Indie Comics Review: Lucky Devil #4
[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Artist: Fran Galan
Colours: Fran Galan
Letters: El Torres
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Reviewed By: Derek McNeil
Summary
Lucky Devil #4: After an exorcism gone wrong, down-on-his-luck schlub Stanley finds he’s retained all of the demon’s supernatural powers and positions himself the leader of an insane worldwide cult–only to find himself pissing off the demons of hell. Now Stanley heads to Hell itself to determine whether or not he should keep these powers of the devil or remove them and go back to his boring life.
Positives
In Lucky Devil #4, Stanley travels to Hell, hoping to arrange a cessation of hostilities with Satan. The first problem is how to get there. I got a chuckle out of Zedirex’s comment that it’s easy to get there, adding, “There are all kinds of rules you could break. at least, like, ten of them”.
But the demon goes on to explain that Stanley’s power gives him the clout to command a ride to Hell from a demon acquaintance of Zed’s. Strangely, the mode of transportation that arrives to pick them up is an ice cream truck. That does seem oddly appropriate, though, that Hell would pervert something fairly innocent with positive associations into a vehicle to Perdition.
I’ve always found it interesting how different writers choose to portray Hell. Whether they go for the traditional fire and brimstone underworld, or a unique interpretation of their own. Cullen Bunn offers a unique twist, as their demon chauffeur asks Stanley to choose what particular type of Hell to go to: “What’s your poison? Plenty of ways to gt where you’re headed. Plenty of flavours. Church? Strip Club? DMV? Casino?”. Stanley opts for an infernal strip club, much to the annoyance of his girlfriend, Dezzy.
Positives Cont.
The encounter doesn’t start off well, as the Devil tries to forcibly tries to rip Stanley’s demonic power away unsuccessfully. However, Stanley maintains his stance that he wants to come to an arrangement with Satan. And the Devil is quite happy to negotiate. He offers to call off the demonic assassins and allow Stanley to keep the power. In exchange, Stanley agrees to give the Devil control of the messaging of Stanley’s movement.
Stanley reluctantly accepts this offer, mainly to protect his friends. But the story ends with Stanley later telling Dezzy of his misgivings over the bargain. He tells her, “I’ve felt different… since we struck the bargain. This power. It’s changing me”. This seems to imply that accepting the Devil’s offer wasn’t a good decision. And it seems unlikely that a literal deal with the Devil will benefit anyone but the Devil.
I have to commend Fran Galan’s artwork on this series. His style is ideal for the unique blend of horror and dark humour in Bunn’s story. Galan manages to capture both tones without either undercutting the other. His slightly cartoony style is somewhat reminiscent of the classic EC horror comics, which often had a similar tone to this story.
Negatives
I have to admit that the ending is . It resolves Stanley’s current situation, but hints that Stanley now has even worse problems. I have a feeling that Cullen Bunn isn’t finished with Stanley’s story, and that a sequel will be coming at some point. If this is the end of Stanley’s story, then it’s a bit of a letdown, but it would be a satisfactory place to pause the story for a later continuation.
Verdict
Lucky Devil has been a fun story from Cullen Bunn and Fran Galan. This story doesn’t quite feel complete, but it makes a great Part One. Hopefully, Bunn and Galan are planning a Part Two in the near future.
