Regression vol. 2: Disciples

At the end of vol. 1, Adrian Padilla looked like he had been freed of the demonic presence that had haunted his past life as cultist Gregory Sutter thanks to a hypnotherapist who knew what she was doing.  Then, before he could turn himself in and let the cops sort things out, he was kidnapped by some unknown individuals and thrown into the back of a van. When we meet Adrian at the beginning of vol. 2, he’s naked in a cell with a flashing light to keep him awake and being questioned occasionally by people in creepy masks.  We eventually find out that these people are members of the Valgeroti, an insect-worshipping demonic cult that wants to re-awaken Sutter’s presence in Adrian’s body. Meanwhile, Adrian’s friend Molly and Detective Graymercy are pursuing their own investigation into the Valgeroti and find out that maybe the answers to the problems they face in the present lie in their past lives.

My biggest problem with the first volume was how writer Cullen Bunn set up Adrian’s dire situation in a way that felt forced and lacked any subtlety.  Vol. 2 is a little more subtle in that it’s not trying to force Adrian’s mental issues and slasher movie theatrics on the reader. “Disciples” is more concerned with exploring the operations of the Valgeroti in the past, present, and even future if some of the scenes in the final issue are to be believed.  It’s interesting stuff, as is the business with Molly and Graymercy’s exploration of their past lives, even if it’s still not very scary. Working in the volume’s favor is how Bunn throws enough new plot developments to hold my interest and the very impressive art of Danny Luckert. He gets a wider variety of things to draw this time around and makes the scenes in the past featuring murder and demon worship appreciatively creepy and gruesome.  It’s Luckert’s work that’s keeping me the most interested here, enough so that I’ll stick around for what I believe is the concluding volume of this series.