Lucas Stand: Inner Demons #4
Writers: Kurt Sutter, Caitlin Kittredge
Artist: Jesús Hervás
Colorist: Alex Guimarãs
Letterer: Jim Campbell
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Review by Michael Farris, Jr.
Lucas Stand: Inner Demons #4, the final issue in this story arc, sees Lucas Stand facing off with his most challenging enemy yet…himself. After getting a cryptic message to not join the “competition” from a future self, Lucas must use every resource available to him to keep from being stuck in the eternal war by becoming an agent of heaven. In the end, he finds a secret weapon that even his future self couldn’t imagine utilizing: reliance on others.
Time travel tends to get pretty trippy, and the conclusion of this arc was no exception. Throw in multiple versions of one character, and it can add to the confusion. I’ll admit there were times I had to flip back a page or two to make sure I knew what was what, but eventually I was able to get on track.
I like to joke that if I met myself, it wouldn’t take long for me to punch me in the face (if you disagree, I dare you to go back and read social media posts from five years ago). They really took that concept to the next level in this book. At one point, a future Lucas is telling our Lucas not to join the angels. Then future-er Lucas is telling our Lucas it’s pointless to fight his inner nature. Like I said, it might be a little confusing, but it’s worth hanging in there.
The ending, while maybe just a little campy, does ensure that the intriguing cast of characters we’ve gotten to know over the past issues will show up again in future stories. And it’s a good reminder that even time-hopping demon slayers need people to lean on.
The art continues to dazzle with a variety of jungle, snowy mountain, and Vegas desert scenes without ever sacrificing quality. And the colors used for the glowing angelic profiles and the spacey time-hopping scenes were breathtaking.
Verdict: Buy it.
Not a very expected conclusion to this story, but Lucas Stand: Inner Demons #4 worked in a way to tie up the arc nicely and leave room open for more down the road.
