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Review: ‘Abe Sapien: Dark and Terrible’ #2

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The new ongoing series Abe Sapien: Dark and Terrible continues this week with an issue that really begins to delve into the origin of Abe, and perhaps his destiny, in the massive event occurring in B.P.R.D. Abe’s presence has been missed, and unlike the previous issue, we really get some good ol’ Abe action this time around. Scott Allie has really taken the reins from Migonal when it comes to the “Hell on Earth” event and he is doing a fantastic job of creating a thrilling story. On the other hand, Sebastián Fiumara has not been a staple in the B.P.R.D. world, but he is really making a name for himself here.

WRITTEN BY: Mike Mignola and Scott Allie
ART BY: Sebastián Fiumara
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
RELEASE DATE: May 1st
PRICE: 3.50

This book doesn’t take off where issue #1 left off; instead we view Abe just after he awakes and begins to catch up on the events he has missed, including the death of his ally Hellboy. It is at this point that we gain true insight into Abe’s origin and are given clues to his role in the current catastrophe. Let’s not forget that Abe didn’t only come out of his coma with bullet wound, he sustained a substantial change in his visual appearance. After this little flashback the book jumps back to Abe on the run and his B.P.R.D. pursuers hot on his trail. Abe takes shelter in s rural town and is exposed to the effects “Hell on Earth” has one of the human populace.

There are some positives and negatives to this story. The biggest negative is that the B.P.R.D. storyline at this point. It is all about plot progression and giving insight into their thoughts on Abe, but aside from that it is dull and takes away from atmosphere. On the positive, this book is paced really well. It hooks you with the origin at the start, and then slowly builds as Abe is forced to act when things get out of hand at a religious gathering. The book brings Abe’s character back to life for me. In the first issue Abe doesn’t say or do much. This issue exposes us to Abe’s mind and shows us how he interacts with others post-coma.

The art is top notch, it’s definitely not the usual look for B.P.R.D. books, but since this is Abe’s story specifically, it has its own unique flare. The art matches the atmosphere of the book. Abe is on his own and, since he has essentially evolved, the art has similarly evolved with him. Fiumara has a very realistic gritty style with an air of sketchiness that gives the book that extra wow factor. Dave Stewart as always takes control in the colouring department and gives the book the proper shading and colour pallet to suit the mood.

It’s just great having Abe back. This arc is only the beginning as this ongoing series while undoubtedly continue alongside “BPRD” and “Hellboy in Hell”.

4/5 Skulls

Reviewed by – GreenBasterd

Comics

[Review] Graphic Novel ‘Tender’ Is Brilliant Feminist Body Horror That Will Make You Squirm & Scream

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Tender Beth Hetland Graphic Novel

Beth Hetland’s debut graphic novel, ‘Tender,’ is a modern tale of love, validation, and self-destruction by way of brutal body horror with a feminist edge.

“I’ve wanted this more than anything.”

Men so often dominate the body horror subgenre, which makes it so rare and insightful whenever women tackle this space. This makes Beth Hetland’s Tender such a refreshing change of pace. It’s earnest, honest, and impossibly exposed. Tender takes the body horror subgenre and brilliantly and subversively mixes it together with a narrative that’s steeped in the societal expectations that women face on a daily basis, whether it comes to empowerment, family, or sexuality. It single-handedly beats other 2023 and ‘24 feminine horror texts like American Horror Story: Delicate, Sick, Lisa Frankenstein, and Immaculate at their own game.

Hetland’s Tender is American Psycho meets Rosemary’s Baby meets Swallow. It’s also absolutely not for the faint of heart.

Right from the jump, Tender grabs hold of its audience and doesn’t let go. Carolanne’s quest for romantic fulfillment, validation, and a grander purpose is easy to empathize with and an effective framework for this woeful saga. Carolanne’s wounds cut so deep simply because they’re so incredibly commonplace. Everybody wants to feel wanted.

Tender is full of beautiful, gross, expressive artwork that makes the reader squirm in their seat and itch. Hetland’s drawings are simultaneously minimalist and comprehensively layered. They’re  reminiscent of Charles Burns’ Black Hole, in the best way possible. There’s consistently inspired and striking use of spot coloring that elevates Hetland’s story whenever it’s incorporated, invading Tender’s muted world.

Hetland employs effective, economical storytelling that makes clever use of panels and scene construction so that Tender can breeze through exposition and get to the story’s gooey, aching heart. There’s an excellent page that depicts Carolanne’s menial domestic tasks where the repetitive panels grow increasingly smaller to illustrate the formulaic rut that her life has become. It’s magical. Tender is full of creative devices like this that further let the reader into Carolanne’s mind without ever getting clunky or explicit on the matter. The graphic novel is bookended with a simple moment that shifts from sweet to suffocating.

Tender gives the audience a proper sense of who Carolanne is right away. Hetland adeptly defines her protagonist so that readers are immediately on her side, praying that she gets her “happily ever after,” and makes it out of this sick story alive…And then they’re rapidly wishing for the opposite and utterly aghast over this chameleon. There’s also some creative experimentation with non-linear storytelling that gets to the root of Carolanne and continually recontextualizes who she is and what she wants out of life so that the audience is kept on guard.

Tender casually transforms from a picture-perfect rom-com, right down to the visual style, into a haunting horror story. There’s such a natural quality to how Tender presents the melancholy manner in which a relationship — and life — can decay. Once the horror elements hit, they hit hard, like a jackhammer, and don’t relent. It’s hard not to wince and grimace through Tender’s terrifying images. They’re reminiscent of the nightmarish dadaist visuals from The Ring’s cursed videotape, distilled to blunt comic panels that the reader is forced to confront and digest, rather than something that simply flickers through their mind and is gone a moment later. Tender makes its audience marinate in its mania and incubates its horror as if it’s a gestating fetus in their womb.

Tender tells a powerful, emotional, disturbing story, but its secret weapon may be its sublime pacing. Hetland paces Tender in such an exceptional manner, so that it takes its time, sneaks up on the reader, and gets under their skin until they’re dreading where the story will go next. Tender pushes the audience right up to the edge so that they’re practically begging that Carolanne won’t do the things that she does, yet the other shoe always drops in the most devastating manner. Audiences will read Tender with clenched fists that make it a struggle to turn each page, although they won’t be able to stop. Tender isn’t a short story, at more than 160 pages, but readers will want to take their time and relish each page so that this macabre story lasts for as long as possible before it cascades to its tragic conclusion. 

Tender is an accomplished and uncomfortable debut graphic novel from Hetland that reveals a strong, unflinching voice that’s the perfect fit for horror. Tender indulges in heightened flights of fancy and toes the line with the supernatural. However, Tender is so successful at what it does because it’s so grounded in reality and presents a horror story that’s all too common in society. It’s a heartbreaking meditation on loneliness and codependency that’s one of 2024’s must-read horror graphic novels.

‘Tender,’ by Beth Hetland and published by Fantagraphics, is now available.

4 out of 5 skulls

Tender graphic novel review

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