Sword of Azrael by Dan Watters and Nikola Čižmešija

[SixSpeedSamurai]

I enjoyed the first issue quite a bit. The art was probably the weakest part.

[millernumber1]

I enjoyed the first issue quite a bit. The art was probably the weakest part.

Interesting - I really love the art, and am very glad that the team that did the Urban Legends story is doing the miniseries. There's a clean line appeal to it that I think works with Jean Paul's dark world - keeps it from being too overwhelming.

[thwhtGuardian]

Interesting - I really love the art, and am very glad that the team that did the Urban Legends story is doing the miniseries. There's a clean line appeal to it that I think works with Jean Paul's dark world - keeps it from being too overwhelming.

It's great in the quiet emotions as the facial expressions are really well done, but the simplified look didn't convey the action well in my eyes. It was especially obvious in the legs, when they'd show Azrael kicking out the legs were just pegs with pointy feet which just looked odd to me.

[Ascended]

Gonna have to grab this. Loved Azreal back in the 90's, and the handful of attempts to bring him back afterwards never hit the right note for me. But this looks like it might.

Didn't read Urban Legends, so I'm behind. Is this book tackling anything with St. Dumas and/or the very obvious parallels between Jean Paul and radicalized christian groups?

[Frontier]

Gonna have to grab this. Loved Azreal back in the 90's, and the handful of attempts to bring him back afterwards never hit the right note for me. But this looks like it might.

Didn't read Urban Legends, so I'm behind. Is this book tackling anything with St. Dumas and/or the very obvious parallels between Jean Paul and radicalized christian groups?

From the previews I already kind of got that vibe.

[exile001]

Just finished BOTH Azrael books this week. I can't believe I'm saying that!!! So happy!

I've always been a fan of Azrael as a character and I'm so glad his popularity sustained a run after the Knights-Saga (though I believe it needed a new/co-writer after the Bane arc) or he could have been quickly relegated to villain status or just forgotten.

While I liked the offshoot version of the Order of St Dumas, it makes sense for Jean-Paul to be straight Christian in this run as it allows a more direct and interesting exploration of the absolute fucking mess of insanity that is Christianity represents in today's U.S. I'm hoping things really venture into the political. Bring back Nick Scratch as a direct Trump parallel, and just have his followers outright reject/gaslight themselves the very obvious anti-Christian ("Satanic") values and persona, with his make up, business practices, etc. If you want, LeHah would make an excellent Libertarian candidate as an ineffectual but dangerous moron. Just fully dive into the absolute craziness of the modern U.S.A. and the terrifying, backwards direction it is heading with increasing rapidity.

***To note, before anyone thinks I'm just being anti-U.S., I am from the UK. Our only achievement of the last 20 odd years are that we're following a step behind the U.S. in all the worst ways and at least the U.S. isn't stupid/insane enough to cut their longstanding political and economic ties with their closest allies and majority trading partners. The mental political right masquerading as "good old Christian values" is in full force here, too. Azrael is a great character to challenge that. As are Captain America and Red Skull***

[Buried Alien]

I'm pretty lost here. How is it that Jean Paul is back, alive and well? He was last seen alive in AZRAEL: AGENT OF THE BAT # 100 nearly twenty years ago and appeared as a Black Lantern zombie in BLACKEST NIGHT more than a decade ago. Where is this recent resurrection explained?

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[thwhtGuardian]

I'm pretty lost here. How is it that Jean Paul is back, alive and well? He was last seen alive in AZRAEL: AGENT OF THE BAT # 100 nearly twenty years ago and appeared as a Black Lantern zombie in BLACKEST NIGHT more than a decade ago. Where is this recent resurrection explained?

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

It's best not to get too bothered by the details. One of the last scenes in his trip down memory lane here was Bruce taking back the cowl from him so it reads best as a loose continuation from where he was in the mid to late 90's.

[Frontier]

He's been alive since he came back in the Batman and Robin: Eternal series.

[Buried Alien]

It's best not to get too bothered by the details. One of the last scenes in his trip down memory lane here was Bruce taking back the cowl from him so it reads best as a loose continuation from where he was in the mid to late 90's.

I guess it's something that Barry Allen FLASHPOINTED into existence.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

[thwhtGuardian]

He's been alive since he came back in the Batman and Robin: Eternal series.

Strangely though, this seemed to skip that origin. It played out like original JPV rather than nu-jpv, what with the training with Nomoz and the classic Azbat suit

[thwhtGuardian]

I guess it's something that Barry Allen FLASHPOINTED into existence.

Buried Alien (The Fastest Post Alive!)

I would guess a part of the poorly defined end to Metal where suddenly everything happened.

[Mantis-Ray]

Strangely though, this seemed to skip that origin. It played out like original JPV rather than nu-jpv, what with the training with Nomoz and the classic Azbat suit

He had a different origin in the Eternal series?

[millernumber1]

Just finished BOTH Azrael books this week. I can't believe I'm saying that!!! So happy!

I've always been a fan of Azrael as a character and I'm so glad his popularity sustained a run after the Knights-Saga (though I believe it needed a new/co-writer after the Bane arc) or he could have been quickly relegated to villain status or just forgotten.

While I liked the offshoot version of the Order of St Dumas, it makes sense for Jean-Paul to be straight Christian in this run as it allows a more direct and interesting exploration of the absolute fucking mess of insanity that is Christianity represents in today's U.S. I'm hoping things really venture into the political. Bring back Nick Scratch as a direct Trump parallel, and just have his followers outright reject/gaslight themselves the very obvious anti-Christian ("Satanic") values and persona, with his make up, business practices, etc. If you want, LeHah would make an excellent Libertarian candidate as an ineffectual but dangerous moron. Just fully dive into the absolute craziness of the modern U.S.A. and the terrifying, backwards direction it is heading with increasing rapidity.

***To note, before anyone thinks I'm just being anti-U.S., I am from the UK. Our only achievement of the last 20 odd years are that we're following a step behind the U.S. in all the worst ways and at least the U.S. isn't stupid/insane enough to cut their longstanding political and economic ties with their closest allies and majority trading partners. The mental political right masquerading as "good old Christian values" is in full force here, too. Azrael is a great character to challenge that. As are Captain America and Red Skull***

While I understand where you're coming from, as someone from the other side of the aisle, I personally hope (and think, based on the way Watters has been writing), that this series will focus on both the positives and negatives of Jean Paul's relationship to God and to his faith. I found the ending of the Urban Legends story (collected in the one-shot) very moving, because it really connects to my own relationship with God, others, mystery, suffering, and faith. If it becomes a one-sided attack on anything, whether what you would prefer, or things I would find objectionable, I think it would become a narrow minded, narrow-audience book.

[Frontier]

He had a different origin in the Eternal series?

I think it had something to do with Mother and the weird gimmick of that storyline. I honestly don't remember much about it to be honest.