Still reeling from the death of mother Verona in issue 3, the newly orphaned witches coven now has to contend with a crazy Warlock who wants to kill them. Barnabus Black once again plays the role of flawless action hero here, but Zell, the newly crafted head of the coven, is finally starting to show she’s got the stuff to lead.

Here’s the official word from Darkhorse:

After a contract-killer shaman ambushes our heroes, undercover demon Barnabus Black takes a group of witches back to his safe house, where he equips them with a massive arsenal to prepare for a final showdown with the werewolf mafia.

Victor Gischler has crafted a tale that’s pretty damn enjoyable, despite the very ‘80s characterization of Barnabus Black — the demon-turned-hero who’s a little too cool for school and sort of hovers above all the emotion of this tale in a way that’s reminiscent of action starts that Hollywood retired long ago. Still, the plot is tight. With most of the witches dead, this tale has quickly become a story about two main players: Barnabus Black and Zell (the witch who’s inherited the Eyes of Fates). Zell is awesome — a reluctant hero with tons of emotional range. Zell’s been rounded out so thoughtfully that she makes Barnabus Black look silly in comparison; she struggles with fear, sorrow, calling, and duty while Barnabus feels angry. And sometimes horny. While isse #4 seems to suggest that Barnabus Black has his own journey that needs to be wrapped up (he wants to earn his wings) he’s light years from feeling like a real character. Even the werewolf kingpen feels more developed, and he only gets a fraction of the airtime.

Artist Juan Ferreyra offers a perfect style for this book — commanding, rich and fun. His characters are robust, and offer some priceless facial expressions that do a wonderful job of adding emotion to the page.

Kiss Me Satan delivers another satisfying installment of its inaugural five-part arc. But make no mistake about it: this is a comic driven by its supporting actors. Not the lead.

3/5