“Leather pants, nice right cross, doe eyes, holier-than-thou glower… you must be Faith.” – Spike
Although previously introduced in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Faith gets her own origin story in a super-sized issue, coming in at 40 pages. Strangely enough, we don’t get a whole lot of insight into Faith’s past, and this issue kind of serves as a backdoor exploration of some of the shenanigans that the Watchers’ Council has been up to for a while now. These machinations have been obliquely referenced in the past, and it would appear that the Council is not above being sneaky when it comes to furthering their agenda. Faith, it would appear, is the latest pawn in their game of chess against the forces of darkness.
Jeremy Lambert pens this tale, and it’s a bit of a trip, much like Faith’s head. It’s interesting that this iteration of Faith is a bit of a movie buff and that Lambert uses movies as a motif for escape/entrapment throughout the book. Unfortunately, the disjointed nature of the narrative somewhat took me out of the moment several times during my read, and while I appreciate the stylistic take on Faith’s story, I finished the issue having more questions than insight into her role in the Council’s overarching plot. With the Council screwing about with her head, it’s easy to see how Faith may eventually break from them… The inclusion of a key fan favorite character suggests that Faith’s arc may be going to dark places. Lambert’s refresh of Faith’s character is definitely one major way that #StoriesMatter; it shows how a fan favorite can be re-imagined in a faithful, but cool, way.
Eleonara Carlini gives Faith a youthful exuberance that’s a lot less femme fatale and more theater nerd. It does feel a bit at odds with her more va-va-voom presence on the main Buffy series. Carlini’s action sequences seem so effortlessly cool; there’s just so much energy in the panels. Mattia Iacono’s colorwork really enhanced the creepy vibe for me. There’s something about dark movie theaters and glaring lights that really get me. I also appreciated the noticeably different color palettes for the different “Faiths.” Jim Campbell letters the issue beautifully, and I’ll once again make a case for putting the letterer’s name on the cover!
Overall, stylish, but a bit disjointed. Sometimes, you just gotta have a little faith in the creative masterminds and their vision.
Creative Team: Jeremy Lambert (writer), Eleonara Carlini (artist), Mattia Iacono (colorist), Jim Campbell (letterer)
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
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