Scout Comics 2019
Created, Written & Illustrated by Joseph Schmalke & Rich Woodall
The Electric Black - a cursed antique shop appearing in any time or space, soliciting customers it hungers to corrupt or devour! The Electric Black appears in 1990's Boston, Massachusetts. The enigmatic Julius Black has sent the store's demented errand girl, June Bug, on an assignment to drop off an ancient relic to a mysterious client. This ominous artefact has a sinister past and the power to throw the world into chaos. An Inquisition Strike Force is on her trail and determined to quell the darkness that she and the mysterious emporium are unleashing. One psychotic young woman against a group of heavily armed men? They don't stand a chance! Dare you step within the foreboding halls of the Electric Black?
I like the take on this it is highly reminiscent of the old House of Mystery or House of Secrets with the whole premise but this is definitely a much more modern approach to that or any of the other that could be considered kin. It feels like it crosses this Noir feel with Horror to create a different kind of entity all it's own. The opening here is one that captures the attention nicely and as we see Jack taking Roy his food in the bowels of the place ones curiosity is definitely piqued. Now I will say this much at first I thought this was a library with all these lines on the walls so that made me wonder and yet it I think it's supposed to be stone and if so then that's a fail for me. Usually the backgrounds walls have such a nice look so.
I like the second opening as well. June making a special delivery to this guy was nicely done. That she loves to talk and doesn't always get to have that human contact with other folks shines through in the dialogue that we see. This type of characterisation allows us to have a much nicer look at June and appreciate her special kind of crazy. Also as she is pursued I think it's a great chance for us to see these military folks in action too. As an added bonus that teddy bear of hers that isn't a teddy bear yeah that thing is totally awesome! The way that all this really manages to create interest and leave the desire to see more is extremely well done.
As for the interiors here if I am going going to be honest the first 12 pages don't come close to what we see once we hit page 13. it is like there is this disconnect because the story about how the item the gentleman was give came into being well that is so well done. The linework is beautiful and to see the varying weights utilised to create this attention to detail is sensational. The roads on the mountains back then and the way that we see Father Tessio and his beard is magnificent. The brickwork of the Nunnery let's know you know everything you need to. I am more than fairly impressed with the whole segment and just how it the story moves.
The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a really nice eye for storytelling. How we see the backgrounds being utilised is well done as they enhance the moments and bring a size and scope to the book. The creativity and imagination that we see on display is also wonderful to see. From weapons to the demonic what we see here is beyond what I could've expected. The colour work is really nice as well. There is a nice utilisation to how we see light sources to create shading and shadows and the colour blocking are well rendered.
This is an incredibly interesting and unexpected kind of book and I like that. It has these great elements to it that you don't see in anything else and that we get a few different vibes that shouldn't be together but work so well make this that unique treat of an offering.