Captain America: Unforgiven #1
- Writer:
- Tim Seeley
- Artist:
- Sid Kotian
- Letterer:
- Vc Joe Caramagna
- Cover Artist:
- Kyle Hotz
- Publisher:
- Marvel
- Price:
- $4.99
- Release Date:
- 2023-04-19
- Colorist:
- Edgar Delgado
Marvel Comics' the Forgiven is a group of vampires who have banded together with one goal -- to abstain from drinking the blood of humans and instead use their powers to defend humanity. But when one of their own betrays them and kills their leader Raizo Kodo, they have a crisis of faith, which leads to them breaking their code and disbanding to different parts of the world. Wanting to keep a promise to his old friend, Captain America attempts to assemble the Forgiven once as a darker event unfolds elsewhere. Written by Tim Seeley with artwork from Sid Kotian and Edgar Delgado with letters from VC's Joe Caramagna, Captain America: Unforgiven #1 brings the bloodbath to an end.
Captain America: Unforgiven #1 starts off with Steve Rogers and Corey Leach, aka the vampire Redblood, working together to find the whereabouts of the Forgiven. Steve personally meets every one of them, whether they are working as a bouncer or living in their old home as a bloodthirsty monster, and brings them together once again. Once the group is at their headquarters, they find no signs of Redblood, who had betrayed them once before. Just then, an elderly Zawadi enters and shows them visions of coming danger. Chthon's apostle Geiomar wants to create a new doctrine of worship, and to that end, he is going to use vampires and lycanthropes to unleash their fury on the innocents, flooding the streets with blood.
Captain America: Unforgiven #1 is a plot-driven tale that begins with a brief recap of the current position of the characters and stews the narrative in a riveting conflict before plunging deep into an action-packed hack and slash. Among the three acts, the first two are plain expository. Captain America's quest to bring together the Forgiven is a risky journey, which makes for an exciting opening hook for the book. It shows the individual personality of the vampires away from the group and how terrifying they can also be. However, unlike the exposition at the start, the second act brings with it new information that opens the book to a definite plot and gives the heroes a villain to vanquish. On that note, the issue merges the fomenting narrative concerning Geiomar while involving the so-called "Demon-touched" to unnecessarily overcomplicate the plot.
As much as the artwork amps up the action sequences, it is the horror that gives the book its signature look. Illustrator Sid Kotian's gristly ink work drapes the panels in the cover of darkness, while the line art closely follows the characters' movements and add to their dynamic look. From Cap's shield clashing with the long claws of Nighteyes and Geiomar's nightmare-inducing face, the artwork makes the frightening images a part of the storytelling as much as the latter's pace depends on the rush of the fights. Colorist Edgar Delgado uses brighter tones to balance the darkness inherent in the art, with tones of blue and purple for suspenseful scenes and shades of red once the action gets going. Meanwhile, Letterer Joe Caramagna brings the sound effects to life as every clang of metal, every hiss of the vampires resonates throughout the issue.
Captain America: Unforgiven #1 takes its time to gather its rhythm. Once it does, the issue hurries toward the climactic end in a rush. Thanks to Captain America's intervention, The Forgiven finds their footing in the world as they see their former leader Raizo Kodo's fighting spirit in Steve Rogers, who shines bright in this book through his heroics. Corey's involvement is also a crucial part of the tale as she not only develops as a character but is equally responsible to bring The Forgiven out of the dumps and onto new heights. However, with the first two acts' heavy exposition and the climactic battle's superfluous proceedings, Captain America: Unforgiven #1 suffers from its own storytelling structure.