Mary Medina is in a bad position. She is chained underneath a cemetery about to watch a ritual to kill John Doe and bring about a spirit. Will she become the persona of Mystere and save the day? Find out in Mystere #5 by Zenescope Entertainment.

MYSTERE #5 (OF 5): BLACK FRIDAY

Writer: Ben Meares
Artist: Eman Casallos
Colorist: Ceci de la Cruz
Letterer: Carlos M. Mangual
Editor: Kellie Supplee
Publisher: Zenescope Entertainment
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: January 8th, 2020

Previously in Mystere: Mary Medina has tried to leave the life of Mystere for peace and quiet. But with the appearance of a man wielding a soul-sucking hammer; Mary is forced to rely on her necromancy skills. Mystere discovers a plan between Abigail and the Women in Black to infuse the Blacksmith’s soul into John Doe, a homeless mute. Mary must find a way to escape captivity, overpower the Blacksmith, and save Jon Doe from a terrible fate!

AN ARMY OF UNDEAD

Mystere is chained to a stone pillar underneath an unknown cemetery which is luckily right in her element. Using a lockpick, she escapes her bindings and transforms into her alter ego Mystere and summons an army of zombies! But Abigail has John hostage and Mystere won’t be able to save him before the Zombies can overpower her. Instead, Mystere calls off her Zombies and summons the spirit of the Blacksmith. Seeing what the Women in Black has become, he rejects her and says she no longer has a soul.

The Woman in Black reacts in anger and Mystere engages her by force feeding her hundreds and hundreds of souls. The sheer amount of necrotic energy causes the catacombs to begin to collapse and Mystere barely escapes with the help of her undead army.

WIth things relatively safe, Mary Medina becomes the new owner of the New Dawn homeless shelter. She accepts that she can be both Mystere and Mary Medina at the same time and do good things with both identities. However, it seems that the Women in Black and the soulless Blacksmith are still alive and trying to regain their power…

NECROMANCER WITH A HEART OF GOLD

I like the title character a lot. Her journey is exciting, believable, and relatable. I like the look of the costume and despite her harsh backstory, she still tries and becomes a good person. While I think the lesson was learned, I do not think the conclusion of this arc emphasized that theme. The confrontation between the Women in Black and Abigail was dynamic but it was supposed to allow Mary to realize she can be Mystere. This realization came in the epilogue rather than the climax. The fight just simply felt like a fight without a deeper purpose for the book.

The art style was very dynamic and I really liked how they handled the Woman in Black. She is an immortal being who looked fairly ragged. Often with immortality we see an undead creature or a person who has gotten eternal youth. This interpretation put her somewhere in the middle and actually made the character more accessible as a villain.

BOTTOM LINE: A MISSED MOMENT

This series has really done a good job telling a good story. Solid art and colors allowed for dynamic moments that are emphasized by the dialogue. Unfortunately, the big end fight just didn’t have the weight of the story or felt meaningful. If you set up some of these themes, they need to pay off. 3 out of 5 stars for Mystere #3.

---

Dear Spoilerite,

At Major Spoilers, we strive to create original content that you find interesting and entertaining. Producing, writing, recording, editing, and researching requires significant resources. We pay writers, podcast hosts, and other staff members who work tirelessly to provide you with insights into the comic book, gaming, and pop culture industries. Help us keep MajorSpoilers.com strong. Become a Patron (and our superhero) today.

Mystere #5

67%

67%

Disappointed

Unfortunately, the big end fight just didn’t have the weight of the story or felt meaningful.

• Writing

  5
• Art

  8
• Coloring

  7
• User Ratings (0 Votes)
  0