The Caretaker #1 Review: Noir Horror Meets AI Dystopia in Blackhaven

WEPA! The Caretaker #1 comes out the gate like a trench-coated nightmare with a badge in one hand and occult evidence in the other. Derek Johnson drops us into Blackhaven, a city where surveillance sees everything, people are tracked like receipts, and justice has been handed over to a system that thinks data equals truth. Spoiler alert, fam: it does not. Something ancient, bloody, and way above the city’s pay grade is slicing through the shadows, and the result is a supernatural noir horror debut with real bite.

Federica Nanni’s black-and-white art is the first thing that grabs you by the collar. The shadows are thick, the city feels filthy in the best way, and every page has that late-night crime scene energy where the rain probably owes somebody money. Then Param Shah’s HIVE Systems Design drops in with cold AI overlays, turning classic noir grit into cyberpunk paranoia. It is old-school detective storytelling getting body-checked by tomorrow’s surveillance nightmare, and honestly? That combo works.

Detective Joe Mercer is the kind of lead this story needs. Rough. Mouthy. Smart enough to know when the system is useful and stubborn enough to know when it is dead wrong. His energy is pure “I know you lying, so save us both the cardio.” Across from him, Ian Morgan brings the haunted-genius weight as the man who helped build HIVE, the AI system now wrapped around Blackhaven like a shiny digital prison. Less crime? Maybe. Less freedom? Definitely. That tension gives the issue more meat than your average murder mystery.

The case itself is nasty in all the right ways. The Heart Taker killings are brutal, ritualistic, and loaded with symbolism, but the book does not lean on gore just to act tough. The horror has purpose. The victims matter. The lunar pattern reveal gives the mystery momentum, shifting the story from “catch the killer” to “stop the ritual before this city becomes a supernatural disaster with Wi-Fi.” That is a hook with teeth, boss.

Real talk, the issue does pack a lot into its first chapter. HIVE, the occult wheel, Ian’s past, Joe’s baggage, Sarah’s condition, Root’s tech setup, and a whole lot of spooky bread crumbs all show up fast. Most of it lands, but future issues will need to keep the emotional core front and center so the lore does not start cutting the line at the bodega. Also, the stylized lettering gives the book personality, but a few tech-heavy moments could use a little more breathing room.

Still, The Caretaker #1 is a strong debut with confidence, attitude, and a killer visual identity. It blends noir, occult horror, and AI dystopia without feeling like a gimmick wearing sunglasses indoors. Blackhaven feels dangerous. HIVE feels unsettling. The Heart Taker feels like a nightmare with a calendar. And Joe Mercer feels like the kind of detective who will punch a conspiracy in the mouth if the evidence tells him to.

A sharp, stylish, blood-soaked first issue that delivers noir grime, occult dread, and AI paranoia in one mean little cocktail. Somebody get Blackhaven a priest, a firewall, and a better mayor.

CRUSADERS SCORE:
3.5/5

Created by: Derek Johnson & Addam Martin
Written by: Derek Johnson
Interior Art: Federica Nanni
HIVE Systems Design: Param Shah
Lettering: Amal Desai
Cover Art: Federica Nanni
Variant Cover: Victor Moya
Back Cover Art & Color: Dan Zay
Series: Issue #1 of a six-issue noir supernatural horror series
Publisher: Octane Movie Productions