REVIEW: Black Magick, #2

[CBR News]

In Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott's "Black Magick" #2, Detective Rowan Black faces suspicion from the I.A.B., but she's got bigger problems from a much more ancient enemy that seems to have learned new tricks.


Full review here.

[HsssH]

Am I the only one a bit baffled by reception of this title? I love that Nicola is trying out new things, but everything from Rucka's side feels really by the numbers, standard supernatural cop drama that we have seen many times.

[Anduinel]

Am I the only one a bit baffled by reception of this title? I love that Nicola is trying out new things, but everything from Rucka's side feels really by the numbers, standard supernatural cop drama that we have seen many times.

Yup. The art is lovely and I generally adore Rucka's work, but I wasn't really drawn in. Issue 1 didn't grab me, and at $4 a pop, I've decided it'll be better for me to trade wait. That said, I've read/watched a LOT of "cop drama with a fantasy/sci-fi/supernatural twist" type stories, so this might be more mind-blowing to folks who aren't as familiar with the genre.

[Ilan Preskovsky]

I certainly don't think it's groundbreaking but to me it feels a lot like the slow burn of Lazarus. Lazrus is phenomenal but it was a very slow burn getting started and that seems to be the case here too as we get used to the main characters and the world before the story itself kicks into high gear. It's a risky way to do things as people might not stick around but for me there's more than enough promise in these opening issues for me to stick around.

[HsssH]

Good point, I guess you'd agree if this was written by someone else than Rucka then likely we would see more critical reviews?

[Detox]

Good point, I guess you'd agree if this was written by someone else than Rucka then likely we would see more critical reviews?

I don't think the book would be getting bad reviews if it were not written by Rucka, but I do agree that the expectation of greatness probably overshadows the actual greatness at this point.

[Ragdoll]

As someone who doesn't enjoy Lazarus and just dropped it, I am actually digging this book. Lazarus was okay enough where I was waiting to see where it would go, but when I heard it was going for 150 issues, I realized I was in over my head and bailed. This book is hitting all the right points with me, though. I wouldn't call it the "new Saga" like CBR reviewers were trying to do (and seem to do for every supposedly new "hit").

Am I the only one a bit baffled by reception of this title? I love that Nicola is trying out new things, but everything from Rucka's side feels really by the numbers, standard supernatural cop drama that we have seen many times.

I'm normally the first to criticize Rucka, and maybe the artist is a big part of this, but I think the tone is very fresh and unique. It doesn't feel like I'm watching some soulless generic TV police procedural. I'm hoping it will wind up more like the now cult-classic show Hannibal, which revolutionized what a cop-hunts-killers show can accomplish, turning a hollow and empty genre into an art form.
The new season of American Horror Story also reminds me of this comic, with a cop dealing with a case that exposes him to the supernatural world.

[Ilan Preskovsky]

Yeah, I think we've already seen hints that the world Rucka's building is far more expansive than just a supernatural police procedural. And even if it was I think his obvious strengths with world building and, most especially, characterization would make it worth reading anyway. I'm already very much enjoying it but I do think he's taking his time setting things up in much the same way he did with Lazarus.

The reviews may perhaps have been less gushing had it been someone other than Rucka, I'm sure, but between Nicola's incredible art and Rucka's track record, I think most people are wiling to kick back and give it some time to grow into something bigger and wilder than it is so far.

[matt levin]

One BIG difference for me between Black Magick and Lazarus is that while both are set-up at the outset as 'slow starters to a big build-up,' Lazarus gave us a pretty complete new world from the start, where Magick is pretty much 'our world with a magic(k) twist.' I am also no longer really interested in 'magical' elements in otherwise 'real-world' stories as magic elements seem these days to have limited rules and massive effects, all of which doesn't much intrigue me anymore. And, too, Magick begs the question, Was the book titled before the character was named?