“You gotta be one of the good guys, son, ‘cause there’s way too many of the bad.” - John Custer
Preacher is a comic series written by Garth Ennis and illustrated by Steve Dillon. It was published under DC’s now discontinued Vertigo imprint and ran from 1995 to 2000, spanning 75 issues in total. It follows the lives of Texas preacher Jesse Custer, his assassin girlfriend Tulip O’Hare, and his hard-partying vampire friend Cassidy. When Jesse is possessed by Genesis, an unearthly entity that escaped from heaven, he is given a supernatural power that causes people to directly obey anything he says. Upon learning that God has fled from heaven after the escape of Genesis, Jesse goes on a quest to find God and make him answer for the sufferings of the world he created.
Preacher is widely regarded as one of the best non-superhero comics ever made, and it’s easy to see why. It’s funny, intelligent, witty, and surprisingly heartwarming, but don’t let that fool you. This comic is not for the faint of heart or for those who are easily offended. Preacher is laced with tons of violence, blood, sex, drugs, alcohol, profanity, and controversial topics. It deals with subjects like blind faith, it talks about people who use churchgoing as an excuse to do bad things every day except Sunday, and it asks philosophical questions such as: If there is such a thing as a God, why do so many terrible things happen in the world on a daily basis? However, despite all of this, the series has a very clear set of moral values at its core, and it shows that being a good person is entirely your decision, and nobody else’s.
One thing I admire about Preacher is its inventiveness. Only someone like Garth Ennis could come up with something like Preacher. There is simply nothing like it, and there most likely never will be again. It blends many different themes and genres and it always manages to stay fresh and relevant.
The art by Steve Dillon is incredible, and it brilliantly balances realistic and cartoonish elements to create an art style that is unique and different. I love the way Dillon draws faces. Every character’s face is extremely detailed, which isn’t always easy considering there are characters such as Arseface, who is very difficult to draw. But the one thing that separates Steve Dillon from other artists is the way he draws eyes. Dillon has the ability to convey every emotion imaginable through his character’s eyes. Each character has eyes that are very distinctive, and you can tell exactly who they are just by looking at them. My favorite example of this is the Saint of Killers. Just by looking at the eyes of the Saint of Killers, you can tell exactly what he’s thinking, and what he’s going to do next.
My favorite aspect of Preacher is its lack of sound effects. Rarely do you ever see any sound effects in Preacher like “BOOM!” or “POW!” The art speaks for itself. Preacher proves that you don’t need a “BLAM!” written on the page every time there’s a gunshot. Every gunshot or explosion is made real not because of sound effects, but because of the art itself.
The writing in Preacher is some of the best I’ve ever read from a comic. Next to Locke & Key, this just might be the most well-written long-running comic series I’ve read to date. Garth Ennis took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. Preacher made me laugh out loud, and it also almost brought me to tears. As I said before, only someone like Garth Ennis could come up with something like Preacher. He is a creative genius, and I can’t wait to read more of his works down the road.
Preacher is a comic that will stick with you. Part of this is due to the shocking content, but I would argue that the most memorable thing about Preacher is the characters. Every single character is rich, textured, and layered. The heroes of the story are people you love to root for, and the villains are people you love to hate. Even the most minor characters are people that you care about.
Preacher does have a few tiny flaws here and there, and most of those flaws are due to pacing. But these flaws are so small compared to the rest of the series that they’re very easy to overlook. Preacher is easily one of my favorite comics, and although I didn’t want it to end, it ended just about as well as it possibly could’ve. I would definitely recommend this series to anyone who isn’t easily offended by blood, sex, or harsh language. I think it’s one of the most inventive concepts to come out of a comic book in the last three decades. Check this one out if you can.
Grade: A
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