No Spell Lasts Forever #2 is a comic written by Sarah Cooke with art by Eze Di Savino. After her untimely death Rosette attempts to bargain her way out of Hell. This is a comic that deals with the supernatural in a modern world and stars a determined woman with plenty of baggage. The leading lady for this comic is Rosette Diamant, she is a hitwoman for the mob with magical abilities and a past that she has been running from and that past might be catching up. Investigating the crimes she’s involved in is a nameless detective who likes to understand why people do what they do. There at least a couple of other women here who play a major part in this story. This tale begins right after the last issue with Rosette dealing with the aftermath of the attempt on her life. She must deal with the devil, the police, and other magic users. We’ll get to see this story from different perspectives and get a more well-rounded view of our lead. This takes place in the modern world where magic is real but that fact isn’t general knowledge. There are themes of revenge and justice with some evil intentions mixed in. The action here is explosive with no blood or gore. The pacing is a bit slower than average due to more than a few wordy pages, but they are usually conversational. The tone is a mix of lighthearted and serious with a few intense moments. The dialogue can be angry and abrasive with some witty back-and-forths. This is a comic that builds on the previous issue by introducing new characters, adding different angles, and showing us a side of our protagonist we haven’t seen before.
The art here is drawn in a pulpy style reminiscent of the earlier days of comics but in high definition. The color range here is pretty wide with what seems like an aim towards realism when possible. The scenery doesn’t play too big of a part here but the nature seen is lush and alive. The location changes a few times from a lightly hellish landscape to a hospital to private living spaces. Each area has backgrounds that usually show up in the smaller panels which is great for a conversation-centric comic. The expression level here is slightly above-average as we do get a number of different looks throughout this issue. The emotional range is decent with the faces having a significant amount of details so every look comes across clear. There is some face sameness here but it shouldn’t take you out of the story. The magical effects are frequently bright and will catch your attention whenever they appear. The violence here is explosive and the action scenes are short with no blood or gore.
“Is this worth reading?”
Yes.
“Would I like this?”
If you like tales starring a cast off mainly women with haunting pasts and involving magic with other supernatural elements than this is for you.
“What would this comic’s film rating be?”
PG-13. Violence.
“Could I get a quote from the comic?”
“Raisin’ a kid on a cop’s salary in this city can’t be easy.”
Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/nospelllastsforever/no-spell-lasts-forever-2/description
***IN-DEPTH COMIC STATS BELOW***
Probably Contains Spoilers
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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 24
Violent Pages: 3, for 13% 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 – 2
“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 – 1
“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 – 2
“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.”