Advance Review: Kill More #1

One of the things that I love about comic books is that they can go in many different directions, feature loads of different tropes, characters. Theses includes the capes ‘n’ cowls, sexy, sword and sorcery, horror and crime. This new book from IDW, Kill More, looks to mash-up cop procedure with the horror of remorseless murder.

In a city that is a sort of degeneration of Gotham and Detroit from the Robocop movies, a hidden curse roams the streets, leaving corpses in their wake. Where there lies economic failure, only the few stand in the face of the horror of the mass murders; a detective who harbours suspicions above his pay grade is joined in his quest by a new partner. But what will they find hiding in the darkness?

Co-creator and writer Scott Bryan Wilson looks to have taken the best element of the buddy cop trope and thrown in murder most horrid via a derelict city scape. Each character seems flawed in their own way; the quitter, the obsessed, the rookie and that’s just the “good guys. Herein lies a problem for me; I am not sure if any of the characters are actually likeable! Is Wilson hoping that the reader gets sucked into the plot and discovers an absolute need to determine if the killer are caught? I have to admit that that need for closure is attractive, though only one issue in I am not quite feeling it. The dialogue is terse and adult, unapologetically so. It is a wordy book so get yourself comfortable.

The art is provided by co-creator Max Alan Fuchs who uses heavy lines to set the emotions of the various characters. This works for most cases, though there is a touch of the caricature in play. Is Fuchs’ going for real world or abstract? Like the writing there is the start of something compelling with certain character interaction piquing my interest. The color scheme from Valentina Briski is a turgid affair that suits the main tone and vibe of the book. Finally, as mentioned it is a wordy book; credit (though not cover credit it seems) goes to letterer SBW who doesn’t let the verbose statements and dialogue detract from the pace of the story.

I don’t say this that often, but I am firmly on the fence with this book. I read to be entertained and a hellish city on the brink of collapse with a high murder count and cops that quit doesn’t really inspire me to keep reading. Of course, I am just one person. If the previous statement sound like your type of book, then you would be hard pressed to find two more worth creator than Scott Bryan Wilson and Max Alan Fuchs.

Writing – 3.5 Stars
Art – 3.5 Stars
Colors – 3.5 Stars

Overall – 3 .5 Stars

Co-Created & written by; Scott Bryan Wilson
Co-created & art by; Max Alan Fuchs
Colors by; Valentina Briski
Letters by; SBW
Published by; IDW Publishing

Kill More #1 is due to hit stores September 13th

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network