Titanium Comics is launching four new comic book series, including The Arcane #1. The story is set in a desolate Arizona town called Canaan's Sorrow. Strange men with red eyes demand the townspeople turn over mysterious "Books" or face consequences. Although the town fears Jeremiah Arcane, Quinn seeks him out. It's revealed Jeremiah's father discovered symbols that allow time and space travel, and each of his sons have supernatural powers. Jeremiah and his brothers must work together to find the Books before the devil's minions. The reviewer critiques some plot elements but overall enjoys the premise and artwork of the supernatural western comic.

1. Friday, 13 December 2013 05:55
‘The Arcane #1:’ Comic
Book Review
Written by Madeleine Holly-Rosing, Fanboy Comics Guest Contributor
Titanium Comics, the comic book arm of Titanium Publishing, LLC, is
having a very busy year with the launching of four titles. Having
purchased the rights to the characters and stories of Digital Revolver
Studios a few years ago, they have jumped right into creating new
comic book series.
The first of these was Age of Darkness #1 which launched in time for
Halloween. The second is a supernatural western called The Arcane
#1 which debuted in November of this year. Created by Don McLiam
and written by Andy Wolfendon, writer of the hilarious 2002 PC and
Gamecube game Darkened Skye, it is illustrated by Paolo D' Antonio,
colored by Marco Pagnotta, and lettered by Crank.
The story unfolds in an Arizona town by the name of Canaan’s Sorrow.
A desolate place with only an abandoned hotel, a run-down church, a
few buildings, and a saloon, one wonders why anyone still lives there
let alone how they make a living. The saloon is run by a single mom
named Quinn whose young son, Phelan, is much more than what he
appears to be. With the arrival of a group of faceless men with red
demon eyes and powers which defy man and God, the town is scared
to death. Their demand is simple: the town must turn over the “Books”
or face dire consequences; however, the townspeople are unwilling to
ask for help from the only man who could help them – Jeremiah
Arcane. A man they ran out of town years ago presumably because he
scares them more then these red-eyed guys do.
Quinn is the only one willing to do what no one else is and searches
out Jeremiah revealing another secret along the way. Finding
Jeremiah through his mother, we and Jeremiah learn his father had
discovered ancient symbols which allowed him to transverse time and
space. What’s worse, his father almost sold the symbols to the devil in
exchange for the safe birth of his child (not Jeremiah). He backed out
at the last minute but paid a heavy price; each of his offspring would
possess some sort of supernatural power; however, Jeremiah’s father
was smart enough to hide the symbols in a series of “books” which
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were left with his five sons, four more brothers than Jeremiah knew
about. Tasked with finding all of his brothers and the books before the
minions of the devil do, Jeremiah sets out on a long and arduous
journey.
One of the issues I had with the story was that I found it odd that once
we met Jeremiah and saw that he was basically a nice guy, why the
town wasn’t begging for his help. Though somewhat troubled and
burdened with a dark past, he is clearly a better alternative than the
red-eyed demons who blasted a hole in the abandoned hotel.
It also appeared that Jeremiah’s brothers knew about each others'
existence before they were “called” to meet together, but it was obvious
they did not know each other well. So, I was taken aback by how
quickly they formed up into a team. They willingly went into danger
knowing they would have to work together in order to survive, but it felt
like it was forced and too soon for that to happen. They also knew
about the others’ fighting abilities, yet how would they know this when
they had limited contact with each other? I would have liked to see at
least one of the brothers resist the “call” to meet in order to add more
conflict and dynamics to the story and advance character development.
Hopefully, in later issues, we will see more divisiveness among the
brothers, which will make their task even more difficult, yet more fun for
the reader.
Though a convoluted story, overall, it is well executed. The art style fits
the tone as well as the coloring. I particularly liked the choice of font for
the letter from his father. It was easily readable but had a handwritten
quality about it. (I’m not a font person, so if it fits the time and place and
I can read it, all is good.) Being a paranormal and a western fan, I liked
the premise, and I think it has a lot of potential. I do hope we see more
clever uses of what was available during that time period to help defeat
this evil and not just supernatural power. Sometimes, using seemingly
innocuous old tech can have the most impact.
I look forward to the second issue coming out in January 2014.
Madeleine Holly-
Rosing, Fanboy
Comics Guest
Contributor
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