Comics
Review: ‘House Of Gold & Bones’ #2
With its premise already established, House Of Gold & Bones #2 pushes the narrative forward and focuses on its central protagonist. In his musical crossover to comics, Stone Sour’s Corey Taylor offers readers an nightmarish underbelly, which is quite appealing in the artwork. This is a thrilling read about the gripping fear of the unknown.
WRITTEN BY: Corey Taylor
ART BY: Richard Clark
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASE: May 22nd, 2013
A young man, “Zero,” wakes up in an alternate reality that may or may not be Hell. Wearing a prisoner’s uniform, Zero is being chased by the evil that lurks in the darkness. He is being hunted by a gang of warriors who think they actually know who he is. With their murderous red eyes on him, Zero doesn’t know where to go and who to trust. With the forest never ending, Zero has no place to rest after feeling exhausted. He can only continue running, even if his feet ache in agony. If Zero stops running, the only thing that awaits for him is death.
As a storyteller, Taylor continues to build the mystery surrounding his protagonist. A group of hostile warriors think the amnesiac is really 486, someone they have been looking for. Because Zero is wearing a prisoner’s uniform, is he a vicious killer just like the people chasing after him? Readers could really be rooting for an antagonist and they don’t even know it. Though Zero is given a bit of back-story, there are more questions than answers revealed in this issue.
I am wondering if Zero does have multiple personalities. In the forest, Zero meets another stranger named Peck. When these two meet, Peck serves his purpose for two reasons. The first motive is give readers information about this nightmarish world, which has its own set of rules. The other explanation is that Peck represents a kinder, gentler aspect of Zero’s split personality. Notice when Peck abruptly leaves, Zero is screaming like a madman.
In Richard Clark’s illustrations, I really liked the detail to Black John’s character design. Black John is tough, grizzled, and looks like he just came from a bar fight. Notice that Black John has a scarf wrapped around one of his hands, as if he cut himself. His stretched-out jacket, which is ripped at the sleeves, is also hiding something. When he’s not wearing the jacket, Black John has a shoulder pad made of spikes attached to himself.
One of my favorite parts of Clark’s imagery is when Zero ends up hallucinating during a flashback. When he finds himself at a crowded party, Zero tries to engage in the conversation. Everyone at the party stops and stares at Zero when he speaks. In the uncomfortable silence, the partygoers suddenly start to melt and turn into bloodthirsty demons.
With a cast of weird characters, “House of Gold and Bones” #2 continues to be an interesting journey into a nightmarish reality. Though questions remain unanswered, I look forward to the development of the mystery in the next issue.
4/5 Skulls
Reviewed by – Jorge Solis
Comics
‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics
Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.
Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.
In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”
The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”
Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”
“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.
Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”
Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.
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Cover A: Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto (Full Color)
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Cover B: Giuseppe Cafaro and Arif Prianto (Full Color)
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Cover C: Blank Sketch Cover
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Cover D (1/10): Dani and Brad Simpson (Full Color)
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Cover E (1/25): Marc Silvestri and Arif Prianto, Virgin Cover (Full Color)
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Cover F (1/50): J.Scott Campbell (Full Color)
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Cover G (1/100): Bill Sienkiewicz. (Full Color)
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Cover H (1/250): Line art by Marc. Virgin Cover, Inks (B/W)
Witchblade #1 will also be available across many digital platforms, including Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and Google Play.
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