Black Bishop #1 is a comic written by Guido Martinez with art by Gaurav Shrivastava and colors by Riri Mashuri. In an attempt to discover who exactly is behind a mysterious organization Black Bishop must go undercover. This is a trial-filled issue with backstory and revelations about our main character. Black Bishop is a woman trained in the ways of stealth and combat who is very good at what she does. While there are other people she gets the majority of our focus. The plot sees her traveling to an isolated location to undergo a test being given to fill a specific position. We see a lot of physicality and a reasonable amount of action. There are also flashback moments that are very different in tone from the rest of the story. The pace is a bit fast but not during the more important scenes. Most of the dialogue takes place inside Black Bishop’s head with it being very analytical and a bit cold. Only one page here is word “heavy” and even then it isn’t that much. Overall this is a good debut comic in a series that’ll show us the origins of the familiar character Black Bishop. Also included here is the first part of the story Pressure, starring a black woman who wakes up in a hospital with no memories and who is being looked for.

            This comic is drawn in a modern style with a large amount of colors and a serious tone. This story takes place primarily on a picturesque island that seems like it’d be a great vacation as it has a lush jungle, mountains with a great view, and what seems like great weather. The expression level is light as most of the people we see are hardened and very focused. The faces are nicely drawn and varied and seem ripe for different looks but we won’t see too many. There are some interesting gadgets on display that you may want a closer look at. Most of the action scenes are short so they are easy to follow but they also tend to be bloody or unsettling in some way. The outfits are mostly cargos and a t-shirt or a tank top and shorts. Pressure features art with standout colors and well-drawn mystical effects. Faces might look a bit too similar.

“Is this worth reading?”

Yes.

“Would I like this?”

If you like tales starring a woman in a world of superheroes with action and attempts to infiltrate an organization this is for you.

“What would this comic’s film rating be?”

R. Death, blood, and violence.

“Could I get a quote from the comic?”

“Thank God I drenched myself in repellent before starting this.”

 

Digital Link: https://nosleeppress.gumroad.com/l/kdbri

Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/845090602/black-bishop-1-superhero-espionage/description

Indiegogo Link: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/black-bishop-1-2/x/26236710#/

***IN-DEPTH COMIC STATS BELOW***

Probably Contains Spoilers

*
*
*
*
*

Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 30

Violent Pages: 7, for 23% of the comic

Sexy Pages: 0, for 0% of the comic

 

**The levels below aren’t necessarily maintained throughout the whole comic, but they were definitely reached**

 

Violence Level – 3

“Wasn’t no tussling at all.”

“Sometimes you gotta hit somebody.”

“I’m getting charged with how many counts of assault?”

“This was a tournament arc.”

“All my life I had to fight.”

 

Gore Level – 3

“The only thing leaking out your face is tears.”

“Looks like somebody spilled some ketchup.”

“Might need to soak that up with a bath towel.”

“That isn’t supposed to be outside the body.”

“This is a slaughterhouse.”

 

Death Level – 3

“And everybody lived happily ever after.”

“We might have gone to a couple funerals.”

“It just LOOKS like a serial killer was here.”

“Yeah this was a tragedy.”

“Think Gettysburg.”

 

Porn Level – 1

“Everybody kept their clothes on.”

“I guess it was too hot for a bra.”

“Sometimes you got to let everything air out.”

“This is like late night Cinemax in the early 2000’s.”

“Oh. This is porn.”