While railroad men and pioneer families expand into the frontier of the old west, a secret war is being waged between two factions: the followers of Temozarela, an angel of blood fallen from Heaven, and those who stand against the darkness. And somewhere in between walks Ivan Isaacs, a dead priest who sold his soul to the devil Belial in exchange for a second chance at life. Both sides need him to reach their goals, but Ivan has plans of his own.
I once had high hopes for this book but the superior manga offerings of rival Viz displaced this from my reading list.
Reviewing my reads from years past, I felt that I've outgrown this title. Thus, it is among the first to join my first ever Culling, in the hopes to free up valuable shelf space for more important and worthwhile books.
I did not praise the art style in my previous review. Repent, young man! It is certainly a style because 1) it's quite unique and 2) it's not going anywhere. I never really caught it until the Q & A session included in the back but the frames have no borders. The frames have no borders. The frames have no borders and that's why it feels like watching a western in widescreen format - %&(*#&@ GENIUS!
Here the story is taking quite a wide turn. In the first half it's good stuff. It follows Lizzie and a group of unknown individuals who are proving to be quite exceptional. I liked it, good ole` crazy witch burning vibes more like Salem, less like Inquisition - but the same taste of madness. The second part, once read will be quite apparent, is the part I'm weary of. I'm hoping the method of diving into the past does not backfire as it has some revelatory implications.
There's also quite a lack of Ivan in this volume. Not bad, just something to note (definitely gives the volume a more tame feel).
Sebuah lompatan terjadi di jilid ini. Hyung mengakhiri arca pertama dari Priest di volume ketiga. Jadi pertarungan awal yg melibatkan Esther di akhir buku kedua sudah menjadi sinyal,, jadi ini seharusnya tidak mengejutkan. Hyung mengirim kita maju ke tiga abad kemudian, era modern saat ini. Penjara Temozarela telah digali dan dibawa ke universitas riset bersama dengan buku catatan Ivan Isaacs, dan beragam pastur telah mulai mencoba mencari tahu apa itu. Oke, mari kita lihat bagaimana perkembangan ceritanya
Solid and gritty Korean manwha that introduces a lot of new characters, and developments over 300 years in this volume. It is therefore, very much of a set up piece. That said, the first two novels were so violent and full on that this is welcomed at this point. It has been 17 years or so since I read these for the first time - but they still have that dark and engaging feeling I recall.
If you are looking for something innovative and new.... this is not for you. If you are looking for an awesome weird-western that covers the battle between good and evil in an awesome and entertaining way, this is it. Priest has nothing you haven't seen before, but does it in a glorious way. Definately following in the footsteps of Vampire Hunter D.
Now when I finally thought that I was understanding the story, I got more confused. I didn’t like the change to “modern times” when so little was explained. No gore on this volume though!
A fascinating chapter in this superb gothic western vampire saga. The first half concludes the Requiem for the Damned arc and it is the best artwork yet. The copies of the Medieval woodcuts are stunning. It's also really twisted and we get some wonderful grotesque imagery like the demon/fallen angel Temozarella with his multiplied gas mask suspended in this needle like tower and the satanic sculpture of wired together bodies is like something out of Clive Barker. I like how the new railway makes a pentagram - an excellent way to fuse the two genres, horror and western.
The second half brings this saga into modern day. We're introduced to a new priest who becomes embroiled in the world of the supernatural.
The first two volumes of Priest are interesting, but this one is where everything really kicks off - the narratives widens its scope by entering modern day and we begin to get back story. It's moving away from being a Hellsing rip off and morphing into something excellent in its own right.
Min-woo Hyung, Priest vol. 3: Requiem for the Damned (Tokyopop, 2002)
Hyung brings the first major story arc of Priest to a close in Requiem for the Damned, the third volume in the series. Actually, he kind of did that at the end of book two, so this should come as no surprise. The first half of this book is cleanup, though he's given us an idea of where the next big story arc is going. It's the second half of this one that gets intriguing. Hyung sends us forward in time three hundred years, to modern Tokyo. Temozarela's prison has been unearthed and brought to a research university along with Ivan Isaacs' notebook, and a cadre of high-ranking (and often iconoclastic) priests has set about trying to figure out just what it is. We already know because we've read the first two books. I can't wait to see where that's going to go. *** ½
Isaac Ivans's saga continues in the third volume to the series. A federal marshall and his team are investigating the deaths in various towns, and Lizzie becomes their prime witness. And then, things take an interesting turn as the story moves into the future into modern day. A secret organization has discovered Father Isaac's journal, and another young priest is now brought into the group. Overall, the series is picking up and getting interesting. I will be seeking out the next volume soon.