CHERISH #2, from Dynamite Comics on December 14th, 2022, digs deeper into the well of corruption and crime when Cherish goes undercover to trap the people responsible for her father’s death.
The Details
- Written by: Katana Collins
- Art by: Gabriel Caitano
- Colors by: Omi Remalante Jr.
- Letters by: Taylor Esposito
- Cover art by: Brett Booth (cover A)
- Cover price: $3.99
- Release date: December 14, 2022
Is It Good?
CHERISH #2 is a step in the right direction and a respectable improvement over issue #1. We liked CHERISH #1 for its unique take on the high-tech vigilante sub-genre, focusing on a character with an ax to grind. However, the first issue lacked setup in a few spots. CHERISH #2 fleshes out the world significantly and provides a much-needed backstory to establish Cherish’s motivations.
The highlight of Collins’s script is the fully-realized history delivered about Cherish’s past through a combination of flashbacks and present-day exposition. You get a lot of information to inform Cheerish’s motivations. The backstory also broadens the web of conspirators involved in the death of Cherish’s father, giving her ample targets to hunt. Collins does an excellent job of giving each adversary a repugnant reason to receive justice, so Cherish is turned into a perpetual revenge machine, making each capture satisfying.
The down point of this issue is the high volume of names and faces to track. Almost everyone is a criminal for a different reason, so it takes time to introduce the character and show (not tell) why they need to be taken out. The laundry list of characters gets too long to track in spots, so this issue could have used more aggressive editing to whittle the plot down to one or two key characters.
Caitano’s art is fairly good. The action sequences are well-choreographed, and the dramatic moments get the point across. That said, Caitano’s line work loses detail in the wider shots, so some panels look either unfinished or hastily completed.
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What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
Check out our CHERISH #1 review for our initial thoughts on this new cyber vigilante.
We begin with Cherish waking up in an office after the explosion at the end of the first issue. She’s tended to by the man who caused the explosion and Valerie Nolan’s bodyguard, G. (Note: We couldn’t find any dialog where the character is fully named. ‘G’ is the best we could make out). G explains he helped Chaya fake young Cherish’s death after her father was killed, hoping she would return one day to reclaim her birthright.
Later, Cherish ingratiates herself to Valerie Nolan’s son and uses their growing friendship to get invited to parties and homes where the Nolans entertain an assortment of vile gangsters and corrupt politicians. ON one recon mission, Cherish learns her godfather is involved in a child trafficking ring and endeavors to destroy their party system used to trap young girls.
We conclude the issue with exposed secrets and deadly car rides.
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Final Thoughts
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CHERISH #2 introduces a bevy of despicable villains for our high-tech hero to tackle, and the closeup art, as well as the fight choreography, looks great. However, there are almost too many new characters introduced to keep straight, and the art quality drops in wider panels.
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