The Presidents are dead, Toussaint is dead, and now Seesaw is up against the formidable Spawn! How will this sway the battle for Philadelphia and even the final conflict? Find out in Killadelphia #31 from Image Comics!
KILLADELPLHIA #31
Writer: Rodney Barnes
Artist: Jason Shawn Alexander and Germán Erramouspe
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Letterer: Marshall Dillon
Editor: Greg Tumbarello
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: November 15, 2023
Previously in Killadelphia: The battle in Philadelphia takes a turn against the vampires as General Toussaint kills even John Adams – the last of the presidential vampires. Seesaw recalls his younger life and his childhood friend, Ray, who was blithely optimistic and hopeful for the future. This did not bode well for him on the streets, and he died. But his passing left Seesaw with a determination to learn to read, and after he became a vampire, he read and understood the book of magic. Jimmy and Jose meet Nita Hawes, an old friend of Jimmy’s. Her brother Jason, a ghost, noted Corson moving an army of demons toward Philadelphia and she has come to stop them.
RAMPAGING INTO THE FRAY
Killadelphia #31 opens with an interlude in Hell as Lucifer gives Corson a dressing down for bringing Spawn into the conflict. Corson admits to not thinking. Seesaw’s power caught him by surprise and in a moment of desperate inspiration, he summoned Spawn. Lucifer reminds him that Spawn is the one entity who could possibly kill them. On the other hand, he muses, this could speed up the onset of the final conflict.
Spawn is on the streets of Philadelphia attempting to take down Seesaw as Anansi tries to explain what is going on. To be fair, Anansi points out that instead of simply escaping through a Portal, Seesaw stopped time. Seesaw claims he was just trying to stop the war. Spawn is in no mood to believe vampires. A pack of werewolves leaps in to try to fend off Spawn. Even though he is a god, this is not Anansi’s fight and he cannot take a direct hand in it, but he can try to intervene by talking.
Nita is drawn outside by the strange light in the sky. It is noon, but it is dark except for the jagged patch of unnatural brightness. Someone, Nita explains, is manipulating the natural order, and that kind of power risks attracting the attention of the spirit realms. She and Jimmy need to stop it before Armageddon starts.
Seesaw may be able to use magic, but he cannot use it against Spawn. Anansi tries again to explain that Seesaw is one of the good guys. Spawn lashes out at him directly. And this is just what he needed. Since Spawn struck him, he now is free to deal with him directly. This does take the focus off Seesaw, but it doesn’t help Spawn understand what is going on.
Spawn flings Anansi through a portal. And Seesaw surrenders. He lets Spawn pull him closer and when he gets close enough, he bites him. The bite of a vampire will let him see his own past again closely, but he will also see and understand Seesaw. It works, and Spawn is intrigued that someone who is a predator of humans cares so deeply about humanity. Anansi returns, ready to continue the fight!
FINDING COMMON GROUND
Spawn is brought to the pages of Killadelphia #31 in grand style. He gets a full page as we get to see him wrapping Seesaw’s neck with a chain while holding off Zubiya and the werewolves. For anyone who does not know the character, you can tell in a glance that he wields enormous power. Nevertheless, Seesaw holds his calm. It was interesting to see the first part of this battle where Anansi, who is a god, simply talks. I like the explanation that, as a god, he could not interfere until he was brought in, and that gives us the opportunity to see a direct battle between titans, full of drama and destruction.
I respect Seesaw as a character, as the vampire who rises beyond bloodlust to find a deeper meaning in life. I also appreciate the cleverness of his giving up so he could bite Spawn. The concept here is that, in order to understand Seesaw’s pain, Spawn must understand his own. This gives us a chance to see his origin, but it also reminds us of Seesaw’s life and experience, tying this new arc of the story back to its origins. It is a new story now.
BOTTOM LINE: ONCE STARTED, IT CANNOT EASILY STOP
Killadelphia #31 sets us on a new journey of drama and discovery, conflict and adventure. Armageddon and the fate of the Earth may be at stake, but the outcome rests on only a few, including mortal humans.
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Killadelphia #31
Who are the players and who are the pawns as the final conflict potentially begins?
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By day, she’s a mild-mannered bureaucrat and Ms. Know-It-All. By night, she’s a dance teacher and RPG player (although admittedly not on the same nights). On the weekends, she may be found judging Magic, playing Guild Wars 2 (badly), or following other creative pursuits. Holy Lack of Copious Free Time, Batman! While she’s always wished she had teleportation as her superpower, she suspects that super-speed would be much more practical because then she’d have time to finish up those steampunk costumes she’s also working on.