DC Comics and its Wildstorm division seem intent on tapping into the market that's the bread and butter of such publishers as Top Cow Productions and Aspen Studio. Wraithborn is clearly crafted in the style of Witchblade, Lady Magdalena, Soulfire and Fathom, and I don't mean that in a kind way. After an initial action sequence design to demonstrate the title character's coolness, the creators take us back in time before she became a blood-letting warrior, and I'm as unimpressed with the character as an innocent as I am with her nastier side. The art emphasizes female sexuality over storytelling, and it's often cluttered and unclear. Wraithborn is designed to appeal to the lowest common denominator. Sadly, as such, it'll no doubt be a big hit.
Melanie Moore was an average teenage girl. She was shy, awkward and desperate to avoid any kind of embarassment at school. Her mother passed away some time ago, so she does her best to look after her dad and brother. Melanie's something of a coward really, afraid to talk to new people and afraid to stand up to the bullies at school. Her life is about to change dramatically, though, as she's about to reluctantly inherit the legacy of a long line of warriors who are the world's last defence against unspeakable, supernatural evil.
Benitez's art for this book is a cross between the styles of Michael (Fathom) Turner and Todd (Spawn) McFarlane. As a result, it's about as grounded as the stratosphere. It's appropriately dark, given the mood Benitez and co-writer Marcia Chen are striving for, but the emphasis is squarely on offering Kewl visuals as opposed to strong storytelling. I'm struck by a couple of visuals. The first is the naked and shapely form of an innocent host in the opening action sequence, and the other is how the 16-year-old protagonist's breasts jut out from her robe as she prepares breakfast for her father. The former is clearly gratuitous. The latter offers no nudity, but it's far more telling about the artist's intent to sex things up as much as possible. We're told this character is shy, that she thinks of herself as plain and geeky. So why is she vamping it up in her kitchen awaiting her family to come downstairs? The art doesn't jibe with the character at all.
The story is completely generic and unoriginal. It's one-part Spider-Man and one-part Buffy, with a dash of Conan thrown in. Chen's script is occasionally redundant and always over the top. The characters are little more than caricatures. The writers fail to give me a compelling reason to continue with the ongoing plot.
I think what put me off the most about this book is how neither incarnation of the main character is particularly likeable. Melanie as a regular teen is too much of a coward, and the reader comes to dislike her for ignoring another girl's cries for help. But the warrior woman she is to become is callous and cold. 2/10
