Very enjoyable and engaging first issue that neatly sets up the story, delivers a great hook ending and has a generous story to tell in its own right. The Carnival of Souls comes into a small town, it is followed by two people, Raul an ex-priest and Claudia a carnival survivor . The carnival sets up and Rail and Claudia join the customers and it all gets nasty, exactly as it should. The carnival has a deliberate purpose and Rail is determined to prevent it succeeding, a process Claudia may be helping or may be complicating.Kim Roberts has packed a great deal of story between the covers, the major players are economically and confidently introduced and the action is kicked off with a bang. The reason why the carnival is touring is given, Raul and Claudia are going to be involved in a very serious fight.
The art is lovely, the cast are strongly expressive, they have energy and physical force as they move, they move as individual members of the cast and react to each other credibly. The female member of the cast, in particular Kali and Claudia are treated with respect and given the opportunity be be actual personalities. Kali burns with purpose, all the people she meets are just means to her end. Claudia is in slightly over her head and determined to push ahead. Raul is slightly more conventional, an experienced demon hunter he is not really tested yet. The use of panels to control the pace of the story and create variety on the page is a pleasure to read.
The colouring catches and emphasises the details of the cast and context as well as the emotional tones of the story with precision. The carnival is a riot of bright colours that smartly brings out the dark ideas that swirl around it.The lettering is quiet and natural until it needs to be loud and obtrusive in the sound effects.
Soulless is a great fun comic that showcases strong comics storytelling by very talented creators. It is going to be a thrill ride.
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