The Tithe #3

By Matt Hawkins, Rahsan Ekedal and Mike Spicer

The Tithe is a comic that works because something like this could actually happen. Everybody likes Superman and Spider-Man, but it’s also nice to read realistic books from time to time. The Tithe isn’t just realistic in the sense of the story, many of the characters in the book come off as people you may know. These things allow this book to exceed reader expectation.

In this series, Matt Hawkins has done a great job of establishing his core characters. Many of the Samaritans are just as likable as the people trying to bust them. The beginning of the issue is a bit slow, but it really sets up for a big finish. Hawkins gives a deeper look into who exactly the Samaritans have been stealing from in this issue, and you’d probably be pretty hard-pressed to find someone who disagrees with their plans. What Matt Hawkins does so well in this series that allows it to stand out, is that he bases a lot of this on realism. The way the Samaritans plans are carried out and whom they target are all things that could happen. This was probably the best issue of the series to date and the conclusion of this arc should be even better.

The art this issue is handled by Rahsan Ekedal and Mike Spicer. Ekedal does well on this issue, but he still takes some panels off as some characters lose details, especially in their faces. It’s an odd thing though, because some panels Ekedal does very detailed work on faces, like when Mike and Rachel get ready to use a speedball. One of the cooler things Ekedal does in this issue is allow Sam to dress up for a church singles night event. She wears a nice black dress with lots of jewelry, and most importantly, a Nintendo controller purse. Ekedal does some good things this issue, but his lack of detail in certain panels is distracting at times. The colors by Mike Spicer fit with the pencils. Spicer uses a lot of lighter shades here and it works well. The art is good enough that it won’t take you out of the story, but if it was just elevated a little more it could make this book even better.

The third issue of The Tithe is excellent and had an extremely strong ending. People are starting to die and essentially all bets are off at this point. Matt Hawkins has been killing it with some superb writing. The art continues to be well done with colors that are fitting to the style. The conclusion of this arc should be pretty epic.