Holy F*ck #1 Review

Jesus is back!  Who would have thought he’d be mullet headed, beefed up and wielding double shotguns?  What crazy shenanigans is this you ask?  Holy F*ck #1 from Action Lab: Danger Zone and Major Spoilers has your review!

HOLY F*CK #1
Writer: Nick Marino
Artist: Daniel Arruda Massa
Colorist: Daniel Arruda Massa
Publisher: Action Lab: Danger Zone
Cover Price: $3.99

Previously in Holy F*ck:  There was this book called the Bible.  It starred Jesus.  This is what he’s up to now.

JESUS CHRIST, WHAT’S GOING ON?

Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa certainly have some crazy ideas, that’s for sure.  The issue opens with Jesus saving a nun from Zeus and Isis as he tosses grenades filled with Holy Water and jumps in guns blazing, 80’s action movie style.  We then skip back a week where the nun finds Jesus smoking meth with hookers in Tokyo.  It gets crazier from there.

Clearly this isn’t a book for everyone.  I could see how some would find the content offensive; meth smoking and hookers in any book would is edgy so adding religion is enough to send it over the edge.  It’s all done in fun and I don’t believe Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa are out to offend.  Lots of the humor pushes the envelope though but I found it mildly amusing with a couple of laugh out loud moments.  Some of the jokes and dialogue are juvenile like Isis claiming the gods will use nuclear weapons to “f*ck up the world!”  The visuals and character designs are the funniest, especially when you have a fanny pack, socks and sandals wearing Satan.  The biggest laugh, and best cliffhanger in a comic ever, comes when Jesus and Satan first see each other and lovingly share a kiss.  Not much happens and the issue is an extremely quick read.  An action story starring Jesus doesn’t have to have an intricate plot but more content would have helped.  Some of the time jumps in the story can make it confusing as it goes from a week, to two months, and back to six days in the past.  It’s not entirely clear where it’s heading but Jesus and Satan in a romantic relationship have assured I’ll be checking out issue two.

SOME GOOD VISUAL JOKES

Daniel Arruda Massa’s art is very simplistic in nature but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  Characters have some great designs (again Satan) and he draws the various gods well.  Colors are nice and vibrant and the numerous electronic screens in Tokyo at night are well done.  Lots of the visual jokes are amusing, like a TV playing tentacle porn in Jesus’s Japanese hotel room and Infinity Tower curved and bent like its logo/symbol.  The simplistic nature leads to problems though, the biggest concerning backgrounds.  Excluding a few, panels lack backgrounds and the ones that are filled aren’t very detailed.  Panel layout is fairly standard and I hope action scenes in future issues are a bit more complicated.  Overall the style fits the story and adds to the fun nature of the book.

THE BOTTOM LINE:  FUN, IF A LITTLE JUVENILE

Holy F*ck #1 is a bit what I expected it to be.  It’s silly with jokes that work but can be a bit juvenile.  Luckily, it isn’t out to offend but rather poke a little fun.  If Nick Marino and Daniel Arruda Massa can add some more subtle humor and unpredictability it would help the story a lot.  The art blends with the story well even with a little too much simplicity.  It’s worth checking out if you’re the audience for it and I’ll be back.  I need to know how Jesus and Satan fell in love.  Holy F*ck I never thought I’d write that sentence…