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So…once upon a time, a suburban housewife spent her nights as a mobster-murdering assassin, named JENNIFER BLOOD. Then she died…or did she? Because in the cozy cul-de-sacs of Bountiful, Utah, a noticeable number of normal people have gone missing. And by “normal,” I mean “mobsters under witness protection.” And by “missing,” I mean killed by someone that looks, sounds, and murders a lot like JENNIFER BLOOD
Impression
There are different ways to set-up a title that hooks a reader. But it’s hard to avoid a cliché. Fred Van Lente creates a great hook here that’s spread without this initial issue. This is indeed about a woman hunting down and killing the scum of the earth in terms of criminals. So, how does he create an engaging hook spread throughout? By switching the perspective and applying just the right last minute twist to keep the reader questioning. Instead of seeing this all from Jennifer Blood’s perspective we see it from the perspective of her victims.
Fred successfully builds this town of bountiful through their eyes and during that whole time we have no clue what Jennifer is doing. It casts her in this air of mystery. That same mystery makes the final pages of this a real twist. It goes to show how perspective plays a major part in the readers understanding of what’s happening and how in comics you can pull off a great twist while hooking the reader. This whole thing works when you consider that Jennifer is an assassin like character. Of course, you shouldn’t see them coming and if you do than they clearly aren’t a very good killer.
The art by Vincenzo isn’t too gruesome despite the subject matter. There is gore and horrific deaths, but Vincenzo is tasteful about. His hard lines are given depth by Dearbhla Kelly. The deaths are spread out and catch you off guard with the illustrations because it isn’t over the top. It’s just brief and detailed enough to understand without going overboard.
Final Verdict of Jennifer Blood #1
This makes a fine addition to the likes of characters akin to other vigilantes like the Punisher. With this story’s perspective switch from the killer to the victims, a palpable intrigue is created that holds firm as the town of Bountiful builds in the minds of the reader. I highly recommend this title. If Fred continues down this path, it’s gonna be a hell of a ride.
If you’d like to order this title you can do so here or order with your LCS
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