Magdalena #1 - Review

I've never read Magdalena before, except for the one time Phil Hester crossed her over with Daredevil not that long ago. I've also never read any Ron Marz but I hear pretty good buzz about his Witchblade run. However, since Top Cow were good enough to provide me with a copy to sample I figured I'd read it, it couldn't hurt me, could it? Well, no, it didn't, and it actually surprised me quite a bit, and in a good way. Hit the jump to see why this could be a relaunch that will interest you.

Magdalena #1

Written by Ron Marz

Pencils by Nelson Blake II

Inks by Sal Regla

Colours by Dave McCaig

Cover by Ryan Sook

Ron Marz has always wanted a crack at the Magdalena and here he finally gets his chance with a renumbered relaunch. He grabs all readers, new and entrenched alike, with an opening info-dump via a double splash that includes Jesus Christ's bleeding feet, a bevy of hot Magdalenas (as it is a legacy role), and even some John Woo-style birds flying off into the distance, and I like to imagine they're in slow-mo, too. It's an effective way to catch us all up, and I certainly appreciated it because I had no idea how the Magdalena worked. For those of you wanting to know, Mary Magdalene was carrying Jesus' child when he died and his bloodline has remained pure to this day and in each generation one girl is selected to wield the power of the Magdalena, via the Spear of Destiny, which was the actual blade that pierced Jesus' side as he was still up on the cross.

We meet secret church agent Kristof as he escapes Prague with proof on a flash drive that the son of Satan has been born. He takes this information to the Vatican and tells them only the current Magdalena,  Patience,can deal with the situation. Kristof wants to go see Patience and set her on the mission, even though the Vatican see her as a loose cannon and a rogue agent. This is interesting seeing as we just saw the Vatican big wigs talking to Sister Anneli. They want to replace the Magdalena, and it seems that there can only be one at a time, and the old one has to die to give way to the new one. The Vatican are being quite disingenuous, so I want to know more about their game in all this.

Patience is off kicking demon ass and using her powers for good, even though it's not on the company dime. Kristof is begrudgingly sent to talk sense into her, and if he can't then it will be his job to relieve her of her position. It's a great little set up of Vatican intrigue and pitting friends against each other and showing us what we always knew was the most evil corporation of all, the Vatican. Ha, I kid, but they do fit the role well. Just as Patience fits her swimsuit well when Kristof tracks her down to Elba. She even has a quick hair flick moment as she exits the ocean, keep your eyes out for it.

The two friends make a good duo as they discuss the future over a meal on a picture perfect restaurant balcony. They have a great male/female back and forth that makes me think of the TV show Alias, where she is the bad ass and he's kind of the wimp, and the scene plays out well to the satisfying climax. He explaims the son of Satan situation and she still doesn't care. Basically, she thinks the Vatican are a bunch of dicks and she'd rather just do her own thing. She's a strong character and I'm interested in how she'll go about working with this situation, and she will have to whether she wants to or not because the situation is coming to her.

The storyline is a great set up for an intriguing tale, if perhaps a little cliche. The son of Satan has been done before but throwing a descendant of Christ into the mix, with a Spear of Destiny, should make it very cool. Kristof, I get the feeling, will be the damsel-in-distress to Patience's kick ass name taker. This story should make for an interesting arc and one well worth keeping an eye on.

Nelson Blake II's artwork is quite well done, kind of like Leinil Francis Yu but with a vacant stare here and there. His Patience looks good, lean and athletic, but his Kristof looks like he's come straight off a cologne billboard, and I do not mean that in a good way. He's a lumbering pretty boy goon who I can only hope gets offed really soon and thus provides some more motivation for Patience to do her thing. Sometimes the art lines get a little lazy but overall Blake sets out a page well and his demon looks pretty awesome, rendered in a simple yet menacingly thick style.

Verdict - Check It: This comic is better than a lot of dreck that comes through the shelves each week. It's a good start for the character and I think this arc has the makings for a very cool story, if executed well. Give it a go if you're on a light week, you might just be surprised by how much you'll like this ass kicking girl with a spear and an attitude.

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