THE SANDMAN PRESENTS: THE THESSALIAD #4
"Part 4: Soul Food - or - So Much for Clever Hidden Plans"
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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DC Comics/Vertigo imprint
Writer: Bill Willingham
Pencils: Shawn McManus
Inks: Andrew Pepoy
Colors: Danny Vozzo & Jamison
Letters: John Costanza
Editor: Shelly Bond
Price: $2.50 US/$4.25 CAN |
Willingham does a great job of capturing the supernatural quest riff of Neil Gaiman's Sandman series and mixes it up with his trademark sense of humor. The dark, magical nature of the characters is offset by the down-to-earth tone of the dialogue, and McManus's art reinforces both the foreboding and loopy qualities of the script nicely. Those dismissing the various Sandman Presents limited series as nothing more than an attempt to further milk the Gaiman cash cow are will miss out on a fun and intelligent story.
Having slaughtered Thessaly's body, the four death gods sift through her remains for the power-rich soul that lies within. Only it's not there, and they soon discover what so many others have learned the hard way: that all is not as it seems when it comes to the Thessalian witch. Reputations are preserved and little gods rent asunder in this conclusion.
McManus's work here is crisp and cartoony, and it reinforces the irreverent tone of the dialogue. But that crisp quality also enables him to render the gory aspects of the plot with great clarity. The contrast of humor and violence is a little unsettling, but in that entertaining kind of way. The characters designs are simple but striking, and I'd love to see McManus team with Willingham for another one of these offbeat series.
As always, McKean's covers are inventive and unique, and will likely stand out among the throng of comics on store shelves. The thing is that his stark multimedia images don't really suit the goofier tone of the story. It's a minor concern, though.
Willingham steeped this story in mythology, if comics are about anything, it's mythology. The reinterpretation of these ancient figures in a present-day context was a lot of fun. The simple character designs are striking as well, and I'm a bit disappointed that we probably won't be seeing them again.
The real draw of this story is Willingham's rather black humor, certainly, but it dresses up -- but doesn't hide -- an uncomfortable (but well written) truth about this story: the "heroine" of the piece is more villainous than any other character. The death gods' motive was survival, but Thessaly admits her intent is to send a message to any being that would consider messing with her. That message: punishment awaits.
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