Read our review of Witchblade #123—in stores now.
Witchblade #123
Writer: Ron Marz
Artist: Stjepan Sejic
Covers: Stjepan Sejic
Full Color │ 32 Pages │$2.99 │Ongoing Series
Summary: NYPD Detective Sara Pezzini wields half of the powerful ancient artifact known as the Witchblade. But now she faces a foe that predates even the mystical gauntlet, confronting a deadly horror that has descended upon Brooklyn’s Ultra Orthodox Jewish community. Could the biblical Angel of Death truly have been unleashed?
Meanwhile, the bearer of the other half of the Witchblade, Dani Baptiste, goes to the aid of one of her dance students, but is she being reckless with her power?
Review: Witchblade #123 is a nice and healthy step back into the everyday life of Sara Pezzini. Now that she isn’t being pulled at by opposing forces of the universe, her life has returned to its normal – albeit still sideshow circus worthy – status. When Broken Trinity ended, things calmed down for a while as everyone tried to sort out their new station in life. With Sara’s personal issues sorted out (as much as they can be) she has returned to work and in Witchblade #122, was greeted by one grisly murder case.
In the previous issue of Witchblade Sara was called to investigate a brutal murder in an Orthodox Jew community. Not only did the murder take place in a racially charged neighborhood, but it reeked of the paranormal. Both make canvassing for clues quite difficult. At the start of Witchblade #123, Sara’s search for clues comes to a halt when the murderer is kind enough to reveal herself. When a rotting corpse of a woman appears before Sara on an equally decrepit horse, there is little doubt in Pezzini’s mind as to who is behind the slaughter. It turns out that the creepy spirit has some sort of beef with Sara, and the murders were just bait. She mentions that she is bound to “him” implying that there is a bigger player calling the shots. Before she can end it with the spirit, it disappears, dragging on the case for another day.
Then there is Gretch, another thing Sara would prefer not to deal with. Grech – a pain-in-Sara’s-ass news reporter – has been on her case for months, trying to uncover proof that there is more to Sara than meets the eye. Gretch finally got her evidence in Witchblade #122, when she snapped a picture of Sara in full armor. Fortunately for Gretch, Sara’s near proximity not only allowed her a clear snapshot, but saved her from an untimely death at the hands of the figure on horseback. Grech must now decide if she has it in her to rat out the woman who saved her life.
Now Sara is in a bind. She has to find the woman on horseback before she causes anymore casualties, even if it puts her in dangers way. Not that she can’t handle danger. Witchblade #123 unfolds as Sara digs up information on the spirit, all the while preparing for the battle she knows is ahead.
In addition to the whole supernatural mess, there is Dani. Still not sure what to do with her immense power, Dani may have let her strength go to her head. Currently Dani is using her unique skills to get a girlfriend out of an admittedly bad relationship. Is she flaunting her power?
Witchblade #123 definitely sets up many layers of intrigue that will play out in future issues. Who is controlling this woman on horseback? What does this puppet-master want with Sara? Will Gretch decide to rat out Pezzini? Is Dani getting in deeper than she can handle? With three plot points to expand on, I don’t see future issues slowing down anytime soon.
In terms of art, Stjepan Sejic is on fire. His art improves with each issue he fleshes out. The addition of the woman on horseback gave him a chance to explore the grotesque, something he did quite nicely. Also the expressions showcased in this issue blew my mind. One more point for an already extremely talented artist.
On a random note, Gretch got me thinking. What if she did rat out Sara? In the age of photo-manipulation, would anyone actually believe her? Would Sara come clean? Think about how much the Witchblade world would change if her power was known to the masses. Pretty cool if you think about it. Although it probably won’t ever happen, the Top Cow guys could really shake up the Witchblade universe by catapulting Sara into celebrity status.
Enough speculation. Witchblade #123 is on sale now, go check it out for yourself!
January 19th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
No bottomline? I am so confused. Change upsets me!
January 19th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
For the first time … I’m actually really excited about reading more Witchblade.
Ever since I started reading Top Cow titles, I’ve loved The Darkness. But I think Broken Trinity did a great job of luring me in to both worlds. I’m definitely warmed up to Witchblade now … even though I’m still a bigger Darkness fan. 
January 20th, 2009 at 11:45 am
William! You are the one that told me to change it! ARG! There is no satisfying you.