The Preacher

I just finished the first volume of Preacher: Gone to Texas. Wow. I have never been so viscerally affected by a book (maybe with the exception of the scene in Crime and Punishment where they beat the horse to death). Preacher was so intense. There was nothing about it that was sugar coated; from the language to the pictures. I don't know if I liked it. I know it is good because of how I am reacting to it, but I can't say that I particularly enjoyed reading it. There was so much blood. I don't have a strong stomach for that kind of thing. So I will try to focus more on the story and the characters. The premise of the book is interesting. Preacher Jesse Custer combining with Genesis, the child of an angel and a demon, then deciding he has to find god, who quit a long time ago. To top it all off, he partners with a vampire, Cassidy, and his ex girlfriend, Tulip. Even the cops are crazy! Everyone in the book is crazy! The cops in Texas are crazy racists, but they all end up getting killed by the saint of killing and the cops in New York seem to be pathetic, closet homosexuals. Then there is Si Coltrane, the deranged serial killer/reporter. He is the quintessential bad guy who thinks it is all a joke, but his crimes are sick, far sicker than any other comic I have read. Of all the characters, Cassidy was my favorite because I thought he was funny and interesting. He believes that all humanity is messed up, but only kills those who are already dying or "deserve it." What a bizarre dichotomy, especially for a two thousand year old vampire. I also liked that you could tell he had an accent just from the way his speech is written. That must be a very hard thing to convey. I don't know if I will be able to read the whole series. I don't know if my stomach can handle it.