Television Preacher!

I've never read an issue of Preacher. (I own the free copy seen above, but still haven't read it.) Until the debut of the television show I didn't know a thing about the series by Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon. Now that the first season of the show is completed I feel competent to say a few things about that, if not the comic book.

I had no real plans to follow this series but I was fascinated by the bravura debut episode which was filled with bombastic images and some intriguing characters. I was hooked and followed the series with glee for about four weeks before a bit ennui set in and it was obvious that the creators were marking time a bit waiting for the end of the season to roll around. The first few episodes were caustically inventive and threw so much new stuff at you that you had to stay on your toes to savor it. Later though it was less about revelation and more about bits with some meager background info finding its way into each story.

I won't reveal anything about the first season, suffice it to say they did surprise. Having no idea what the comic is about (and not really wanting to know) I was caught off guard by the apocalyptic finale. Whether I keep aboard for the next season is questionable, but I don't rule it out. The show can be too full of itself sometimes, a bit too hipster ironic for its own good, but at its best it presents some strong characters who have compelling things to do and say. I hope for more of latter if I continue with it, but I dread that the former will increasingly become the normal play of the land.

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