By Dustin Cabeal

I’m sure there will be a lot of dumb controversy around this book, but it won’t come from me. I only care about the comic itself and what the story and art are doing to tell that story. That said, I found this first issue of Judas to be gorgeous looking, but also an absolute bore.

There probably wasn’t any other way to tell the story of this first issue other than to recap Judas’ role in the Bible and his betrayal of Jesus, but that doesn’t make this issue any more interesting. It’s not because of my familiarity with the subject matter either; it actually boils down to a few things. The first being that the story doesn’t spend enough time explaining the lay of the land that Judas now finds himself wandering. It’s just vaguely mentioned that it’s hell… I guess. The other aspect of the presentation is that it’s a flashback issue. We see very little of Judas in the present and a lot of him going through the greatest hits of a Jesus’ life. There was only one time that I responded to the story, and it was quickly deflated when no one did or said anything of substance afterward.

The biggest problem I have with the story is the inconsistencies with Judas as a character. The character presented is sympathetic. Seemingly more sympathetic than Jesus. Everything he thinks is how jacked up it is that Jesus isn’t doing more when he can. The issue is, that when we get to the betrayal… it's completely out of character. It’s blamed on a voice talking to Judas. Which sure, fine that works regarding the story, but that doesn’t make me go, “Poor Judas was being used.” No instead it continues to show just how weak minded the character is and how easy it is to make excuses for his actions. It’s a bit convenient, and I’m sure it’s being used to drive the next chapter of the story. It just feels inconsistent with what the story presents as the character and then the one defining action of the character.

You could make an indirect comparison between Judas and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but the difference is that League would embrace the qualities of the character. Judas isn’t a good guy and yet he’s being presented as the hero that was used and tossed away. Maybe more is coming, but it feels like fiction. Which, yeah, all fiction is fiction. But a strong story makes you feel as if it’s real or at the very least it makes you wish that is was real. Which Judas it as if a clever idea was overdeveloped.

The artwork is gorgeous looking though. From the linework to the coloring and the lettering. It made it at least enjoyable to go through, but at the same time, it almost feels like a waste. Maybe the next chapter will turn everything around, and the art will be given its just deserts on the page, but for now, it’s at least elevating an otherwise dull story.

If this is just four issues as the cover alludes, I’ll likely finish reading it. I didn’t particularly expect much from it, and I got about what I expected. It’s a character and story that people want to add to, but so much has already been done with it that finding a new path can be extremely hard to do. If you can put aside your religious beliefs, you might get some entertainment from the story, but for the most part, it feels like a cliff notes version of the story of Jesus, starring Judas, with some dope artwork.

Score: 3/5

Judas #1
BOOM! Studios