Written by Mark Millar
Art by Peter Gross
Published by Image Comics
Mark Millar had quite an interesting concept with this comic book series.
In the first book of the trilogy, we get to see that a young boy has returned as Jesus. What that means is that he can do the things that Jesus used to do. The young boy survives a terrible accident and from there it seems that he is the second coming of Jesus Christ.
That means he can walk on water. He can turn water into wine. He can make the blind see again. How is this happening?
Millar explores the idea with aplomb and really digs deep with the three chapters of this first part. There are some nice character driven moments and the whole thing feels like a fresh approach to comics.
At the end of this first part of the trilogy, we get the twist. And what a twist it is! It is very well done. The problem with it is that once you know the twist, there isn’t enough there to re-examine what you just read for the reader. It is actually so much more interesting a plot line that you forget in a sense that the first three chapters actually happened. They seem boring in comparison.
But that is okay, because Millar explores the twist more fully in chapters two and three. They are both incredibly more exciting once you have an idea of the bigger picture.
The second part of the trilogy is the best for sure. We get to to see a lot of developments happen, one right after the other.
The second part is called “The New Messiah” and it stars a young girl named Luciana. One night, she has a dream where she is visited by an angel. When she wakes up, she slowly comes to the realization that she is pregnant. She is a virgin at this point, so it draws a lot of attention. Luciana decides to go on the run with her boyfriend Eddie at this point for her own sanity and safety.
The pair end up traversing through some interesting places. They get involved with a strange kind of cult, and the pair eventually find that she is giving birth to a child who is going to end up in conflict with the child from the first chapter. We get to see both of the stories start to converge closer and closer as this series progresses. It is very ominous and a bit scary.
This child is basically Christ reborn and by the end of this middle part of the trilogy, he is ready to fight his nemesis. Unfortunately as we get to see in the final part of the trilogy, the thing he is going to be fighting against is the Antichrist Jodie Christianson. The thing he has to deal with the most is that Jodie Christianson is the President of the United States Of America and not too nice of a fellow.
The third chapter shows the two of them circling each other for the first part of it. It is very interesting for sure and Millar really knows how to ratchet up the tension. I loved the creative moments in the book and how well developed Millar made each of the characters. I honestly had no idea at any point which way the way was going to end up. That’s a real good thing.
By the end of the book though, I was a little bored, I am sad to say. The final fight and resolution was a tad trite and muddled. There became a point where I didn’t know what was going on and I started not to care. That is a shame as I really enjoyed myself up until that point. Everything leading up to it was so good too. The parting shot made me groan a bit as well.
It is a good book other than that. The story is pretty tight throughout. The artwork by Peter Gross is top notch as well. He can pull off anything that Millar writes for him perfectly and with a straight face. It is awesome.
Overall, this is a fascinating and entertaining book that engages. I just wish that it had a bit for a stronger ending. It would have brought the whole piece together better.
RATING: B+
