Sherlock Holmes. Red Sonja. Vampirella. And one other special and horrific guest makes an appearance in this crossover of Dynamite Entertainment's most prolific characters. Unfortunately, that's all we get: very limited introductions and no clear idea of where the story is going.
Ron Marz wrote the first installment of this crossover, and it's nowhere near as good as his previous crossover attempt Artifacts (which spanned from spectacular to gravely disappointing). I rarely let comparisons dominate my reviews since I think a work deserves to be judged on it's own merits (for the most part), but this issue provides too good a comparison with the huge Top Cow crossover that Ron Marz wrote several issues of. And by comparing this debut issue to Artifacts debut, we can see what Marz has fallen from.
While Ron Marz's Artifacts could be used as an example for a great starting point for a crossover, The Prophecy falls short – literally. There are only 22 pages in this issue, and that is nowhere near enough to satisfy readers. Because of the short time-limit this fit issue was given with it's 22 pages, the pacing in this issue regarding the story feels rushed, but there is no time spent on the characters.
In The Prophecy Book One, the characters are all established but not much else happens with them. There is a conflict between two introduced very quickly towards the end, but it ends as quickly as it starts. The only positive: it leads to a satisfying reveal. Normally, I wouldn't spoil this reveal, but since the cover already does (another reason to add to My Problems with Comic Book Covers rant), I'll just tell you all it's Dracula, who puts Red Sonja in a rather compromising position - the only thing that I can't wait to see the conclusion of in the next issue.
Unlike the first issue of The Prophecy, Artifacts #1 lead to one of the main character's sister dying and her daughter was kidnapped. This instantly made readers sympathize with the character and made Artifacts feel like a series that would have a huge effect on the overall Top Cow Universe. In this issue, the most drastic move is made towards the end when it is hinted that Red Sonja may become a vampire, but the idea is so ridiculous there is no way readers are going to buy into it at this point.
The story, thanks to the rushed pacing, moved very quickly. While a lot was set-up, little happened. Holmes was at a strange crime-scene and just as quickly as that is established, we cut away from Holmes and never see him again for the rest of the issue.
The big problem with The Prophecy #1 that Artifacts #1 avoided was if you don't already love these Dynamite characters, their individual characters are hard to grasp. You need to be more of a fan than you had to in the Artifacts series. The Artifacts series could get new readers, but so far this issue will not get fans of other publishers to gravitate towards more Dynamite Entertainment titles.
Artist Walter Geovani clearly prefers to give more of his artistic talents towards drawing his female characters. The women have gorgeous bodies which include the usual luxurious curves (both waist-wise and otherwise).
This issue was not an effective way to start off a crossover event, but that does not mean The Prophecy will not turn out to be a great crossover event. Preview pages from future issues show some hope for the series. Hopefully, when the story starts and the characters get better acquainted, this crossover can become what Marz wants it to be: an epitome of the greatness of Top Cow... I mean, Dynamite Entertainment... unfortunatly.
An all-around nerdette, I’m a comic book connoisseur, horror aficionado, video game addict, anime enthusiast and an aspiring novelist/comic book writer. I am the head of the comic book department and the editor-in-chief of Entertainment Fuse. I also write and edit articles for Comic Frontline. I am also an intern at Action Lab Entertainment, a comic book publisher at which I edit comic book scripts, help work on images in solicitations and help with other comic book related project. My own personal website is comicmaven.com.
