It finally happened. The creators of Kitty Ravencraft's comic book finally killed her off in order to cash in on the tremendous sales that those 'death of' issues rake in! But you can't keep a good character down for good as Kitty's ex Derek, The Warlock will fight heaven and hell to get his beloved back!
Featuring a couple of L'il Kitty adventures that flashback to when Derek and Kitty first met, this Free Comic Book Day release is the jumping point to the new Die Kitty Die mini 'Heaven and Hell'.
Die Kitty Die is yet another example of why I am such a fan of Dan Parent. He kills it every time in his classic Archie tales. Then when he comes over to Chapterhouse to do Die Kitty Die, he skewers the Archie books like nobody else can or should. I love how he parodies a fan favorite of mine, L'il Jinx, in this book! Now if only Parent would bring her back for an Archie special in the near future.
Co-creator Fernando Ruiz works seamlessly with Dan Parent. I can't tell where Parent ends and Ruiz begins. Though I feel that Ruiz was entirely behind the artwork of the flashback pages and the Kitty splash page on pages 5-6. But still, it's pretty consistent to Dan Parent.
(I really hope that's considered a compliment as that's what I am intending and probably failing at...)
I loved this FCBD freebie. I am anxious to find the 'Heaven and Hell' storyline either as back issues or in a trade paperback. Fans of Archie and comic book parody really should check this book out!
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.
Kitty is a witch and the star of a popular comic book. But when her publisher wants to increase sales by killing her off, Kitty must use her extensive bag of tricks or she's going to find herself the latest publicity stunt of the comic book industry.
The Die Kitty Die Christmas Special is divided into two stories. The first story takes place before Kitty's scheduled 'execution.' Set in the early 60s, it's a parody on Archie and other teen comics. Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus are fighting over the fate of some not so great quality toys. Enter Kitty and some called in favors to save the day.
The second story takes place after Kitty's planned demise. She's still alive and kicking but her publisher would like nothing more to still cash in on her death. A pair of Santa's elves are planning on taking out Kitty in hopes of seriously earning some street cred and maybe some cash. But it's not going to be easy as elves aren't as powerful as witches. So, enter Jack Frost to be Kitty's judge, jury, and executioner.
This special was created, written and illustrated by Archie contributors Dan Parent and Fernando Ruiz. As I mentioned early, Die Kitty Die is a parody on Archie Comics. (Most of the characters look like residents of Riverdale!) It was quite funny and a little saucy. This isn't a title I would consider needing to be rated mature. But it's definitely not the all-ages material that one might be used of from this creative team.
A major shout-out needs to go to the crew over at Books Do Furnish A Room. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't have know about this book and I would have missed out on 32-pages of holiday fun! (At least until years from now when I'd come across it in a bargain bin.) Great work guys!
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.
