Image Comics 2018
Written by Jeff Lemire
Illustrated by Andrea Sorrentino
Coloured by Dave Stewart
Lettered & Designed by Steve Wands
After the mind-blowing events of the first arc, Norton digs deeper into the mystery of the Black Barn, and secrets of his past begin to come to light. Meanwhile, Father Fred does some digging of his own and learns the hard way that some secrets should just stay buried.
There is just something about this book that doesn’t leave you. The whole idea and concept of what we’ve been seeing in both Norton’s life and in Gideon Falls playing out simultaneously is more fascinating than we ever expected it to be. The way that Jeff is able to write this and how he has managed to get the characters under our skin so quickly is part of what makes him such a magnificent writer. For me this will make better television viewing than The Haunting of Hill House did and that is something as while I felt the scary aspects to be lacking the family drama angle was absolutely incredible. However this is what’s hot at the moment and this fits that bill beautifully.
Jeff structures this so incredibly well and that along with the pacing of the book have a way of drawing you in and leaving you wanting for more. The opening for this issue is one that adds more questions to an already growing list and for every one there is barely a new reveal or revelation. Though let’s be honest we aren’t ready for any real answers right now it really is more fun to be seeing all this weirdness playing out while we are all as in the dark as the characters themselves are. There really is something to be said for taking that route and I wholeheartedly support that decision. It does make me come time and time again and has my curiosity piqued.
The characterisation here is stellar. For having assembled a diverse cast of characters that are equally as complicated and damaged as they are that we get to see them as they are not as something that the aspire to be feels refreshing. No one is perfect and these characters are why we come back because we can relate to them. Even Angela who now that she’s been shown the Black Barn and understands that she too is involved in all this whether she wants to be or not has gone from clinical diagnosis of Norton to being a co-conspirator and that change was so well demonstrated.
Andrea’s work is as solid as can be and each issue has that same feel to it. He is so consistent and so damn talented and the technique of making each page look like it’s some kind of photograph with the etching linework is just something unique and special that adds the kind of flavour that you don’t expect. This helps make the rest of the linework standout in some very nice ways and we pay much more attention to the level of detail and the backgrounds that are utilised. The utilisation of page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows off a maestro’s eye for storytelling. I envy Dave’s talent and skill in colouring this too because it cannot always be easy but he makes come to life so very well.
This series builds tension and angst in the reader even while the characters aren’t in life or death situations. When they are the way the pulse races and that feeling which comes with permeate the mind it’s still one of the very best feelings you could have. With the ending of this issue I am not terribly thrilled to have to wait a month for what comes next but will wait and anxiously so. Because the level of storytelling here continues to be a mixture of excellence that would be at home in a novel or on television.