Comic Review: Kiss Me, Satan #4 and #5

KISS ME, SATAN
Writer:Victor Gischler

Artist:Juan Ferreyra

Colorist:Juan Ferreyra

Cover Artist:Dave Johnson
Genre: Action/Adventure, Crime, Horror
Dark Horse

Publication Date:December 18, 2013

Format:FC, 32 pages; Miniseries

Price:$3.99

UPC:7 61568 23081 9 00411

Issue #4

preview

After a contract-killer shaman ambushes our heroes, undercover demon Barnabus Black takes a group of witches back to his safe house, where he equips them with a massive arsenal to prepare for a final showdown with the werewolf mafia.
* Covers by Dave Johnson!
* By Victor Gischler (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Spike—A Dark Place, Clown Fatale) and Juan Ferreyra (Colder, Rex Mundi)!
* Drawing on your nightmares!

Issue #5

preview
Barnabus Black infiltrates the werewolf mafia’s mansion, only to be overtaken by an army of angry monsters, a dangerous wizard, and their werewolf godfather!
* Featuring covers by Dave Johnson!
* By Victor Gischler (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Spike—A Dark Place, Punisher MAX, X-Men)and Juan Ferreyra(Colder, Rex Mundi)!

And then there was one. Despite his best efforts, Barnabus just can't seem to keep the coven of witches from being picked off one by one. Holed up in a shack in the bayou, there is one witch left (Zell) with the eye of fates and if she dies, then the eye could wind up in the wrong hands.

The fourth issue, "Her Demon Lover," kicked off with Malcolm Drake, the notorious mage for hire, incinerating one witch, but taking a seriously humbling ass-whoopin' from Barnabus in the process. Not all bad from Drake though, since he got a good look at the mystical necklace Barnabus is wearing that apparently protects him from magic attacks. With Drake tucking tail, Barnabus and Zell head out to his hideout and set off a little magic of their own. Bow chicka bow wow.

The fifth issue, "Dog Pile," begins with a rather out-of-the-blue encounter with a priest and a nun that know their way around firearms and have marching orders: "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live." Barnabus and Zell just can't catch a break it seems. The grand finale of the mini-series takes things back to where they all began, in Cassian's mansion as his newborn son remains in serious danger of being killed to ensure Cassian holds on to power. And Drake lays in wait among the werewolf clan to take the eye and Barnabus' nifty necklace, too.

This high-octane mini-series wound up keeping the pedal to the medal for these final two issues. Lots of action, lots of swerves, and one big and bloody finish. Not a lot of room for introspection and soliloquies in this series, as everything on the page exists to keep the action moving. Between Gischler's firm grip on each character's motivations and frailties, and Ferreyra's pulpy presentation, much of that action practically lept off the page.

There were a couple of moments where story threads felt like they got snipped quite abruptly, but nothing was glaringly unfulfilled and the series never really made the promise of expounding on the final resolutions after the fact. Everything ended on a really satisfying note, with just enough elbow room to offer a glimpse for future iterations of Barnabus and this world. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

review: Kiss Me Satan #3

review: Kiss Me Satan #2
review: Kiss Me Satan #1

4.5 Sheep

4 and 1/2 Sheep 
Gef Fox 
Wag The Fox

Interview: Victor Gischler writer of Kiss Me, Satan from Dark Horse

Sheep reviewer and comic lover Gef Fox got a chance to talk with the writer of Kiss Me, Satan. A new and exciting horror/action comic from Dark Horse. This has been one of my favorites of 2013 (Sharon) as well as Gef's. 

everyone wave to Juan!

Gef: Where did the collaboration with Juan Ferreyra get its start?

Victor: There was a bit of back and forth about who the artist would be, but Juan was just coming off COLDER and Dan Chabon said "How about this gut" and I saw the samples and said "sure, why not?" HOLY POOP! Juan delivered in a way I never could have imagined. No matter what I pictured in my head, Juan drew something even better. The guy is a super star on the rise.

Gef: When it comes to urban fantasy, as well as horror, New Orleans might be the most visited city in the genre--second only to New York City, I suppose. For you, was their a particular attraction to that region when coming up with Kiss Me, Satan?
Victor: For me it was a no-brainer. I live in Baton Rouge about an hour north, and I've spent a good amount of time in New Orleans, feeling the vibe and getting a sense of the place. I think it's a setting that's been used a lot but still not to its full potential. Juan has really captured the flavor of the place in his artwork.

Gef: Barnabus makes for a good anti-hero protagonist, doing what he can to work his way back into Heaven, but the supporting characters certainly do a lot to chew the scenery. Is there any kind of balancing act when it comes to keeping Barnabus as the central character, as opposed to turning the series into a huge ensemble cast with everyone jockeying for attention?
Victor: Honestly, I don't have a problem with that. I'd rather have an ensemble cast fighting for attention than a bunch of characters who obviously only exist to make the star look good. Frankly there were a dozen times during the writing of this mini that it occurred to me I could do a book just on the witches or just on Malcolm or just on the Bone Wrangler or just on ... well, you see what I mean. I'm glad to suffer from an embarrassment of riches.

Gef: Jules, the cigar-chomping cherub, only made one brief appearance in the first issue. With four issues in, any chance of seeing him again?
Victor: Well, the mini is actually five issues and we do see him in #4 ... do we see him again. Stay tuned. But he's awesome. A little cherub gangster with wings. 
Gef: Kiss Me, Satan feels like the kind of series that doesn't believe in brake pedals. The action is constant without being overwhelming. What kind of consideration goes into the pacing of this kind of series?
Victor: Raymond Chandler is famous for his rule that if things slow down have a man with a gun in his hand walk through the door. Or words to that effect. I really want things to be fun and fast, and it sounds like you've caught onto that. I guess I feel the same way. Really, I just want things to stay fun fun fun. Right?

Gef's reviews of Kiss Me, Satan

Gef: The five-part mini-series is something I have come to really appreciate as a relative newcomer to the medium, since there seems to be such a learning curve when it comes to jumping into the middle of an ongoing series. It is a finite story arc, while lending itself as a jumpoff for further stories. What's your take on this approach to comics?
Victor: All I can say is that it's good for me. KISS ME, SATAN would never have had a chance if I'd demanded from the git-go it be an ongoing series. But it was perfectly cool and reasonable that we give it a chance for 5 issue. You know what? If people want it, I'd love to do more.

About the Author:
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Victor Gischler is the author of such novels as GUN MONKEYS, SHOTGUN OPERA, GO-GO GIRLS OF THE APOCALYPSE, THE DEPUTY and others. His work has been optioned for film and translated into numerous languages. He's also written such comic book titles as X-Men, Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth, The Punisher, Conan, and The Shadow. He is a world traveler, grad school survivor and BBQ aficionado.

Gef Fox's Top 5 comics of 2013

My Fave Five Comic Books of 2013

Gef Fox

Wag The Fox

Ever since Katie and Sharon invited me to review comic books for I Smell Sheep, I've been having a blast doing something that I just never had the chance to do when I was a boy: read comic books!

It's like I'm making up for lost time. And it's nice to live in a century where a thirty-something fella can read a comic book without having scorn heaped upon him. I get enough of that for reading horror novels, anyway.

Okay, so to be clear, the vast majority of comics I have read this year were published by Image and Dark Horse, though I have had the chance to read some promising titles from publishers like Valiant, Top Cow, Zenescope, and others, so please don't take this as any kind of definitive list or anything. It's just me cheer-leading the books I managed to read. So, here we go.

~~~~~

#5 Kiss Me, Satan by Victor Gischler (Dark Horse) - This series was custom-made for me, it feels like, because it is an amped-up urban fantasy that makes no apologies for how entrenched in the genre it is. I can only imagine the fiendish glee Victor Gischler and Juan Ferreyra take with putting the story on the page. It's only three issues into the five-part series as I write this, but it's already a standout for me.
Gef's reviews of Kiss Me, Satan

#4 Fatale by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips (Image) - I'm late to this series, but what I've read has been a delight to a devilish degree. The overtly melodramatic noir is so well-suited to the medium, I'm surprised. I would go bonkers if there was a TV or film adaptation of this series, but I have to wonder how a general audience would react when the allusions to supernatural elements rear up at certain points. Bah, screw adaptations--the comic book is superb.
Gef's reviews: Fatale

#3 X by Duane Swierczynski and Erin Nguyen (Dark Horse) - I'm already a fan of Swierczynski's novels, so when I caught word he also wrote for comic books and he had a new series coming out, I just had to check it out. I'm glad I did, too. The hyper-violent revenge thriller is at times so over the top, I feel like I should be repulsed, but there is just enough humanity injected into the story that I am simply captivated.
Gef's reviews: X

#2 Skullkickers by Jim Zub and Edwin Huang (Image) - I think it was Skullkickers #19 that first introduced me to the irreverent humor of Jim Zub. This series has been one of the most genuinely hilarious comic book series I've ever read. Heck, one of the funniest book series, period. If you enjoy fantasy adventure with drunken dwarves, you're gonna love this series.
Gef's reviews: Skullkickers

#1 Ten Grand by J. Michael Straczynski, Ben Templesmith, & C.P. Smith (Image) - I like my urban fantasy gritty, and Ten Grand might be the grittiest. Up until very recently, it was illustrated by the incomparable Ben Templesmith, whose artwork such a bleak and mesmerizing portrayal of this universe. Now, the helm has been passed to C.P. Smith, just as the main character ventures into Hell to save his lady love, which has been a bit of serendipity, offering a refreshing twist on the visual tone of the story. Straczynski's writing remains unchanged, meaning brilliant. I am hard-pressed to imagine a series that could impress me more.
Gef's reviews of Ten Grand

~~~~~

And there you have it. I'm sure other lists of this sort look entirely different, but I'm going with my gut and basically putting my personal tastes in comics on display here. Aside from Batman and the occasional X-Men comic, I don't get wrapped up in the superhero genres. I have been far more drawn towards the books that work to tell stories a little more grounded, yet just as fantastical.

So, what are your favorite comic books from this past year? What have I been missing out on and need to hunt down once it's out in trade form?

Comic Review: Kiss Me, Satan #3

Kiss Me, Satan #3
Writer:Victor Gischler
Artist:Juan Ferreyra
Colorist:Juan Ferreyra
Cover Artist:Dave Johnson
Genre: Action/Adventure, Crime, Horror
Publication Date:November 20, 2013
Format:FC, 32 pages; Miniseries
Price:$3.99
Age range:14
UPC:7 61568 23081 9 00311
Dark Horse Comics

Preview

After a bloody zombie battle, a dying witch tells Barnabus Black to cut out her eye. If it’s still in her head when she dies, all her knowledge of the occult will be lost forever. Now for the hard part: Who gets the eye?
* Don’t miss writer Victor Gischler’s all-new series, Clown Fatale!
* By Victor Gischler (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Spike—A Dark Place, Punisher MAX, X-Men)and Juan Ferreyra(Colder, Rex Mundi)!
It kind of speaks to just how nuts this series is when the third issue kicks off with a rumble in a New Orleans graveyard between a coven of witches and a horde of zombies. Throw in an angelic bodyguard and a cowboy wizard and all bets are off.

Cassian Steele, the werewolf kingpin, has set a very enticing price on the heads of those witches, in hopes of keeping the news of his newborn son hush-hush. And it appears The Bone Wrangler, a wizard with a penchant for enchanted trinkets, looks to be Cassian's best hire yet, since ol' Boney's undead ruffians have put a serious hurt on the witches. So much so in fact that Barnabus and the coven have to retreat and lick their wounds--and prepare for a changing of the guard, so to speak.

But Bone Wrangler didn't finish the job, which leaves the door open for a warlock by the name of Malcolm Drake, who has eyes for the Eye of Fate, the infernal device used to see the future of Cassian's would-be heir. Considering the lengths Cassian has gone to so far to keep things in check regarding his son, even going so far as to incapacitate his wife, the Eye is practically a bargain.

This series has, so far, played out like a violent, fantastical soap opera. With the atmospheric backdrop of New Orleans, every supernatural creature imaginable short of the Creature from the Black Lagoon, there's little to complain about regarding Kiss Me, Satan. If I have one gripe, it's that there has been no followup on Barnabus' relationship and arrangement with Heaven, since he's serving as bodyguard as a way to earn his way back into God's good graces. Maybe it's simply that I would love to see the return of Jules, the impish angel who struck the deal with Barnabus in the first place.

Oh well, two more issues to go and a heckuva lot more action. Can't wait.

review: Kiss Me Satan #2
review: Kiss Me Satan #1

4 and 1/2 Sheep 
Gef Fox 
Wag The Fox

  

Sheep Comic Review: Kiss Me, Satan #2

Kiss Me, Satan #2
Writer: Victor Gischler

Artist: Juan Ferreyra

Cover Artist: Dave Johnson
Genre: Action/Adventure, Crime, Horror
Publication Date: October 23, 2013

Dark Horse

Format: FC, 32 pages; Miniseries

Price: $3.99

UPC:7 61568 23081 9 00211

After an attack from a vampire maid, Barnabus Black and the witches flee their hiding spot in a cheap Big Easy motel. Barnabus says he knows a safe place, and as they cross the historic Garden District Cemetery, zombies erupt from their graves and attack the group. A new hit man arrives who is known as THE BONE WRANGLER, and his power is control of the undead.
* Featuring covers by Dave Johnson!
* By Victor Gischler (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Spike—A Dark Place) and Juan Ferreyra (Colder, Rex Mundi)!

Subtlety be damned. Let's see some ass whoopin'. Where the inaugural issue of Kiss Me, Satan started off hot, issue number two makes it downright scorching.

After whisking away a coven of witches before they could be killed by a corrupt werewolf kingpin in fear of losing his empire, Barnabus Black has them holed up in a seedy motel waiting to the heat to die down a little. Trouble is, a hit has been put out on the witches, which is attracting an assortment of ghoulish assassins

After going toe-to-toe with a vampiric gun-for-hire, Barnabus has to get the coven out of there, but if the vampire was a handful, the truckload of baddies on their tail have to be seen to be believed. Meanwhile, Cassian the werewolf kingpin must contend with his own pregnant wife when she discovers that he has no intention of letting their accursed child live. That secondary storyline does a lot to steal the show from the main storyline, given the story a bit of a soap opera vibe--a soap opera with fangs and firepower, at any rate.

After the absolutely insane action of these first two issues, I cannot imagine what Victor Gischler and company have cooked up for the third issue. Can they possibly shift into a higher gear? That would be a heck of an accomplishment. While there are moments that make the story seem ludicrous, it's still way too entertaining to gripe.

After I've seen a ninja zombie, I should say I've seen it all, but when it comes to Kiss Me, Satan, I doubt I have seen it all. Not by a longshot.

4 1/2 Sheep

Gef Fox
Wag the Fox: Den For Dark Fiction

Sheep Comic Review: Kiss Me, Satan #1

Kiss Me, Satan #1 (Juan Ferreyra variant cover)

Writer: Victor Gischler

Artist: Juan Ferreyra

Cover Artist: Juan Ferreyra
Genre: Action/Adventure, Crime, Horror
Publication Date: September 18, 2013

Dark Horse
Format: FC, 32 pages; Miniseries

Price: $3.99

UPC:7 61568 23081 9 00121

Preview

Cassian Steele is the boss of the werewolf mafia in the Big Easy, and he’s got a problem. The old witch Verona knows his secret and has gone into hiding. Cassian wants her dead. So he sends out the word: An open contract. The first monster to dust Verona gets a big payday. What no one realizes is that Barnabus Black, a demon desperately trying to regain his halo, is her protection.

* Featuring covers by Dave Johnson and Juan Ferreyra!

* By Victor Gischler (Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Spike—A Dark Place, Punisher MAX, X-Men) and Juan Ferreyra (Colder, Rex Mundi)!

"His art reminds me of Clive Barker at his best. Things which disturb you on a deep, psychological level. Beasts which have too many eyes or hands. It always warms my black heart to see new monsters, and Ferreyra draws the best I've seen in many moons." - Adventures in Poor Taste

Cover by Dave Johnson

The Dark Horse team have themselves a new urban fantasy on their hands, here. Or maybe it's action/horror. Ah the heck with it. Whatever it is it's got Victor Gischler writing it, and that ain't not bad.

Set in New Orleans, werewolves run the town and the family who runs them all has just received some ominous news concerning the impending birth of the would-be heir to the empire. The news and its consequences threaten to send the town into chaos, and it's up to Barnabus, a fallen angel turned gun-for-hire, to protect the coven of witches who delivered the band news, while avoiding some demonic secret agents with some very big chips on their shoulders as well, and hopefully earn his way back into Heaven.

The blending of genres winds up working really well. Nothing gets pureed into gray goop, it all keeps enough original color with sleazy gangster wolves and cigar-chomping cherubs. This first issue sets the tone almost immediately and offers a wild conflict from the get-go, while holding promise of some interesting twists to come in the next four issues.

If I have a criticism about the issue, it's what I felt was some uneven artwork. When at its best, the lines were crisp, the colors vibrant, and the action practically leaping off the page. But there were some weaker panels, I thought, that felt murkier with character depictions. Still, not to a terribly distracting degree.

A helluva debut for Kiss Me, Satan.

4 Sheep

Gef Fox

Wag The Fox: a den for dark fiction