Demon Knights #1 (DC Comics)
Writer: Paul Cornell; Penciller: Diógenes Neves; Inker: Oclair Albert; Colorist: Marcelo Maiolo; Letterer: Jared K. Fletcher; Associate Editor: Chris Conroy; Editor: Matt Idelson
My original intention had been to give this title from the “New DCU” the go-by, because it features Etrigan the Demon, and he’s not really a favorite of mine. But at one of the panels at the San Diego Comic Con, the teaser for the book was sufficiently intriguing that I decided to try it.
The opening story arc (or Part 1 of it – story titling seems to remain problematic with DC, new or old) is titled “Seven Against the Dark.” Like all good “gathering of forces” sequences, we are given quick introductions to various characters, some being origin stories, such as how Etrigan got merged with Jason (eventually known as “Jason Blood”). Others are just there, like Vandal Svage. We are given just enough to intrigue but not so much as to overload.
This is sword-and-sorcery, by the way. It’s a genre DC hasn’t really tackled much in a dedicated title. Oh, various books have done fantasy arcs (Gail Simone wrote one during her Wonder Woman run). But an on-going book? This could be interesting. Of course, the one possible draw-back is that none of the main characters seem to be … well, heroes. It’s almost as if they took the premise from Simone’s Secret Six and tossed it back into the Dark Ages: a group of not-really-good-folk with powers banded together to fight whatever gets in their way.
This is definitely not an all-ages book, however, Violence and hacking, and 2 pages where a baby is used for demon-possession communication, ending with an exploding baby.
I’ll admit, I’m intrigued. I’ll read at least a couple more issues. I don’t really care about any of these characters yet, but I could be interested. Worth a read, if you like sword-and-sorcery.
