Zenescope Entertainment 2016
Red Agent
Written by Lou Iovino
Penciled by Anthony Spay
Inked by Jacob Bear
Coloured by Sanju Nivangune & Grostieta
Lettered Taylor Esposito of Ghost Glyph Studios
Day of the Dead
Written by Joe Brusha
Illustrated by Allan Otero
Coloured by Erick Arciniega
Hellchild
Written by Pat Shand
Penciled by Sheldon Goh
Inked by Jacob Bear
Coloured by Walter Baiamonte & Francesca Cartotenuto
OZ
Written by Meredith Finch
Illustrated by JG Miranda
Coloured by Ceci de la Cruz
Death
Written by Ralph Tedesco
Illustrated by Renzo Rodriguez
Coloured by Fran Gamboa & J.C. Ruiz
Welcome to the Grimm Universe, where both dreams and nightmares come true. In this special over-sized issue, you will meet Britney Waters, the enigmatic Red Agent... Mystere, a young woman with power over the dead... Hellchild, the heir to the throne of the Underworld... the Warlord of Oz, before he took on that legendary title... and the murderous but noble goddess of Death.
I’ve been saying for the past year or so that Zenescope has been moving forward to a new era of storytelling and this really showcases that move to more intelligent and creepy storytelling. What I like about this oversized issue is that each vignette is just enough to really set the stage for what we’ll be seeing in 2017. With the return of some much beloved characters alongside some of the newer ones it seems that Zenescope has some mighty big plans in store for the new year.
Red Agent is one I’ve been looking forward to. I like the whole Mission Impossible team angle that has been put together. And while the story here focuses only on Britney that’s okay because she’s team leader. If the writing and the artwork we get here are going to be the same crew that brings the next adventure to life i’m thoroughly excited. Lou does an amazing job writing these and the attention to detail and the use of page layouts for the story are so impressive.
Mystere was part of the class at Arcane Acres and it’s nice to see her have her own story expand further after that series ended. Part of me wishes she were in a group with her old classmates but this time around we’ll be able to really delve into her character and see how her powers work both in practical use and on her mind. From what we see here Joe’s going to really bring us more about her and the connection to her powers and i’m hoping that we’ll see more of the struggle between life and death in her character as she gets stronger.
Hellchild is one of those that we are seeing everywhere right now. So being who she is it’s no surprise that next year will be a big year for the half god/half vampire. I’m kind of enamoured with this segment because of what Pat brings us with this underground fight club and the further exploration of these monsters that inhabit the world. The interiors are phenomenal in their attention to detail and the classics they invoke. Here’s hoping that her journey will continue to explore the darkest regions of this universe as she continues to find where she fits in.
Oh I can never get enough of Oz. These flying blue apes are magnificent creatures and I love seeing them in action! Joe seems to want to explore how the Warlord comes into being and the look back at his rise to power should be interesting. How he’s conditioned to hate who his birth mother is and how he’s used along the way in a quest for power could be extremely interesting. I hope Joe takes his time to really flesh out the characterisation and tell a smooth story with this one.
Ralph’s Keres story feels like it belongs in Tales of Terror. It’s short, sweet, concise and gets the point beautifully. If this were the type of stories we’ll see in the future regarding her where she’s actively pursuing people and not narrating then i’m all for it. She’s remained a mysterious figure since her introduction and there’s really no reason to not explore her while keeping enigmatic still.
Smart, intelligent and fascinating looks at what they have in store for these characters and I cannot wait. It looks like Zenescope is going to continue being a force in the realm of horror fantasy storytelling!