Review: LUCIFER #17
[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]
Writer: Dan Watters
Artists: Sebastian Fiumara
Colors: Dave McCaig
Letters: Steve Wands
Cover: Tiffany Turrill
Reviewed by: Seth Singleton
Summary
In my review of Lucifer #17 we begin with four primal beings. Fear. Thrill. Thirst. Honor. These are the four horsemen of Odin’s wild hunt. The prey is Beverly Walsh. Lucifer must-despite his personal feelings-protect her all costs. If he fails the Devil will be cast back into the pit whence he came.
Positives
To begin, Beverly Walsh is a delight. This “prey” is more than a match for likes of Achilles. When the legendary Greek warrior bursts through her door he is met by a woman he dismisses. Consequently he learns she possesses more cunning and guile than Odysseus himself. This is also a pleasant discovery for Lucifer. Likewise his estimation of her improves drastically.
In this case, his feelings are mixed on the matter of the hunt. Lucifer thought he dispelled of the entire process by destroying the stick. Instead, last issue revealed the lengths that Odin is willing to travel send the Devil back to Hell. Now Odin is calling forth darker forces.
Dan Watters does a lovely thing here with the conceptualization of an idea transformed into a being. Do you think you know where Fear comes from? This is the first way that Watters proves you, me, and so many more of us wrong. He starts with the sentence, “Fear was one of the first conscious thoughts ever to be had, and from this she built herself a body — but she has never known any state beyond panic.”
There are three more identities. Next, is Fear’s twin Thrill. Then Honor. But the eldest is Thirst. Thirst claims that he predates the living. In particular, he claims that he was born at the same time as gravity.
Finally, I love the moment when Lucifer is pressured by Mazikeen to save Ruskin of Litharge. You’ll remember him as Mazikeen’s new assistant. What I will remember is how simple and demanding he is when it comes to flesh. Lucifer is impatient when it comes to doing easy work that costs his time. Lucifer is not made of flesh.
Negatives
Have you not been reading my reviews? There are no negatives when it comes to this book. The story of the Wild Hunt is no exception. Read it for yourself and then comment if you can find something negative that isn’t petty.
Verdict
You need to trust a writer like Dan Watters. Then you need to trust his art team starting with Sebastian Fiumara, Dave McCaig, Steve Wands, and ending with Tiffany Turrill. There is more than just communication at work. This is a team. The result is a brilliant story that reflects the potential of comics as a medium that enhances great storytelling.
