3 out of 5

Not having read the preceding Alan Grant issues, it’s hard to say what kind of impression Garth’s first issue on the ses first issue on the series made.  Given the letter column opinion (at least what was printed) of the prior run hitting a rut, there was maybe an excess of Lobo and Hell and ultra-gore and gags and not enough story.  So tossing Ennis on the title with buddy McCrea for a fast-hitting, violent, jokey bikers from Hell intro doesn’t seem to be too much of a stretch, but nonetheless, we get some Jason Blood / Etrigan duality, we’re back on Earth, and our creative duo’s synergistic energy is undeniable.  Ennis pens Etrigan’s rhyming dialogue with cheeky awareness, which McCrea – his art gorgeously unfettered, toned to perfection by David Lloyd’s colors – illuminates into madness with his Bisely-by-way-of-Picasso arched lines and inks.  John exists on a wavering line between loose sloppy and enthusiastic, and for his debut, he thankfully defaults to the latter.

The story itself is pretty humdrum and nonsensical – meet the bikers, destroy the bikers – but Garth and John were clearly out to prove what they could do with Blood and the Demon before kicking their ongoing story into gear in issue 42 (post a fill-in issue), and the issue does its job of letting you know whether or not what’s coming next will be to your tastes.