'Preacher' Recap: 'Pilot'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

For the most part, the comic book/super hero domination we have come to know and love on both the big and small screen has been reserved for only the biggest of titles. It's one iconic character after another, true to their beliefs in making the world a better place and they're always ready to sacrifice everything to ensure that mankind is as safe as can be.

But the comic world features plenty of other colorful characters out there and some of the heroes that grace the pages of other books aren't as perfect as Superman. They are flawed individuals that can be selfish at times and their actions don't always inspire you to go out and do good because their idea of justice isn't locking a bad guy up behind bars, it's beating the tar out of them just for the fun of it and after all these years of shiny costumes and capes, AMC decided it was high time to unveil a different kind of hero with their adaptation of the long running and popular comic; Preacher.

This particular tale introduces us to Jesse Custer. He's a simple man spreading the word of God in the small town of Annville, Texas; but there is nothing simple about Jesse. He's a man with a past who has returned home to fulfill a promise and he appears to be anything but holy. He drinks, he smokes. He loves to swear and if he has to do horrible things to a man during a fight, he most certainly will. He's the last man that deserves to be wearing the white collar and even he knows it. But when a strange entity from beyond discovers Jesse and enters his body, his outlook on faith and religion begin to change and well, let's just get it out there now...this is going to be one awesome series to watch.

For starters this is a show that is refreshingly different than anything else out there on television and that's largely in part thanks to how the show is designed. This is a series that manages to establish a wild and crazy world in one single episode and it does it in incredible fashion. At no point do you ever raise an eyebrow or wonder why the world that Jesse inhabits is so incredibly weird simply because of the fact that the characters accept it as well. This is their world and their lives and it just so happens that strange things transpire in this place on a consistent basis and they go about their business regardless of how wacky their day turns out to be.
 
But to pull off something like that, a show needs strong characters and Preacher is filled to the brim with them. Every single person that popped up in the Pilot, no matter how big or how small their role chewed up every second of their respective screen time thanks to how fascinating they each turned out to be. But truly the centerpiece of this show character wise is Jesse and despite the fact that you see all of his ugly flaws on display, you know there is real good in his heart and you're rooting for him the entire time to finally find his way. Either way, this is a fascinating series to say the least, one that draws you in quickly and it's going to be interesting to see where this story goes now that Jesse has found his purpose in life, and how his new gift from beyond will guide him in his journey. Until next time.

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