Fifty years ago, a blood stained Santa commits a string of atrocities against young men. The Deviant Killer is now safely locked up, though his influence and infamy prey on a young teen, who grows up to be something of a trouble writer. Now, as the writer looks to exhume the ghost of the killer in a series of prison interviews, a Santa starts to deliver on his own murderous presence!
James Tynion IV continues to evolve his writing away from the glare of the multimedia icons of DC Comics, to deliver another dark as black horror. Whilst the gore element, of which there is plenty, gives the book a visual horror, I thought that the real horror was far more insidious. The killer, who proclaims his innocence, is not wholly innocent. Even more so, there is a connection between being gay, a child abuser that equates to murder. The fact of that equitation is that the actual crime, abusing young men, is forgotten in order the great evil of murder and the being gay is seen as being guilty! Tynion has drawn that line in a way that may seem uncomfortable for readers, especially as the protagonist of the book seems to harbour his own issues. The dialogue between interviewee and interviewer is reminiscent of the spinning web of truths and half truths of prisoner and interrogator exchanges, somewhat entangling both. Who is the spider, who is the prey?
Joshua Hixson delivers a style that reminds me in part of David Mazzucchelli, especially his work on Year One. The, at times, heavy lines, allow for a lack of detail when it comes to the daylight hours. Hixson deals with the differing time periods well, with consistency important for at least one of the characters to remain on point. The conversation pieces are equal to the verbiage required for the spell-weaving to work. Throw in the abrupt change of tone, expertly represented through facial art, and you are in for a visual treat. Hixson also supplies the color, doing well to capture the garishness of Christmas in the shops, contrasting to the hollowness of said shops laid empty, possibly bereft of their soul without queue of bargain hunters. Finally, letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou delivers a font that feels as part of the make-up of the story as the colors; the lack of balloon line separators creating that sense of inclusivity.
Be warned, the book features language that some would find offensive; being locked in prison has given the alleged Deviant Killer something of a closed mind when it comes to looking at his own place within the world of 1973 and the following years. Tynion’s holiday of horror provides much thought provoking and unease. The most wonderful tine of the year? Humbug!
Writing – 5 Stars
Art – 5 Stars
Colors – 5 Stars
Overall – 5 Stars
Written by; James Tynion IV
Art & Colors by; Joshua Hixson
Letters by; Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Published by; Image Comics
Author Profile
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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
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