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Bored. Tedious. Rambling.
Weird. These and many more synonyms were my initial
reactions to "Pogrom," a mini series from DDP that is
(so far) so unequivocally boring, I couldn't keep my
focus for more than two pages. "Pogrom" sets down on a
futuristic world where a vicious plague has taken most
of humanity. The surviving world is kept in check by
Religious funded officers and medic teams who learn the
disease was only the first wave, as a demonic being has
resurrected a former holy leader and recruited him for
his army of the seven sins. "Pogrom" has so much
potential, but alas it's wasted in 44 pages of endless
rambling and self-aware diatribes that keep it so
unnecessarily verbose without ever adding a sense of
relevance to any bit of dialogue spoken by the
characters.
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| Though Tomao gathers
an interesting array of villains in the form of the
seven sins including the sexy Lust, the unusual
Envy, and the rather imposing Pride, the lead
monster really is nothing more than a cliché who
eats bugs crawling on its skin and has a purpose
that, so far, seems much too convoluted to enjoy.
The resurrection of this religious leader whom we
discover had a sinful life as a pedophile and a
warmonger are interesting and will create meaty
confusion among his followers who see him lead the
charge of the seven deadly sins, but when this new
warrior emerges to--apparently--battle the seven
sins, this being is boring from the outset. From his
endless inner monologues, to the unusual character
motivations, right down to the foggy ending that
leaves nothing for us to sit on, nor does it really
draw any suspense or questions. Josh Medors art is
rather specifically tailored to the intended grim
and gothic tone set for this monotheistic
apocalyptic world, but fails to accomplish any sense
of genre standing throughout the entire issue. Is it
a fantasy? Is it a religious miniseries? Is it a
horror book? Or is it just a Lovecraftian story? The
hero's motivations and inevitable origin is
confusing as it suddenly emerges from the tomb with
a curious motive. Is this the reincarnation of the
pope general? Or is it a manifestation of the mask?
And what is its goal as being? I couldn't decide,
nor could I really put two and two together, which
takes a lot of doing with a comic for me. "Pogrom"
will have the same theistic themes to play to the
inevitable war, but the whole point is lost in the
hail of endless meandering, and a murky muddled
plot. |
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