PROOMETHEA #17
"Gold"
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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DC Comics/America's Best Comics
Writer: Alan Moore
Pencils: J.H. Williams III
Inks: Mick Gray
Colors: Jeromy Cox
Letters: Todd Klein
Editor: Scott Dunbier
Price: $2.95 US/$4.95 CAN |
Some may read an issue of Alan Moore's Promethea and walk away scratching their heads. Others may flip through the pages carefully and come away awe-struck and enveloped in philosophical mysteries. I find I'm somewhere in between. I honestly can't say I follow everything Moore says and believes, but I do know I'm curious. Moore challenges us with concepts of incredible immensity, but he always does so with his feet planted firmly on the ground.
While interim Promethea Stacia prepares to do battle with the Mayor and the Howling back on Earth, Barbara and Sophie -- Prometheas new and old -- venture into the golden circle of human spirituality. There, they meet their new guide in the higher planes. She's Barbara's guardian angel: her younger self, Boo-Boo. Together, the three women explore the best humanity can be and feel, and in the process, look at one of its greatest crimes, which happens to be one of its most powerful symbols of love and acceptance.
As always, Williams and Gray astound with their detailed art. I can't wait to see the temporary Promethea take on the Howling. It should make for an imaginative and visually fascinating conflict. Jeromy Cox's colors have always been a strong visual factor in this title, but they seem to take on a greater importance in this chapter. He bathes most of the story in a warm, golden glow, and it conveys the serenity and purity that the characters describe.
Moore's beliefs are certainly unconventional ones, and while his descriptions and explanations challenge me, there are commonalities with more traditional spiritual beliefs. Not that it matters. Though Moore explains the reasoning and history behind the beliefs, what really matters is human feeling. He conveys those feelings quite well, supported by the artists.
Still, the concepts Moore explores here are kind of hard to wrap one's head around, but fortunately, the writer provides some balance in the form of "Boo-Boo" Ramirez. Her colloquial tone brings the weirdness and wonder down to earth, giving us someone to which we can relate in the story.
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