When I think of Azrael, I think of Micheal Lane kicking the tar outta some random thug with his duel swords, and maybe a good story to go with it. This issue fails in just about most of that criteria. Not to mention the terrible art, but moving past that lets hop into the story:
You see we open up with a badly drawn flashback of Micheal Lane asking a priest about the power of faith. Then we go to present day were an unmasked Azrael is at the mercy of The Seven Deadly Sins. They quickly turn Micheal into the raw embodiment of pure faith or the 8th deadly sin. Micheal puts on what looks like a skull mask and says that he is ready to do what the cult wants, just then an agent for Ra's Al Ghul: White Ghost breaks through the window and begins to fight with Azrael and the other seven members, but is easily taken out. White Ghost awakes on an airplane where he is told that the cult ordered Azrael to kill the Pope due to his influence surrounding faith. However, before Micheal can kill the Pope, White Ghost stops him and tries to explain the power of faith and how it is worth fighting for. Micheal denies this and proceeds to fight some more with White Ghost.
Eventually White Ghost convinces Micheal to remove the skull thus it's control over him and proceeds to talk to him about how Ra's can help Micheal. Once Micheal is free from the skull's power White Ghost convinces him that they should find his mask. So the two go and kill, no mutilate, The Seven Deadly Sins (but again the art really destroys the whole mood of it). Eventually he gets it, and places it back on. White Ghost tries one more time to try to convince Azrael to go to Ra's, but he denies and leaves stating that he still has faith.
Now on to the actual review, all I have to say about the art is: Wow, Ramon Bachs, just wow. You really know how to take a moderately interesting story and run in through the mud. None off the characters look good, as they all look like blocks of color. I mean I understand Azrael isn't you know Batman and Robin, but can't we get a decent artist to do this? On to the story, it was okay I guess. I mean he didn't really do anything cool the whole issue and I can't really accept that Azrael would just fold to the power of the cult. I mean he's suppose to be a very strong-willed individual Not, to mention the point-less flashbacks and undeveloped characters. I may be asking too much from a two- part-er, but I'd like to see at least some motivations. Overall this was a really disappointing issue.
Azrael #9:
Reviewed by Wes
