A pretty package, but an empty box.
Creative Staff:
Story: Joshua Hale Fialkov
Art: Matt Triano
Color: Mark Roberts
Letters: Simon Bowland
What They Say:
From Joshua Hale Fialkov, the writer of Ultimate FF, comes The Devilers! The City of the Damned attacks as the Devilers fight their way to Lucifer’s castle in the center of hell, but what, or rather, WHO they find there is not what they expected at all. Plus, the origin of the Deviler that might save them all.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
In this issue the spotlight switches to the angriest and possibly most irritating Deviler: Raab Al-Fayed. As with the last issue, we learn a little bit about his past and his power, but also as with the last issue, his character remains pretty cardboard.
The issue moves at the breakneck pace of the first two, and the characters still bicker and fight with each other almost as much as they fight the rogue demons of Hell. We also learn more about who is behind this invasion by Hell into Earth, but it raises more questions than it answers. As this series goes on, I can’t help but compare this to Preacher. It’s not the style or the quality of the writing or art, but some of the important plot points are very similar, which is all I’m going to say in order to avoid spoilers.
The problem with this comparison is that it doesn’t work well in Devilers’ favor (although, to be fair, what comic can hold up in comparison to Preacher?), and the reason why is because this is a very surface-level comic. It’s enjoyable enough. It has an interesting premise, potentially interesting characters, and big action, but it doesn’t really do anything with those elements. The characters move through this like they were stars in an action movie and barely react to what they see and experience. If you were to pare down this story to its premise, I’m not sure that you could find one. It’s not making any statements about faith or community or who/what we choose to worship. It’s not really saying anything at all, making this a hollow reading experience.
The art remains the strong element of the series. While I do feel that Triano relies too much on heavy ink lines and occasionally draws awkward faces, the action and the background are drawn well and the mood and atmosphere are established by Roberts’ rich color palette. This may be a hollow story, but at least the packaging is nice.
In Summary:
Three issues in and The Devilers doesn’t truly say anything. While the art, action, and pacing are solid, the characters are cardboard and there’s no clear premise. This is a very surface-level story that hasn’t captured my interest, and that’s too bad because this is an idea rife with story potential. Unfortunately, at this point I’m not sure if the series will be able to capitalize on it.
Grade: B-
Age Rating: N/A, but definitely not for kids.
Released By: Dynamite
Release Date: 17 September 2014
MSRP: $2.99
