A middle-aged woman has lost her family. As she packs up her and their, belongs, she begins to feel the echoes of the past coalesce around her, colouring the things that once drove her nuts as she realises that she will never hear or see those things again. Each room is decorated in the patterns of love and memories, until she gets to attic, where she is greeted by the shade of William Blake, poet and overall good guy as he weaves a tale of words that will allow her to challenge Hell itself, via the 9 Circles of Hell, for a chance to be with her loved ones again.
There is a level of serendipity with this book as publisher AfterShock is not against detailing the battle between Heaven and Hell, and with writers Lonnie Nadler and Zac Thompson excelling in the emotive aspects of storytelling. Nadler and Thompson have been on my radar for some time now, in fact since The Dregs and I am not sure that there is a pair of writers who capture the human emotional spectrum as well as these two. I have lost my share of family, the motions of the lead character, the gauntlet of feelings that she endures is, from my point of view and personal perspective, absolutely spot on. This includes elements of guilt, which some may find surprising, but goes to show just how on their game Nadler and Thompson are. With the introduction of William Blake, the book lightens a little bit, especially as a poet, he comes across like a 18th century version of Etrigan.
The art is provided by Kyle Charles who give the book a well-worn look that reflects the life lived feeling of the middle-aged woman and her house. For the book to work, the environment is key; the reader needs to buy into the characters loss. In that respect Charles does brilliantly well. Charles seems to able to pick the most emotive piece of writing and emphasise that through his art. The other character in this stage of the book is Blake himself, who Charles pencils in a style that reminds me a lot of Barry Windsor Smith with the elegance of such a historic character displayed well. Dee Cunniffe is listed as colorist although the version of the book I saw was black and white, I am not sure if the book that hits the racks will be a full color affair. That said, if Cunniffe decided to shade the book in black, whites and greys then the choice does work, presenting the starkness of the lead characters’ life without her family.
This mini series is a re=telling of Dante’s Inferno and for those who read this esteemed tome, will no doubt see the very obvious similarities. This fact should by no means cast any doubts of the calibre of all involved, who deliver a first issue that packs a punch, as any fan of Nadler and Thompson has now come to expect.
Writing – 5 Stars
Art – 5 Stars
Colors – 5 Stars
[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Written by; Lonnie Nadler & Zac Thompson
Art by; Kyle Charles
Colors by; Dee Cunniffe
Published by: AfterShock Comics
On sale 04.18.18
DIAMOND CODE:Â FEB181024
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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