Damn Them All #7: Two Sides of the Same Coin

Damn Them All #7 features a script from Simon Spurrier, art by Charlie Adlard, colors from Sofie Dodgson with assists by Daniel Silva De Carvalho, and letters from Jim Campbell. The issue kicks off the book’s second art by turning to Ellie ‘Bloody El’ Hawthorne’s past, offering snippets of her religious and occult studies abroad while reaffirming the status quo established in the first six issues. El’s past becomes more relevant by the end of the issue as a central figure makes an unexpected return as a new demonic coin-based threat reveals itself. Elsewhere in London, the angels that appeared in the previous issue continue to tease machinations related to the upheaval of hell. 

Spurrier’s script for the issue clicks into place immediately and recaptures the balance of crime and fantasy elements established in the opening story. Thanks to the track laid in the first arc, Spurrier gets to dip into the magic and overwhelming presence of the fantastical from the get-go, and doesn’t take the foot off the throttle. The book moves a bit from the gritter crime elements with this issue, as the angelic and demonic angles to London take the front burner, and Spurrier achieves this thanks to the shift in a narrative voice. 

With that shift, Spurrier also gets to showcase a different side of El as well. The version seen in the flashbacks is full of the same piss and vinegar, but there’s a bit of vulnerability that displays her lack of age and experience. There’s a passion tangled with bluster as El is developing her present-day persona, and it creates a fascinating contrast to the competent version. But the younger, more expressive El is there under the surface, and the last stretch of the pages reveals that version. It’s a startling sight to see the Bloody El of the first volume, the one who expelled her uncle’s soul to the empty hell, in a state of romantic vulnerability. 

Another strong element carried over into this new arc is the inclusion of data pages, representing entries from the grimoire of El’s uncle, Alfie. Spurrier has consistently utilized these pages to great effect in other titles, and with this issue, the witty version of them is on display. There’s a clever way to provide exposition for types of magic, spurred during a sequence full of grave robbing. 

The exposition and worldbuilding are clear and concise and allow Alfie’s voice to slip into the book once again while channeling that edge of the first volume. The second page details information about the angels, establishing more information about the lore while keeping the figures shrouded in mystery due to their slippery nature. Spurrier uses a twisted metaphor to explain Alfie’s understanding of the angels, and it gives one of the most original interpretations of lore in recent memory. 

Ardland’s art plays on a similar note with the visual representation of the angels in the issue. Teased at the end of the previous arc, the depiction of angels feels like a blend of human bodies with ethereal forces. There’s the biblical iconography of white clothing, avian wings, and a multitude of eyes surrounding the human figures for the characters, which evoke an oppressive presence on the page, as evident by the character with burst skulls and heart pains in the background. It’s a fun callback to the effect demons have on humanity, evoking the same physical reactions.

Dodgson’s coloring effects for these moments are just as vital for the issue, the blinding white sheen refracting the prismatic colors in the background of the page. That rainbow coloring is employed for demonic beings as well and does a great job connecting the visages of heaven and hell as two sides of the same coin. Magical elements also take on those effects, like El’s demon digging up Alfie’s grave. The effect flares up as the demon digs before a new image, this time threads of white sheen arc like lightning. It seems to indicate interference by another being of similar stature and makes for a strong contrast in color.