Monday, May 17, 2010

Jesus: He Knows Your Past Present and Future


I'm not at all sure if the subtitle for this mish-mash of a tract is meant to be a threat or a comfort. I'm not even certain it's a subtitle, honestly. There are two other random phrases on the cover, so it could be one of them.

Heh. The random phrase at the top reads: "In any language there are no more wonderful word." Bad grammar is not a good thing for any tract to begin with, let alone one from a relatively unknown company like Kind Acts Media Inc. If this is their first tract, it is not a very good example of what Kind Acts is capable of.

Take the art. Or, rather, the sample art. The words 'sample artwork' appear five times on the cover image, to distracting effect. A shame, because it is otherwise a striking image of the living and the dead being raptured up to heaven.

The art on the back is equally evocative and flawed. Pictures of Hell and Heaven are side by side on the last page; the Hell one depicts a man screaming in agony as he burns in flames, while the Heaven image shows a sort of half-castle half-skyscraper in the clouds. Great pictures for a tract, but both were clearly pinched from somewhere else. The Hell one has some out of focus print in its lower right corner, while the same spot on the Heaven art has the characters Eng. 110. Don't know what that means, and it doesn't matter. The image was lifted from somewhere else, and the tract maker was too lazy to clean them up. Or acknowledge the artist.

The type inside the tract is an even worse mish-mash. Some words are in blue type. Some are in red. Some are underlined, or in all caps. It's a visual nightmare, putting all but the most masochistic off reading it.
Which is a good thing - the bad grammar continues, and one bit would be very offensive if it were structured better: "What I believe in? I am an Atheist, J. Witness, Mormon, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sheik or in money, good deeds, charity etc." What the fudge does that mean?

This tract is a Frankenstein's monster of a creation, but I doubt any will be shouting "It's alive!" No, the people at Kind Acts Media Inc. should really leave tract making to the professionals - or at least follow the instructions - before they attempt to play God's advocate. Nice art, though. "He knows your Past Present and Future," says the subtitle. Maybe, but I suspect the artist or artists are the only ones involved with this thing that have any future in the tract biz.

Likely to Convert - 1
Artwork - 6
Ability to Hold Interest - 3
Unintentional Hilarity - 4
Level of Disturbing or Offensive Content - 3

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