Charismagic #3
Publisher: Aspen
Writer: Vince Hernandez
Artist: Khary Randolph (cover “B” by Siya Oum)
Hank is having a bad day. First, he finds out his cat can talk, then he’s attacked by some demons, then he’s almost killed by a hot looking druid that actually wants to help him. Now all that withstanding, Hank is actually pretty upbeat. That’s more than I can say for everyone else that was transported from Earth to some sort of Limbo. Allie and Hector seem to be finding their way around Limbo OK, when all of a sudden they’re attacked by a pack of demonized wolves. They manage to escape that, only to then be carried off by a swarm of giant bugs. While all this is going on, Samsun has made his way to Earth, and let’s just say that what he has in store for everybody is worse than what’s gone on so far, if that’s even imaginable. On his way through the streets, he’s confronted by three witches that attack him at first; he brushes two of them aside fairly easily, but the third makes a proposal to him that he can’t refuse.
This book has been really great so far, and Vince Hernandez should definitely be getting way more credit than he probably is. This book is quite good for many reasons, but mostly for its originality and refreshing take on the world of magic. It’s not too difficult either to keep up with the three different angles to this story that are presumably leading the reader to the same place eventually. My favorite is Hank and the druid chick. Mostly because there is this building tension between them (romance?) that I can’t wait to see the end result of. Randolph is a very good artist, and does a fantastic job, especially with the scenes involving Hank’s cat. In one scene, the cat takes down an entire gang that makes Hank quiver in his boots. Another great aspect about the art is the way Randolph draws the druid girl. She is absolutely stunning, and almost seems real. Perhaps he modeled her after some Hollywood actress. Give this book a chance, even if only for the fresh take it presents in this genre that seems to be struggling a bit, in my opinion. Rating 4/5
Billy Dunleavy
billy@comicattack.net
