The Darkness #4 // Review
Jenny is 600 feet beneath the U.N. And she’s going down. She is descending what looks like ancient staircase. She might be kind of surprised to see the giant statue of a dragon down there. But that's the least of it. There's a whole lot of sex going on. I worry it not for the landscape of bodies, doing all those things that bodies do and the act of sex, there's a rather nice looking pool and a waterfall leading to it. Jenny's got some questions. They are going to be some answers in The Darkness #4. Writer Marc Silvestri continues the fourth series of the Darkness with artist Agustin Padilla.
The orgy consists of a bunch of people who worship The Darkness. The guy who now holds that title would likely prefer to have nothing to do with it. This as witnessed by the fact that he kicks a judge in the orgy who addresses him as “my lord.” He says hello to the mayor while he’s punching the same judge. His name is Jackie and he wants to kill the mayor. Jenny’s going to try to stop him. And she might be able to do so...for now...
Silvestri has a rather firm handle on the darkness that he is embracing. And the problem is is that the story seems to be moving through a bit more quickly than it probably should. And while it's entirely possible that he's trying to maintain rhythm of a series that has a much larger scope than supernatural vigilante who's rooting out corruption in New York, it's really hard to feel a whole lot of engagement in it if it's rushed through. There are a lot of people who are getting killed this issue. And there really hasn't been a whole lot of time spent in establishing who they are. They're stock characters. They really need to be more than stock characters in order to for the series to feel like it's anything more than a cheap horror action series.
Padilla’s art generally has a classy early 1990s indie comics feel. There is a great degree of detail. There's a sense of horror action shooting off the page in interesting directions. And for the most part, the coloring work allows the visuals to feel that much more immersive. However, some of the amplifications of emotion and aggression. Feel a little bit stiff in places. And the hole, though, as an action episode, the fifth issue in the series is generally enjoyable.
The basic premise that Silvestri is working with continues to hold the great deal of potential. However, the speed and percussion with which he is exploring. The premise makes it feel a little too, rushed to be able to live up to its own potential. It's generally fun stuff, but it lacks the thematic depth that would make it feel a lot more interesting. The basic premise of a guy who doesn't want his powers who is tied to cult that worships him is a really interesting idea. It's too bad SIlvestri hasn't found a way for it to lift up to its potential.
