Written by: Charles Soule
Art by: Ryan Browne
Color by: Ryan Browne and Addison Duke
Letters by: Chris Crank
Covers by: Ryan Browne and Ryan Stegman
Published by: Image Comics
No One Throws A Party Like Sizajee
While Charles Soule and Ryan Browne are off touring the country in the pimped out Wizard Van to promote the release of the first Curse Words’ trade paperback, Curse Words #6 hits the shelves to kick off the second arc, Explosiontown.
The full roster of the Demon Sizzajee’s Nine Evil Wizards is revealed!
Chapter 6 kicks off with the demon Lord Sizajee holding a sort of company picnic. He’s doing his best to boost morale with his remaining six loyal wizards, after having lost Wizord and Ruby to defection and Cornwall having been killed in the first chapter. Sizajee’s diverse and nepotic operation is beginning to pop at the seams.
Back in New York, there’s all kinds of tension between Wizord and Ruby. Ruby faltered when she had a kill shot on Wizord, and now she’s been cut off from Sizajee’s power as well. A powerless stranger in a strange land, she’s reliant on the guy who got her into this mess, and she resents him for it.
Both groups are facing battles on two fronts, as Tigers encroach on Sizajee’s borders in Hole World, and the US government has taken an interest in Wizord.
Charles Soule takes a break from the heavy action in this chapter to set up coming attractions, but there’s plenty of meat on the bone. Soule keeps it interesting as bizarre relationships are defined and fleshed out. If you had any doubt about his dark sense of humor, these first few pages should clear that straight up. Silly Bee may be my new favorite character.
Ryan Browne continues to absolutely destroy on art duties. The slow reveal Browne gives us in the opening sequence goes from ridiculous, to mundane, to alarming, to absolutely horrifying in 5 pages. Browne’s range matches Soule’s script brilliantly, going toe to toe at every point from whimsical to caustic.
If you’re looking for a sardonically satirical antihero story with hogtaurs and rat/koala/bird familiars, snatch this one up. While you needn’t have already read the first arc to get on at this stop, you’ll probably want to go back and grab the newly released TPB of The Devil’s Devil to get more of the story.
Overall: 8.5/10
Brendan Allen has probably had more jobs than you would reasonably believe. Dog trainer? He’s done it. Flooring contractor? Yep! EMT? Army NBC specialist? Road dog for a Celtic rock band? Yes, yes, and och aye! Now he reads comics and writes about them.
