A leafstalk and a half...
VICC's VINE RATING SYSTEM:
1 star = a leaf ; 2 stars = a leafstalk ; 3 stars = a stem ; 4 stars = a plant ; 5 stars = Viridiplantae!
NOTE: This Voodoo #2 review is spoiler-free.
The grapevine
For starters, VERY nice cover... It's sexy, revealing (no pun intended) and even shocking. I wasn't fond of the one in issue #1 so, to me, this is exactly what THAT cover should've been all about in the first place. The first "true shock" comes at the turn of the page... Of all the possibilities Mr. Marz had to open this issue's story, he chose the least expected one and that's a decision I welcomed... You can't do better than this to keep the reader interested throughout the rest of the issue... even if that's eligible to more than a T+ rating for the first 6 or 7 pages. The rest of 'em are interesting enough.
Sam Basri's art maintains the level of quality I've come to enjoy from and for this title (I don't get all those Voodoo #1 reviewers here at CV that didn't like it); I think it's fairly adequate, EXCEPT for page 6, panel 6 where, simply put, it's SUPERB. I can't recall another single panel in any other comic I've read to this date that made me pay attention to "dynamics in drawing" like this one did. I spent several minutes looking at it, several times. It's really that good.
The poison ivy
Unfortunately, the story's pace in this issue still is weak. It's better than last issue's but could've been stronger. For one good decision Mr. Marz takes at the beginning, there are two or three (mainly what happens in pages 11, 16 and 18) that are utter and complete fails later on.
Also, some of the dialog feels... er, nah, correction... Some of the dialog truly IS awkward. Like in page 4, panel 1. But even more awkward is Voodoo in her alien form... I just can't help thinking how lame (instead of aberrant) it looks. It was a bad character layout call... Period.
The bittersweet
Don't get me wrong, I'm a Ron Marz fan first and foremost. I've admired his work ever since he took charge of Green Lantern back in the 90's and, together with another legend, Mr. Mark Waid, teached me what comic book writing is all about... It's just I don't get it here yet.
Overall, a more enjoyable issue than the first one, and one that still makes me want to pickup #3 (unlike Batgirl #2 which made me loose all interest in that title for good). It's far from "the perfect example of excellence in comics as an art form", but I'd recommend checking Voodoo #2 out.
