Comics
[5 Skull Comic Review] “Spread” #6 Will Rip Your Face Off
Reviewed By Torin Chambers. “Spread” #6 closes off its phenomenal first arc in an obscenely grotesque masterpiece. An absolute joy to read, Justin Jordan pulls no punches exploding out of the gate at a breakneck pace that never lets up. It’s larger and more monstrous than life, with twists and turns that’ll catch you off guard and rip your face off. With more than a few bold moves Spread will never quite be the same going forward.
WRITTEN BY: Justin Jordan
ART BY: Kyle Strahm
PUBLISHER: Image Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASE: March 18, 2015
There’s so much going on the entire issue it’s hard to know where to begin. First off it never feels jumbled or rushed, the plot unfolds organically and heinously. No and Ravello continue their bloody, unflinching battle amidst the three Spreadworms who, in a stroke of genius, Spread into each other forming one massive horrendous monstrosity. It’s a fucking glorious combination of expertly penned narration from Jordan and breathe taking visuals from Strahm and Sobreiro.
Moving from the enormous scope of that fight we’re thrown into Molly’s equally tense situation. The Preacher has baby Hope in his cold clammy hands, along with a knife which he intends to use to rend her little body asunder. Even though Hope is narrating all of this from the future the tension is not diminished in the slightest. It’s palpable throughout the entire issue, no one is safe in fact it feels as though anyone could die at any moment. Entirely new concepts and mysteries are also thrown at us during this whole altercation. We ever so briefly glimpse Molly and Hope someplace orange with Molly’s hair looking like spread tentacles, the Preacher also appears to have a flashback to a boy on an operating table with his chest cavity and brain exposed. What these mean is readily prevalent but more seeds for the future.
Spread is an exemplary horror comic and by far the number one body horror comic currently on the stands. Every page is a joy to behold for both the sublime art and the superb story. The trade collecting all 6 issues of the first arc is due out next month, I highly recommend any and all horror fans to buy it and spread it around.
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Torin Chambers is a rad dude from the nineties who does film stuff or something. Thomas the Tank Engine is his favorite transformer. Find him on Twitter @TorinsChambers
The supernatural world of Korean folk horror movie Exhuma grows larger with the arrival of prequel spinoff webtoon Maengjong this weekend, Variety reports today.
Naver Webtoon debuts Maengjong on May 30.
The series hails from Haemuri (Olgami) and will trace the high school origins of how shaman duo Hwarim and Bonggil, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun in the 2024 film, came together to face occultish threats.
The story is set to begin when “Hwarim, who has been concealing her identity following a childhood encounter with a snake spirit called Jin, crosses paths with Bonggil at their school.”
Variety notes that Exhuma director Jang Jae-hyun participated in the project’s early concept stage.
“We are presenting ‘Maengjong,’ a new series capturing the appeal of the horror-occult genre, ahead of the full summer season,” said Lee Jeong-geun, Naver Webtoon’s Korea webtoon content leader. “With the high school story of Hwarim and Bonggil, who left a strong impression in the film ‘Exhuma,’ enhanced by Haemuri’s characteristic tense direction, we expect it will be a welcome work for genre fans.”
“It is meaningful that the spin-off story of ‘Exhuma,’ loved by many audiences, expands by meeting the new grammar of webtoon,” said Lee Hyeon-jeong, managing director of the film business division at Showbox, which distributed the film. “We hope it will be a fresh experience for both film fans and webtoon readers.”
Exhuma was a breakout hit in 2024, becoming the first Korean occult film to surpass 10 million ticket buyers and the country’s highest-grossing film of the year. I wrote in my review that “the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.”
The bond between Hwarim and Bonggil was one of the film’s highlights, making this prequel webtoon a must for fans.
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