BELLA DONNA: BILLION DOLLAR BABY / Script by DREW EDWARDS/ Art by SARAH NELIA ELKINS / Colors by HARRY SAXON / Letters and Layouts by APRIL GUADIANA/ Published by SUGAR SKULL MEDIA

Bella Donna is not a reluctant hero. Indeed, she’s not a hero at all, despite occasionally being forced to fight on the side of the angels. She’s a bounty hunter, as she’s quick to remind everyone. Yet despite being half-demon and having a necromancer dad, she does have some scruples about what jobs she will take. This lesson was drummed into her by her mentor, who taught Bella Donna everything he knew.

His lessons have been weighing heavily upon Bella. Particularly his first rule – children are off limits. This is due to her latest gig, which literally has her working on the side of the angels, sending her after a young mother and her infant child. No questions asked. That doesn’t work for Bella, even before the gig throws her up against the superhero Man-Goat and a whole lot of of other supernatural weirdness.

Bella Donna: Billion Dollar Baby is a different sort of story for Drew Edwards. He’s built his name on dark yet heroic heroes. Noble monsters like The Hulk and Metamorpho. With this book, Edwards dips into the pool of anti-heroes and proves to be just as skilled at writing a hero cut from the same cloth as Lobo and Ghost Rider. This is no surprise, as the conflicted Bella is one of the more interesting supporting characters to emerge from the Halloween Man series.

The artwork, alas, does not quite live up to the script. Sarah Neila Elkins has a good sense of story flow and draws some great facial expressions. Unfortunately, many of the visual effects, like shotgun blasts don’t fit into the existing art naturally. There is also some erratic coloring, with Harry Saxon rarely using the same coloration for the same kinds of attacks.

Despite these minor glitches, Bella Donna: Billion Dollar Baby will appeal to all fans of supernatural action. Fans of the existing Halloween Man series will be satisfied with Bella’s first solo adventure. So will any newcomers, who somehow find this issue their introduction to the world of Solar City, Texas.

Bella Donna: Billionaire Dollar Baby will soon be available at GlobalComix.com.