Dark Horse Comics 2015
Written by Cullen Bunn
Illustrated & Lettered by Tyler Crook
Tales Illustrated by Owen Gieni
Okay so after the strange events of last issue this one starts off right where that ended with Emmy taking the boys empty skin and running off home. Creepy is an understatement I mean c’mon the boys skin has been folded up so she can run with it and if that isn’t disturbing enough then there’s the fact that it’s moving around as she’s holding it. How she knew it wasn’t a boy but a Haint is beyond me but this is highly strange, incredibly weird and totally and completely captivating.
That night her dreams once again focus on the tree and around the farm strange things happen. As the townsfolk gathered around the tree they heard crying like from a baby coming from inside it. They chopped open the tree and inside was a beautiful girl and once she was removed they discovered another body inside this one looking just like the first was more hideous in appearance though. Can you imagine seeing this in your dreams and then to wake up from it startled only to find the Haint’s skin rattling around in the store in which was stored.
I don’t know how Emmy deals with all this because the way that Cullen is telling this story i’d be freaking out like there’s no tomorrow. From the dreams and being terrified of the tree to finding the skin of a boy the way she did and now this yeah i’d be out of there as fast as my feet could carry me and i’d probably go a little mad in the process. For Emmy however it’s different her response isn’t as much based on fear from it all as curiosity.
The next things that happen well it would officially put me over the edge and the revelations we get from the skin and the essence that had left it not to mention her dad and the townsfolk surrounding the tree it’s almost too much to take in. So much happens so fast and furiously and Emmy finally runs for her life but nothing about this town and these people are what they appear to be. Not even the skin she takes with her when she runs.
Jeez Louise Mary and Josephina I have no idea what kind of background this area has but there seems to be so much of the supernatural present it’s amazing that the town hasn’t succumbed to madness and more. We saw in the first issue they killed the witch on that tree and that it changed after that and now with Emmy on the run and the revelations we’ve learned this story has gone from one extreme of the bizarre to another as the last page reveals even more is in this sleepy town than anyone could have thought possible.
The writing and story are mesmerizing as it pulls you into it and keeps you rooted to the spot not able to turn away. Tyler’s work on the interiors really gets under your skin with such a brilliance. There are moments of light and dark intertwined with the day and night creating this mystical world Emmy inhabits. There really is such a magic about what he’s done here that portrays such innocence and horror throughout you find yourself lost in the pages.
This really is an unexpected delight.