Creative Staff:
Story: Kelly Sue DeConnick & Chris Sebela
Artwork: Ryan Sook
What They Say:
Ghost, the hero trapped between two worlds, fights to protect Chicago from extradimensional demons disguised as humans. When a familiar stranger destroys an el train, Ghost makes a deal with a devil for the chance to uncover her own mysterious past. The perfect issue to join this action-packed superhero title!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
While a good chunk of The Comics Greatest World has fallen by the wayside, there are a few properties within that have done far better and lasted longer than some might have expected. One of those is Ghost, a launch title that has benefited from the previous runs being smartly written, carefully focused and beautifully drawn runs done more in a miniseries format more than anything else. With the earlier approach of going with an art deco look for a lot of it, it stood out and holds up well against present day materials. The title was one that got a lot of love in the 90’s and it had some crossover appeal with DC Comics at one point as well. With the relaunch of the superhero side by Dark Horse Comics, it wasn’t a surprise to see this as a test title that kicked off in Dark Horse Presents back in 2012 to see if it still could draw people in. The fact that we’ve got a first issue here shows that there’s definitely interest.
This incarnation of the title thankfully does separate itself from the past, making it accessible but still retaining a lot of the trademarked feeling that was there. Taking place in the present, we get an opening issue here that does cover what happened in the previous chapters that came before this in that we learn that Elisa Cameron, a journalist, was banished several years ago to some place between dimensions when she discovered that the mayor of Chicago was a demon from this realm. It took time, but she ended up back in the real world thanks to two paranormal investigators that came across the box that was used to send her there which now allowed her to come back. But her coming back wasn’t smooth and now she is, as they say, of two worlds. A part of her is still in that other dimension and in this world she’s able to act like a ghost, becoming intangible and turning things she touches into the same as well. Which is definitely handy. The downside to this is that she also seems to have lost a lot of her memories, though things are bleeding through.
What Elisa learned from her first encounter with the mayor and then a repeat one to try and fix things is that there are some thirty plus demons within the city that he placed into positions of power. She managed to kick this particular demon out of the mayor’s body, but not back to the other realm. So she’s taken it upon herself, along with the two investigators named Vaughn and Tommy, to hunt down the remaining ones. Prior to the start of this series, they nailed six of the thirty-two that they’re after and are continuing to work that down. Which is what the first portion of this issue is all about as we get to see her take one down that tried to escape on the train. Elisa doesn’t try to hide this from public view, though it’s not her intent to showcase it either, but when a demon in a human body runs, she has to give chase. We get to see how the demon can twist the bodies and that excising the demon from it doesn’t mean its unharmed, so there are some definite risks to the host that are laid out clearly.
This particular person that she grappled with is different from the others though, as we get her team working to uncover more about the human it was inhabiting named James Barrow. With the demons being placed into positions of power, this one feels disconnected from the rest and really didn’t inhabit the world in a way that others do, making it a curious investigation as it progresses. But this time allows us to see the dynamic in how she works with the others on the team, which also includes a young woman named Sloane, as well as giving us a view from Elisa’s point of view. Hers is obviously the most important since it’s through her we see how she’s grappling with the loss of memory, the strain of the damage that trying to save people can do to their bodies and her own issues in trying to feel like she’s a part of the world yet not. It’s not terribly deep and it’s a little blunt at times, but for the most part it’s rather well conveyed as the opening issue puts Elisa’s struggles out there. Whether it can become something richer and more interesting remains to be seen.
While a lot of this is good material overall, it is mostly foundational pieces to connect new readers to what’s gone on in the previous installments and to set the stage for how her group works. The second half of the book picks things up nicely as we get her and Vaughn doing some investigation work to see what they can find out about Barrow but end up stumbling across another demon, one who runs rather quick and makes for a good chase scene that explores more of how her powers work. That’s useful enough, but we also get to see how she handles dealing with different types of demons in terms of how calm and controlled she is. But this one, which remains nameless throughout the encounter, also teases her with the potential for some real answers in order to save its own skin. That’s a hard offer to pass up, even when going in with eyes open wide about what a demon is. But it also makes for what could be an intriguing working relationship if it last more than another issue.
Kelly Sue DeConnick and Chris Sebela do a solid job of bringing the character into focus here with all the key points we need to know about her while also providing some internal monologue material that helps expand on how her head works. The structure of the book is solid, if a bit predictable but we get a good feel for the characters while also having a whole lot of open ways to handle things. Elisa comes across well with her dialogue, not sounding like every other guy in the book in some ways, as she has her own voice. Similarly, Ryan Sook’s artwork is solid throughout here in terms of panel layout and the detail of it, making for a fun world to look at and explore. The only sad side is that after having so much personal experience with the previous incarnations where it was so beautified in a way, both in terms of character and the art deco setting, that it does feel a bit mundane here. Elisa in her Ghost costume is pretty much what we’ve always seen so there’s no complaints there, but it does feel like it’s missing a little something.
In Summary:
Though I didn’t get to see the Dark Horse Presents material, I did get to re-read the older Ghost material in the last couple of years after picking up the omnibus releases. Elisa is a character that I really liked though always felt a bit disconnected from simply because she wasn’t sure of herself and was always aloof. That kind of presence is the same here in this incarnation of the book and that makes it a bit tough in some ways since there’s a superficiality about her since she doesn’t know who she is. The mystery is part of the allure but also part of the problem. This opening issue does a good job of establishing how things work with this character while touching on the key points from the previous installments since the relaunch. Ghost is an easy cornerstone of the Dark Horse superhero side that I’m glad to see is getting a good treatment that’s also filled with a whole lot of potential. You can see that all the right ingredients are here with this reworking of the character and the opening issue leaves you hopeful that it will succeed.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: December 18th, 2014
MSRP: $2.99
