Review by Ian Keogh
No character ever completely fades away at Marvel, and when Brian Michael Bendis needed a surprise sorcerous addition to the Avengers he revived 1970s obscurity Brother Voodoo, who temporarily replaced Stephen Strange as Sorcerer Supreme. Good intentions notwithstanding, the original stories, reprinted after the modern material are clichéd, and Bendis dismissed the faults in repurposing the character for the 21st century and applying a little more dignity.
That led to this one-off in which Rick Remender picks up the baton. Strange is still around to advise, as is the ghost of Jericho Drumm’s dead brother, himself once a powerful voodoo sorcerer, yet Jericho is incredibly confident. Early encounters underline his methods differing from his predecessor, and Remender includes Strange’s most formidable enemies, but Dormammu in particular seems far too easily dispensed with. The opening chapters are also functional rather than thrilling, which is down to Remender rushing from one crisis to the next.
It’s disguised in part by Jefte Palo’s art making everything look dynamic enough, but it’s Gabriel Hardman’s sepia toned flashback pages that really stand out. Alessandro Vitti supplies more of those, but they lack Hardman’s refinement.
About two-thirds of the way through Remender’s proper plot kicks in, and the final couple of chapters supply thrills lacking in the preceding pages. The threat is clever, there are some memorable scenes, particularly Nightmare confronting Doctor Doom, and a proper reckoning of how powerful Doctor Voodoo is. Remender does take the lazy option in providing surprising moments only to press the reboot button at the end, but he’s definitely found his mojo by the final chapters of the main story.
From there we move into the past. Roy Thomas and Alex Massacci providing a framing sequence leading into reprints from the 1970s, horribly recoloured in the way that seemed so sophisticated to Marvel in 2010. The art from Gene Colan is functional rather than approaching his best, and lacks atmosphere, while much the same applies to Len Wein’s plot. It’s an origin story that gets the job done without standing the test of time.
Colan’s art looks considerably better on the following black and white story, on which Doug Moench and Wein collaborate. Moench overwrites, but it’s a step up. Closing the collection is ‘The Book of the Vishanti’, co-written by Thomas and Jean-Marc L’Officier and nicely drawn by Geof Isherwood. The first of three short chapters re-tells the origin story for the fourth time in the collection, but concisely and attractively, and from there the writers explore the origins of voodoo, tying it in with slavery and piracy in the 17th century. It’s a pleasing surprise.
Anyone just wanting Remender’s story may resent the higher price charged for bulking out the package with far older material, and as Remender doesn’t hit form until late on it’s possibly worth spending your money on something else.
