WITCH HAMMER by Cullen Bunn (writer) and Dalibor Talajic (artist) (Aftershock Comics, January 2019) Hardcover graphic novel, 64 pages. ISBN # 1935002392 / 9781935002390 Summary on the Goodreads website . . . . .
AFTERSHOCK ORIGINAL GRAPHIC NOVEL! Witch. The word conjures images of hags in black robes and crooked hats, standing over cauldrons of bubbling brew. But witches are among us, and we do not realize it. They are our friends and neighbors. They are our family members. They are our idols.
And someone is murdering them.
A killer is stalking witches, hunting them down mercilessly. Agents Frontenac and Guinness are on the killer's trail. But as they delve deeper into the hidden, magical world around them, they are haunted by a terrifying question. Is the killer doing the right thing?
My Four-Star Review on the Goodreads website . . . . .
There is a lot packed into this short (64 pages) horror graphic novel. It's a credit to writer Cullen Bunn that he managed to work it all in without sacrificing from the main story. If you want to read a good horror comic in one sitting, Witch Hammer has more than enough thrills, chills, blood, brutal murders, and witches in abundance to satisfy.
The main story focuses on the work of two FBI agents, Ada Frontenac and Agent Guinness, as they follow the trail of blood left by a Ram-Headed armed vigilante out for revenge against a cult of devil-worshipping witches.
In between the mayhem Bunn underlies the story with some compelling side issues that raise moral questions: Is violence/murder ever justified by faith? What is the fine line between religion and violence? Is the intervening astral presence a manifestation of God or the Devil (here represented by Leviathan)? Can a person's occupation or mission be a betrayal of their faith?
There appears to be two main characters in WITCH HAMMER: both in conflict with their mission and values, and perhaps linked to each other in a chilling final message at the conclusion of the graphic novel.
The story benefits from the presentation here: a quality hardcover, with over-sized pages that allow the art to flourish, and permits Dalibor Talajic to detail the story in tight panels (as many as nine per page). There is a two-page sequence with Frontenac preparing to leave her bedroom and begin the investigation that reveals so much of her character and her inner conflict, not through dialogue or text but through Talajic's images. The facial expressions and body reactions are spot-on throughout the story.
However, the most sympathetic character in WITCH HAMMER is the killer Jacob Nance. He was entranced by the trappings of the religious cult led by a powerful witch, and fully embraced their tenets. It cost him his family and turned him into a wreck of a human being. Now, he returns to exact vengeance and bloody justice. But will the killings redeem him, or lose his faith forever?
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