Purgatori Must Die! #2 // Review
Evil Ernie killed Purgatori. The feral shapeshifter Pantha did too. It didn’t take more than a couple of pages for each murder. It wasn’t even really that difficult for either one of them. Too bad she’s not actually dead. Everyone hunting her is a bit unsettled, and there’s little question that she’s still out there somewhere. Clearly, she’s up to something in Purgatori Must Die! #2. Writer Ray Fawkes continues his journey with a powerful anti-hero in an issue bound to page and panel by artist Álvaro Sarraseca. Color comes to the page courtesy of Salvatore Aiala.
To make matters worse, Purgatori doesn’t seem to be taking anything seriously. She’s very powerful and not very interested in her own well-being...which probably has a lot to do with her general invulnerability. Her one ally is uncertain whether he really wants to protect her or aid her in any way, and he lets her know it. He’s taking her into a sanctuary, nonetheless. She helps him take her to a place where the hunters will have a hell of a time finding her. She’s going to have to find her way there soon. It’s only a matter of time before her hunters catch up with her.
Fawkes has some good ideas in the second issue of the series, but they aren’t exactly framed all that well. A couple of different groups of hunters killing a couple of different Purgatoris is fun, but there would need to be at least one or two more in pursuit to make it feel like a truly dangerous hunt for the title character. Purgatori’s personality is fun and fascinating, but her thoughts don’t quite pull together in a way that feels like it’s building into a coherent psyche. A powerful figure with an offbeat sense of humor and no true regard for human life should be a little more fun than Fawkes manages in the second issue.
Sarraseca has a lot to juggle with so much weird horror magic flowing around largely earthbound locations. It’s fun, but some of the action feels a bit stiff, and some of the drama feels a bit awkward. The sanctuary DOES have a rather clever visual journey through the jungle across a big two-page spread, but it doesn’t quite feel as fantastic as it should given Purgatori’s ultimate destination.
The destination in question makes for an intriguing arena for the inevitable showdown between the different forces that are doubtlessly lining up for the big finale. There is so much potential in the location, which is often overlooked as a place for adventure. Fawkes has a solid handle on a fun supernatural pursuit. If he can find a slightly crisper way of framing his ideas, the big inevitable climax of the series could really wrap it up in a way that might make the roughness of the first couple of issues fade out of significance.
