This is Artifacts where I will be exploring the Artifacts line of TopCow Productions. This first batch of readings will be dealing with the beginnings of the universe. Starting at the beginning means looking at “Witchblade”, the series that started it all. What would eventually be known as the Artifacts line began in November 1995. My breakdown for the origins of this line is derived, mostly, from the old “Origin” line TopCow put out for both “Witchblade” and “The Darkness”. However, they are likely out of print at this point – though available digitally. If reading these books in a collected format is what you’d want the ongoing “The Complete Witchblade” line that TopCow is currently producing is likely the best option in terms of price and issues. For this entry I am looking at “Witchblade” #1-8.
It’s interesting going back to a series that feels so of its time. Which is the sort of temporal specificity a series like “Witchblade” can give readers as the core series ran for pretty much twenty years, ending with issue #185 in November 2015 (technically ~187 issues were published if you include the #1/2 and #500 from January 2001 and 1998 respectively). This early era of the series isn’t one I’m overly familiar with. I’ve purchased the entirety of the series over the years due to TopCow’s semi-frequent HumbleBundles and their “Complete” reprint, but it was always the later era work that drew my attention due to the art of Stjepan Šejić and the persistent talk of how you should “just read” the Ron Marz run (#80-150, #170-185). One of the things I’m looking forward about this project is literally being able to see how the series has changed over time. What are the formal characteristics that drop off? When does the line art go digital and not just the coloring?
Reading through these first 8 issues one of the most obvious points of “they don’t make them like they used to” is the consistent presence of an omniscient narrator. While “Spawn” has kept this narrative tool going for over 300 issues, that stands out as an exception in the contemporary landscape. Looking over what happens in the 170 or so pages it’s worth noting how much “Witchblade” relies on this narration to cohere Michael Turner, D-Tron, and various colorists art. It isn’t that their art is incoherent, but if we think of comics as the synergistic use of words and pictures the narration and art makes evident a feeling of disconnect between them. Putting aside Turner’s depiction of bodies and panel content for now, as I’m sure there will be time to fully unpack that at a later date. His page layouts on a macro level fluctuate in this interesting rhythm between bold splash page pinups, normal comic paneling, and designs that are more expressionistic with lots of little panels set against a vast gutter that is only filled in by the colorist. You could call it manga-eseque (shonen manga specifically) but that doesn’t feel like a conscious point of reference.
In this sprawling set of layouts the lettering of Dennis Heisler tries to create both a line for the readers eye to follow and connect the dots. It’s not always successful some pages come off as a smattering of narration and panels with no clear sense of flow. The disconnect of boxes and their general brevity means they are somewhat interchangeable, but “Witchblade” isn’t that experimental of a series. This turns “Witchblade” into more of an affective reading experience at times.
The 90s were an excessive moment for comic aesthetics, personified by Image Comics. This excess is mostly understood by the repeated use of splash pages and hyper gendered depictions of the body in these books. For their part Michael Turner and inker D-Tron continue this at the time contemporary trend with hyper gendered depiction of the body with their cartoonish designs. And these depictions clearly show a bias towards an assumed cis heterosexual male reader. Antagonists/frenemy Kenneth Irons and Ian Nottingham are never shown in the same bifurcated patchwork style as Sara Pezzini is throughout. In the opening pages we see her as a framed chest and ass before we see a full pinup, and even than the costume obscures her identity. This view of femininity is contrasted by Irons nad Nottingham’s maleness captured in their strong full body or at least half toroso depictions that emphasize their muscles and power. They are made spectacle but in a different way to that of Pezzini.
Continued belowIt’s interesting to see this series, and publisher, that is widely known for its cheesecake also try to navigate and put forth what could be argued to be is a second wave feminist narrative in nascent third wave feminist form. You have the Witchblade which is treated as an icon of female empowerment and liberation, look at how it’s treated in the first issue visually and narratively going forward. Kenneth Irons has an all consuming need to dominate and control this icon. All of this is using the form of popular culture to make this point instead of direct political action. The potential feminist qualities of this are than heavily contrasted with the Turner’s art as previously discussed which plays into at best sexist stereotyping if not bio essentialist displays of the body. It’s this knot where I can see how someone could take up and make the case for something or later how it is there. Nothing about that case though is easy or clear.
This excess is also very melodramatic, which is a mode of interpretation that I don’t see very much of when it comes to this era and type of comic. That melodramatic mode though explains the affective quality of the books design and how it manages to make some of the more jarring plot turns if not “make sense” land in the moment. In issues #6-7 Sara Pezzini and Ian Nottingham in a charged romance book! It makes no narrative sense, even by enemies to lover standards and their shared connection to the Witchblade. And yet, Jonathan D. Smith (aka J.D. Smith) just peppers the whole thing with the lushest yellow-orange, reds, and Fall browns that when mixed with Turner’s figures it works! The first of two double page spreads that close out issue #6 is at once violent and sensual. Smith’s coloring also serves as means of communicating the fleeting quality of that sensuality as the sunsets and purples and blues beginning to dominate the page and Pezzini walks away. It sells the idea of a connection and relationship between the two more than any of the romantic dreams the two have shared.
The funny thing about “Witchblade” is while there is this affective quality to its storytelling, the book is never short on generating plot. It might be a bit too much at time, again an excessive quality, between Lisa Buzanis being that annoying kid sister type for Sara. Liza and Julie Pezzini’s adventures in modeling. The consistent use of Kenneth Irons in the B/C plot position. On top of the fact that for everything going on in “Witchblade” it is still at this point being written and produced as if it were a police/detective story with supernatural elements. This first batch is 8 issues long, most collections these days run between 5-6. Individual issues just don’t really work the way they do now as semi-autonomous narrative units meant to build into a greater whole. For sure these 8 issues form a complete narrative arc that forms the origin story of Sara Pezzini, but they also dedicate a page or two each issue for something that might get paid off down the line. A loose thread that could be tied off, eventually. That is one of the more interesting aspects of this read through is how different individual issues work compared to today. This really wasn’t written or an eventual collection but as a means to keep readers purchasing individual issues on a monthly basis.
After these first 8 issues, it feels like “Witchblade” could go in many different directions. It wouldn’t surprise me if the next batch of issues (#9-17) were a series of one and done to short arc individual cases, that might slowly build up into something. There is a certain cartoonish quality to the characters of Lisa and Jake, who oh buddy you’re either going to die horribly or just get forgotten once Jackie Estacado shows up. But they’re also the kind of elements that explain how this show was quickly adapted into a live action television series on TNT. “Witchblade” the supernatural procedural sounds pretty cool.
Other Thoughts
There wasn’t really a good place to put this in the main body of the article, however, it’s worth recognizing the use of BDSM and fetish wear to frame certain sequences. In particular the torture of Ian Nottingham wherein he is in essentially a gimp suit receiving torturous breath play. This sequence is contrasted an issue later when Lisa and Julie find themselves at a dungeon/fashion party hosted by Miss Boucher. I’ve been dealing with Schumacher Batman a lot recently so to see this series just fully give up the game and recognize BDSM and fetish wear in universe instead of as a reference to frame their costuming decisions is interesting. On one hand maybe this is a sex positive development (I mean I’m not holding out much hope but I am an optimist) or more likely it all goes downhill into more threats and depictions of gendered sexual violence.
Continued belowNot to fall into the trap of auteur theory, but here are a pair of discussions about the history of “Witchblade” on its 25th anniversary a couple years ago by the series producers.
