Now that Season 5 of House of Cards is over you can read Samaritan by Matt Hawkins and Atilio Rojo. The comic focuses on hacker, Samantha Copeland, whose goal is to kill the president of the United States, Owen McKitrick. McKitrick orchestrates 3 separate terrorist attacks in the United States leading up to his election for president. In one of these attacks Samantha’s husband James Miller was killed, resulting in her desire for revenge. She is going to stop at nothing until she gets what she wants. Welcome to the newest Edenverse title.
The Good:
The comic is a fresh start for new and returning fans, as it focuses on a new character Samantha Copeland the Samaritan Hacker. Within the first few pages we immediately understand who Samantha is and why she is going to great lengths to kill the president of the United States. Samantha’s husband was killed after the president ordering 3 terrorists attacks on U.S. soil, generating fear, which helped him win an election. Since she has lost the one thing that meant the most to her, she is planning on taking the most important thing from the president; his power by exposing what he has done. The comic is realistic as Samantha realizes that in order to target the president she will need money, access, and his attention, which she slowly begins to do. She begins by targeting Pastor Mark Deneve, who is politically close to the president. This is done through hiring a team of former mercenaries to kidnap and force him to reveal several bank accounts that his church is involved with, which are drained by her. This is her first step to target the president as she is slowly limiting people who can get in her way. With one group powerless to stop her Samantha begins to plan her next target, Richard Lawton, who is the CEO of a defense contract corporation, Northlock industries and is close to the president. After compiling several different pieces of data she realizes the only chance to kidnap him will be right before he departs on a helicopter to a meeting. The comic has a realistic feel to it as Samantha achieves her goals by using a variety of skills to get the results that she wants.
The Bad:
While Samaritan is a comic that anybody can pick up without knowing anything about the Edenverse, some of the rich history is lost when you don’t know the back story of several of the characters. This includes Dwayne Campbell and David Loren; both have played instrumental parts in Season 1 and Season 2 of the Edenverse universe. Furthermore, the comic has a few flashbacks that add an element of confusion to it, which might require a few rereads to fully understand what has occurred.
The Verdict:
Samaritan is a comic that targets 2 different audiences: those who love the Edenverse universe and fans who are looking for a series that involves exposing corruption in a “House of Cards” type of way. Matt Hawkins not only continues to build upon his growing Edenverse, but has successfully, intentionally, or unintentionally, developed a comic that looks to go done the path of House of Cards with a little more hacking and bullets.
You can pick up Samaritan here.
