Zatanna #1 – Jamal Campbell, Writer/Artist
Ray – 10/10
Ray: Jamal Campbell has basically been doing the grand tour of DC over the last few years, drawing on Naomi, Far Sector, and Superman among other books and specials. So I was excited to see what he could do as a solo writer/artist – although that pivot from creators is never a guarantee. The choice of Zatanna was also a bold move – the character has recently had a Black Label series, but hasn’t had a main line DC book in a while. You put that together, and what emerges from this first issue is…incredible. This is one of the most visually inventive books to come out of DC in some time, and it makes brilliant use of Zatanna’s history as a superhero and a stage performer.
We catch up with Zatanna as she prepares for a show in the storied Terpsichore Theater, where her father and countless other magicians performed. She practices tricks, helps a young assistant get his confidence back after a minor mishap, and shares some lore about past magicians – including the mysterious Lady in White, an illusionist and jack of all trades who died under mysterious circumstances. It’s all a day in the life – until the posters in the theater suddenly start coming to life, pulling the various crew members into real-life horror shows pulled form classic movies. And in each of them, a pair of mysterious white hands trying to ensure their victims never leave.
Campbell is best known as an artist, of course, so it’s no surprise that the art steals the show here. It transforms for every visit to another world, mimicking the unique style of that genre as Zatanna pulls one backwards-spell after another out of her hat. She’s able to get one person after another back until she tracks down the last one, this one being held by the Lady herself. As she tries to figure out the villain’s motivation, a shocking betrayal sends the story spiraling in a new direction and gives us an epic cliffhanger to set up next month. There are so many plot seeds here, and many are just beginning to be explored. This is a fantastic first issue that does everything a great pilot should to keep readers coming back.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
