In this review of Gehenna: Naked Aggression #3, we get a knock-down, drag-out fight between Gehenna and Public Defender, and Isa decides the time has come for backup (with her boss deciding to change the parameters of the job a bit).
Gehenna: Naked Aggression #3
Writer: Patrick Kindlon
Art and Main Cover: Maurizio Rosenzweig
Variant Covers: Karl Kerschl, Rifleman, John McCrea
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: August 27, 2025
This review contains spoilers
Gehenna: Naked Aggression #3 picks up with Gehenna and Public Defender facing off. She tries to shoot him, but he throws the first actual punch. Stephen is cheering him on this whole time. As the pair slug it out as violently as possible, Gehenna’s inner monologue waxes cynical about heroes in general, especially superheroes. During the fight, he manages to disarm her a few times, while she gets some strong hits in against him.
Their slugfest brings them into a restaurant, various patrons watching in shock and some whipping out their phones and recording the spectacle before them. She ultimately wins the fight when she grabs the cash register and hurls it at him.
Meanwhile, Isa catches up to her boss. Kamiisa is in the middle of a few “managerial changes”…or in this case, executing the punks that worked closely with her brother before this. She correctly decides that Isa’s having more trouble than anticipated with the job, and would like some extra help with it, after all. She’ll lend her the help, but she also has a slight alteration to the plan: in addition to killing Gehenna, she’s decided that the kid’s also an acceptable target.
Back with Gehenna and Stephen, she decides she needs some new weaponry. She weighs their options, before ultimately coming to a building with the words “Drug Church” painted on the side…
So, the biggest chunk of Gehenna: Naked Aggression #3 is the fight between Gehenna and Public Defender, and holy hell, is it an intense one. It’s clear that the artist had some fun drawing this brawl, and seeing it play out? Also enjoyable.
The poses and panel compositions? Extremely dynamic and it feeds perfectly into the hot-blooded action movie vibe the creators were going for. The addition of various bystanders recording the fight was also a great touch. When so many people have access to a camera at any point of the day, there’s no way someone wouldn’t be getting footage.
Another thing I appreciate about this fight? It’s not entirely one-sided in either direction. They both seem pretty evenly-matched in terms of skill. He may have a bit more physical strength, but she’s willing and able to use just about anything at her disposal as a weapon. That blend of pragmatism and relentlessness makes her a lethal opponent (as well as adding to the visual interest of the combat; shooting may be efficient, but it doesn’t have quite the same flair as hurling a cash register at a guy).
The artwork in Gehenna: Naked Aggression #3 is really nicely done for this entire sequence (and the whole issue, but given that this is most of the issue). A couple of favorite aspects: one group of bystanders is definitely inspired by the main characters from Family Guy (which just felt like a very fun easter egg), and one panel where we see a little smile on Gehenna’s face in the middle of all this. It gives me the impression that there’s something about this encounter that she enjoys (likely the adrenaline rush).
As for the scene with Isa approaching her boss, it’s clearly a lot more quiet, on a visual level. Quiet, menacing…much like the boss herself.
There’s one issue to go with this story, and I’m looking forward to see how it wraps up. Isa seemed a little taken aback with Kamiisa’s killing of her brother’s former inner circle. We don’t see her reaction to the order to kill the kid, too. But would she be on-board with that part of things, leaving Gehenna with an unexpected ally? And how much more destruction will be wrought in the final installment? In a few weeks’ time, those answers will come up.
FINAL THOUGHTS
There are a lot of ways to handle a fight scene, but Gehenna: Naked Aggression #3 is a master class in the glorious chaos that comes of a true action movie fight.
