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Witchblade #141
Publisher: Top Cow
Writer(s): Ron Marz & Saurav Mohapatra
Artist: Stjepan Sejic
Cover: Stjepan Sejic

“Paper Monsters pt 2”: This issue opens up with Sara and her partner Gleason fighting for their lives against the creatures created by the children from the last issue. These things are huge, ugly, and ready to kill, so Sara sends Gleason to get the kids while she handles the beasts. However, Gleason runs into a bit of trouble as he’s cut off by a new creature created by the kids. Don’t worry about him though, because he proves you don’t have to be the bearer of some mystical Artifact to hold your own against the beast. Things get a little more serious as Gleason makes it inside of the home, and the father of the children gets to see first hand what they are capable of. I won’t spoil the rest for you, but there’s a lot more monster action and we are even treated to an appearance from one of the members of the Hunter-Killer team.

While the last issue was a bit slower paced, Marz and Mohapatra definitely cranked it up past ten for this one here. Things don’t slow down until the last few pages, and in the midst of all of the monster killing there is great dialog throughout. The sequence where Gleason is complaining about having to run up a few flights of steps while Sara is fending off the monsters was one of several great character moments in the issue. We are also treated to an unexpected ending, and I’m really hoping this sets up something else from these guys concerning the kids, or even the Hunter-Killer team.

When Sejic is able to cut loose with the design of the Witchblade it’s a sight to behold! He really makes her look like a force of nature that cannot and won’t be stopped by anyone or anything. He also shows the true scale of the beasts compared to the regular people, and it’s quite jaw dropping and makes for a damn good fight. Sejic continues to impress whether it’s his panel layouts or the artwork inside, and the guy is one hell of a visual story teller. I also like the fact that when Sara is in full Witchblade-mode, there is a distinct difference in her physical appearance when compared to her in regular clothes. Basically, the Witchblade shows off the curves, and while she is in civilian garb Sejic tones her physical sex appeal down and it’s a great balance.

If we are getting stories of this quality while waiting for the next issue of Artifacts to come out, then I say keep ’em comin’! Usually some stories that take place while an event is happening fall flat, and it’s cool to see that Top Cow is straying far away from that formula as well. So not only does Top Cow make events, the issues in between are pretty damn good, too!

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