Written by Paul Jenkins
Art by Brian Ching; D-Tron; Team-Tron; Victor Llamas; Bill Tan; Jason Gorder; Steve Firchow; John Starr; Matt Milla; Dreamer Design’s Robin Spehar; & JD Bruce
Cover Art ‘A’ Wraparound by Brian Ching; D-Tron; & Steve Firchow
SUMMARY:
Published by Top Cow Productions/Image Comics for August 2001, the untitled 32-page story begins with Sara Pezzini visiting her father’s gravestone. Sara recalls the last time that she and her mother saw Vince Pezzini before his murder that same night. A demonic monster in the New York City sewer system is revealed. A flashback reveals that Sara has resigned two days earlier from the NYPD. Guided by the mysterious Adrian Smith, Sara & a troubled Ian Nottingham tag-team vs. the sewer demon and his human-like disciples, knowing full well that it likely means their doom.
Note: Though the images aren’t included, the variant cover art teams are: Marc Silvestri, Billy Tan, and Liquid! [Cover B]; Dale Keown, D-Tron, and Steve Firchow [Cover C]; and Michael Turner, D-Tron, and Steve Firchow [Cover D].
REVIEW:
Boasting an extensive art team, this comic’s visuals are predictably terrific. The only off-note is that the flashback resorts to an artistic cliché by rendering Sara’s mother as if she’s an identical twin to the present-day Sara. As for the potentially intriguing storyline, the intent is to delve into the Witchblade’s origin and apparent destiny. Part of this revelation refers to Ian’s possession of the Witchblade’s masculine counterpart, ‘Excalibur.’ Yet, for a fiftieth milestone issue, its unimpressive plotting doesn’t deliver much. It feels even more of a cheat when one reaches the “to be continued” tagline. As a result, Witchblade # 50 is hampered by favoring artistic style over not enough storytelling substance.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
There is a half-page thank-you note from Top Cow. Artists Drew Johnson, Jay Leisten, and Beth Sotelo provide a single-page Witchblade pin-up. A two-page “The Genesis of the Universe” timeline introduces the Universe preview. With a single page in color identifying protagonist Tom Judge, it sets ups an eight-page, black-and-white preview of Universe # 1. Finally, a five-page preview of Inferno: Hellbound is also included.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 6½ Stars
