Raise Hell! Issue #2 Review
Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Now that Comixology has picked up Jordan Alsaqa’s fantasy comic-book series “Raise Hell!”, issue #2 of the series has finally materialized! I’m glad I read issue #1 of “Raise Hell!” in May 2024, because Alsaqa first self-published the comic way back in November 2020, and the second installment came out in June 2024. That’s a pretty long wait between the two books.
Anyway, publication history aside, Issue #2 of “Raise Hell!” sees protagonists Victor, Miri, and Reeves gear up for their first day of school after summer break. Victor is the only one excited to be back in a classroom, while his best friends are still in vacation mode. They are all jolted from their bubbles when their newly acquired demon Alistair joins them on the car trip to school! The trio realizes Alistair is bound to them and cannot be away from them beyond a certain distance. They must find a way to transfigure him. The issue explores the misadventures of the friends as they figure out how to face their new problem.
The artwork is just as colorful and engaging as in the first issue, even if it’s a little rough on the edges. As I said earlier, it’s nice how all three friends—Victor, Miri, and Reeves—have distinct personalities, making it easy to differentiate between them. A lot of new characters make their way into the second issue, including a bunch of bitchy witches who were friends with Reeves in the past, but then they got too cool and fashionable to hang out with her. Most of the plot unfolds at school, so there’s some mild school drama and amusing shenanigans. Even the new character illustrations are vividly individualistic and different, so despite a number of new faces, it’s easy to keep track of them. I keep mentioning this as a token of appreciation because I’ve read plenty of comics where half the characters look like doppelgangers.
Only about 25 pages long, this edition of “Raise Hell” is light-hearted, with quite a few comical moments, even though Alistair the demon doesn’t get a lot of space. While each of the friends tries to find a way to make Alistair shape-shift, all Alistair has to do is sit still in one spot and not get into trouble. But he obviously does! Regardless, the issue ends on a cheery, celebratory note and also in a way that won’t leave you wishing that you had waited for the whole comic-book series to be out. Basically, if Jordan Alsaqa and his team decided to end the series right here, they could, even though it would be a shame because it’s turning out to be a fun read.
Rating: 3.5 on 5. Raise Hell! is also on Kindle Unlimited.
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