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Violent Messiahs is an American comic book series created by Joshua Dysart and William O'Neill and published by Image Comics. The comic takes place in a fictional city known as Rankor Island, and focused on the Rankor PD's attempts to bring in Rankor's vigilantes. The most prominent characters are Lt. Cheri Major and Detective Ernest Houston, the two cops leading the investigations of, Family Man, a serial killer who attacks bad parents, and Citizen Pain, a giant, dark figure who was the most prominent vigilante in Rankor (and became the face of VM).

Works of the Series
The original comic was drawn by O'Neill, written by Dysart and published by Hurricane Press. Only one issue hit the shelves, and the second issue was scrapped. Years later, Image Comics picked up the rights to the series, and the original issue was remade, this time with art by Tone Rodriguez and a script by Joshua Dysart.

In 2001 Image published GENESIS. The trade paperback (TPB) contains a prologue to the first story arc, the original O'Neill comic, pages from his unpublished second issue, and clips from Rodriguez's sketchbook. The prologue story originally released as Wizard Magazine's 1/2 issue quickly touches on the four main players of Book Of Jobe. It beguines with the explanation of how Cheri cam to be transferred from NYPD to heading the Rankor Island Violent Messiah Taskforce, as well as the origin of her "badass mother fucker hat". From there it segues to Ernest's first interaction with Family Man, and how despite his bungling of the situation he is promoted against his will to homicide and given the case. Finally Jobe is shown and what can be inferred as the moment he became of Cheri is revealed.

BOOK OF JOB, a collection of the first story arc, was published in 2002. The initial serials were published in (find out). The story opens and quickly introduces the four protagonists before. Throughout the story arc they are slowly developed and fleshed out, particularly Cheri and Job who seem to be standard stereotypes when the story beguines but have been expanded beyond that by the end. As the story progresses it turns into a melange of mystery, horror, romance, superhearo/scifi, and conspiracy. Cheri is heading the Violent Messiahs vigilante taskforce for the Rankor Island Police (R.I.P) and is charged with bringing in the serial killer dubbed Citizen Pain by the media. Ernest Huston is the detective charged with bringing in the Family Man. Their investigations collide and as they beguine to look deeper the reader finds that not only are the killers they hunt connected but the police officers are being pulled into a far reaching conspiracy. Poetry is a major theme within the book. Both Job and Jremiah (Citizen Pain and Family Man respectively) either quote or write it in the story and directly mention that it was important in their upbringing.

LAMENTING PAIN, the follow up featured the characters living in the aftermath of the original series and was only 4 issues long. The story focuses on Lt. Cheri Major as she tracks down a new masked vigilante, named Scalpel, while battling her own inner demons. The fetish scene is featured prominently throughout the work just as poetry was in the first. It has not been collected. The events of Lamenting Pain beguine one month after Book of Job. Both Cheri and Huston have been suspended and are under investigation due to the events of the previous story. Cheri is undergoing mandatory psychological counseling and Huston has not left his apartment in three weeks. Cheri is asked to take her badge back in order to find out about Scalpel who leaves her name carved on the bodies of her victims. More of Cheri's backstory is reveled and both officers once again face the conspiracy introduced in the first story-arc.

The series itself seems to be either on hiatus or it has been dropped entirely. The official website has not made an update since September 9th of 2003 when they announced issue 4 of Lamenting Pain hitting stands.

Critical Reception
Book of Job has been nominated for three awards the Harvey Award, the Wizard Fan Award, and the Russ Manning Award.