This came out weeks ago, but it's only just turned up in my store for some reason.

Holy Terror is a four-issue mini from former Green Arrow artist Phil Hester and his colleagues at Shocktrauma Studios.  A thoroughly bizarre premise involves an ancient Aztec curse which for some twenty years has apparently found its way into the world of small scale professional wrestling in the form of, uh, some kind of evil mask.

In the present day, "Max Maximum" is a spectacularly unpopular wrestler.  Given the mask and a pseudo-preacher costume as a new gimmick, he begins to get over with the crowds and go steadily nuts.

Now, nothing screams "bad idea" like religion and professional wrestling.  (Just ask D-Von Dudley.)  This is a strange combination of two entirely separate premises - Caskey and Hester apparently want to do a wrestling comic, and have nailed on a supernatural plot.  The two elements work together better than they have any right to, but it's still an awkward fit.

It's the supernatural side that doesn't quite work for me.  It's a bit of a mess, with Aztec mysticism, investigatory clergymen and possessed masks all piling up in a rather messy way.  The wrestling side works better, and it's a weird enough profession to start with that I can't help wondering why it needs the supernatural elements at all.

Still, the art's excellent, and Hester finds the right style for the in-ring sequences (correct moves, but deliberately unprotected against injury).  It looks good - it's just throwing a bit too much into the mix for my tastes. 

Rating: B

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