Review: Blood on Sunset #1 (of 5)

It’s easy to get mixed up during the week between Christmas and the New Year. In the UK we get public holidays during the week, Monday and Tuesday, should Christmas Day and Boxing Day fall on the weekend; if Mrs H asks me what day it is once, she asks me a million times. Mix-up is also the key element of Blood on Sunset, a new mini-series from Source Point Press as gum shoe detective mixes with vampiric horror with mixed results.

Clint Braddock’s evening of drinking and being down on his luck are interrupted by a damsel in a helluva dress in distress. It seems that her date, the the infamous Bugsy Siegel, has been mauled to death as she was slipping “into something more comfortable”. Coming to her rescues puts Clint square in the hole and in a whole world of trouble as he determines that it is Clint himself, along with his secrets, that are placed in the frame.

This series is written by newcomer Mark D’Anna, who has been described as visionary. Whilst this is an impressive opening act, mixing two established genres, both of which have been around for years, doesn’t strike me as particularly visionary. It was only a few years ago we had Chum by Ryan K. Lindsay and Sami Kivela, a kind of seedy gum shoe detective book. Here, D’Anna weaves a tale that covers the bases well. In Braddock, D’Anna has a flawed character who has secrets that are dying to get him killed or at the very least on the naughty list of some very bad people. Of course in every detective story there has to be a femme fatale; step up Beverley Hills a gorgeous clothes horse of a working woman, who knows more than is good for Braddock.

The art is supplied by Arjuna Susini who must love legs! On Beverly, I can see why. The art of the book has a Hellblazer type of feel, with a lead that has that downbeat look and feel. Panel design works really well at the crime scene is extrapolated from crime to corpse to cause. I do have a bit of complaint regarding Beverley and it involves one of the more striking elements of the character. Her dress changes length several times; it goes from being draped on the floor, to being above the knees when sat down; the slit is on her left, yet when she sits her right leg is on show. A little more attention to detail is required. There is a scratchiness to the inks that I enjoyed, at times hinting at frames and body postures rather than explicit body lines. Colors are a rustic affair provided by Vittorio Astone, whose work you may have seen on Canto. AndWorld Design provides the letters. I am a little confused about the change in fonts in the book along with the slight color chance in the word boxes; if there is a difference in context then is should be shown as such.

An engaging book, that at first glance suits some of my visual preferences, along with a story that has little bite to it. Is it enough to keep me coming back? There is enough going on to whet the whistle of both horror fans and the classic gum shoe vibe.

Writing – 3.5 Stars
Art – 3 Stars
Colors – 3.5 Stars

Overall – 3.5 Stars

Written by; Mark D’Anna
Art by; Arjuna Susimi
Colors by; Vittorio Astone
Letters by; AndWorld Design
Published by; Source Point Press

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