Preacher

The point is, it works. From the get-go, we’re prompted to acclimate ourselves the notion that, like the man or woman upstairs, Preacher works in mysterious and unpredictable ways.

The episodes move so smoothly while creating so many unexpected events, it's hard to deny this show has that indefinable quality needed to boost a new series above its many, many competitors.

What you need to know going in is that the show is funny, sexy, offbeat-as-hell and, with Sam Catlin (Breaking Bad) as showrunner, divinely dark.

Alas, Banshee's geometrically progressing body count is bringing it to an end this weekend. The good news is I may have found a replacement. AMC's Preacher, a preposterous goulash of drunken vampires, exploding clergymen, and small town psychosexual kink, seems to share the same cheerily bedlamite DNA that made Banshee such a hallucinatory good time.

It brings something fresh, bold and thrilling to prime time.

Preacher is a black comedy, a horror funhouse, a mild meditation on belief and a wicked good time. There’s nothing left to say but: Amen.

It’s a mind-bendingly expansive show, packed into a tiny, 60-minute slot.

The story drags a bit, but at the early episodes' dizzying best, they feel like Wes Anderson was mistakenly given a Quentin Tarantino script and decided to film it anyway, standards of taste be damned.

A hodgepodge of different genres, this series is flat-out fun.

Jesse’s arrogance is tempered by a desire to do good, and there’s no better place for charity to begin than at home. But his misguided efforts ultimately set the stage for the first of many showdowns, a fact that, if he acknowledged it, might actually make him sympathize with his maker. All of these choices, when combined with the sumptuous visuals, make for a successful adaptation, though they will probably be criticized by longtime fans for making the material more palatable or too accessible.

It's thrilling to watch Jesse go from dour to empowered.

It'd be easy for Preacher to operate as a cut-and-dried adaptation; the comic is vibrant, with an incredibly specific tone and complicated backstory. But in reimagining it for television, AMC dug a little deeper, and came up with something more satisfying and complex.

Fans of bold, dark-themed (and darkly funny) TV series inspired by comic books will have a blast watching AMC’s Preacher, a welcome new entrant in the expanding genre of offbeat, gory, supernatural dramas.

It’s an unusual piece of work that has real promise, not least of all because it is so unusual.

Preacher’s going for gross and, with its tongue planted firmly in cheek, it doesn’t shy away from the wise-cracking, pulpy excitement of its genre.

It's too much to say that you can't go wrong with the fantastical or supernatural these days, but it's still a bet very much worth taking, and one that largely pays off here.

Scripture and subtle wit are sprinkled through the outrageous violence and a particularly lovely vocal accompanies a grotesquely violent massacre aboard an airplane. This one will delight a certain narrow audience.

It has a chance to crossbreed the better angels of character drama with devilish genre splatter. Within its oversize color panels there’s some hard-boiled philosophy about trying to be good in a world of sin. And there’s little on TV quite like its fallen world.

Preacher is a dark, funny and strange show, in the best way possible.

Preacher is flashy, funny, searching, and unpretentious.

Its appeal is a niche one, even though artistically and narratively it’s bold, unique, and vividly rendered. Its ever-expanding cast (including Jackie Earle Hayley, Lucy Griffiths, and W. Earl Brown) find ways to make their occasionally brief moments onscreen memorable, and there’s a pull to know more about this wacky world while also being repulsed by it. Like the force within Jesse, it’s hard to tell if we’re being led somewhere very good, or very bad, but it’s essential we find out.

There are few serious undertones, but lots of lively excitement, despite all the lingering questions, which will assumedly be answered. Have faith.

While Preacher sometimes just barely manages to keep its overall story together. Even so, seeing how it all comes out in the bloody wash for now seems like a risk and an adventure worth taking.

Like many shows these days, Preacher is not for everyone, nor is it trying to be. But it will almost certainly work for some viewers, and it seems to have a good idea of who those viewers are and what they want.

Preacher lets its mystery and mythology trickle out slowly over the four episodes provided for review, never being vague for vagueness' sake, or too obvious.

Preacher comes on aggressively, but the third and fourth episodes give Catlin and the writers the chance to explore some of bigger picture theological issues and hint at growing maturity, even if that maturity still comes with gruesome jokes and pop culture references galore. Even in its unsteadiest early moments, Preacher parlays its messiness into an anarchy that's thematically on-point.

Whether the Preacher series creative team will keep all its elements in balance or giddily drive off a cliff, is anybody's guess. But, judging from the early episodes, Preacher is a wild ride that will be worth hanging on for.

Those tuning in are likely to be won over by its bawdy humor and fascinated by the crisp, frenetic choreography during the premiere’s numerous fight scenes; literally every central character gets a chance to get his or her licks in. What remains to be seen is whether those who fall for Preacher’s premiere have the patience to stick with it after the pace slows, which it does quite noticeably by episode two.

Gutsy, giddily gonzo and gleefully gory, Preacher won't be for everyone, but its confident blending of kooky characters and otherworldly occurrences at least indicates that those on its weird wavelength are in for one hell of a ride.