. Anyone else and it would have looked too mainstream.
A stunning, gritty crime drama, love story, & hero angst! What can I say about Violent Messiahs? If you've read comic books before, and you love the stuff that ISN'T happy, shiny superheros in spandex knocking the snot out of each other, you'll love this book. It takes the crime drama that other books like Sam and Twitch try to approach, mix in some dark superhero-like elements, and a tragic love story, and you get Violent Messiahs. A vigilante named Citizen Pain is cleaning up the crime on run-down Rankor Island, while another vigilante, the Family Man, is orphaning kids of drug dealers. Find out how these two vigilantes' past intertwine, as Detectives Cheri Major and Lieutenant Houston go after them while learning about each other.
The action is electric, and artist Tone Rodriguez is clearly comfortable in his element. His characters come alive on the page, and the reader gets some excellent vantage points along the way. Writer Joshua Dysart jumps into the story and pulls you along with his kinetic, frenzied writing style that gets you excited, scared, and intrigued all at once. There are twists and turns that I did not see coming, and those surprises just added to the depth of the story.
This book contains the first eight issues of the comic, containing their FULL story arc, with bonus sketches and material and a cover gallery of all of their comic book covers. Their photo/art montage covers are the perfect way to contain the excitement, drama, and mystery of this book.
Buy this book, you won't be able to put it down until you're done!
Dark gritty and thought provoking Yes this is a graphically illustrated story but it you're thinking bah Superman or Donald Duck then think again.
Ever thought some decadent weirdos are pulling societies strings?
Genetic engineering, social destabilisation, loneliness, acceptance of others humanity and definitely some violence are what you will get from this book.
The combination of pencils, inks and the most dark intense photo realistic colouring give this a "Bad Lieutenant" movie kind of feel.
For those of you who know the works of Garth Ennis and Grant Morrison Joshua Dysart is another writer for you to watch.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Not Available Comics
Trevor
