Menton3’s insightfully dark and visually stunning book “The Memory Collectors” returns this week, presenting a more intimate and philosophically reflective exploration of consciousness and perceived reality. With a continued mix of stylistically distinguished illustrations and enlightened prose, Menton3 delivers another unconventional and captivating installment that rivals the series debut.

WRITTEN BY: Menton3, Ben Murphy
ART BY: Menton3, Ben Templesmith
PUBLISHER: IDW Publishing
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: December 11, 2013

“The Memory Collectors” #2 continues with Magdalena, Edith, and Beatrice, as they find themselves battling against relentless attacks from an obscene amount of memory collectors, all of whom are just pieces to a much larger — and more dangerous — demon puzzle. The mystery only deepens as they journey further into confounding chaos to confront an enemy unlike anything they have ever seen or faced before. The choices they make will ultimately set-forth a series of events that will have the hunters questioning everything they have ever known, and everything they have trained to be.

Much like Menton3’s previous works, “The Memory Collectors” calls for intensive effort and attention from the reader, which ultimately allows for a greater, and more engaging experience overall. The narrative’s fascinating discourse on the book’s prominent themes, and the visually subversive presentation style of the creator’s intriguingly original take on the horror genre, not only puts to paper the inner-workings of Menton3’s mind, but demonstrates the level to which he respects and believes in his readers’ intelligence and understanding.

Opening with a compellingly telling anecdote derived from Norse mythology about Odin’s ravens, Huginn and Muninn, Book Two resumes its focus on the significant examination of thought and memory — what each bird represents. More than a symbolically relevant connotation about the characters themselves, birds like ravens and crows seem to be a recurring aspect of Menton3’s creations. They were previously featured in the debut issue of the series and can be stemmed back to Beatrice’s first appearance in “Monocyte” #1. Though it was David Stoupakis’ supplemental story within the book entitled “MONOCYTE: Chronicle of the Messenger” that featured a young Beatrice conversing with an ominous crow. Perhaps I’m reaching, but it’s always a delight to see familiar faces and themes being revisited in a variety of different projects, and this installment sees more of that with the return of a deliciously sinister character from Menton3’s “Monocyte” universe.

The artwork is as visually dynamic as it is remarkably dark and heavy. It’s clearly apparent that every stroke of his brush, and placement of devices, symbols, and diagrams derived from his studies of iconography and alchemy, is so specifically envisioned, and consciously meaningful. Menton3 is consistently reliable and accomplished when it comes to producing stellar pieces of art, and his artistic contributions to the book is a huge factor for its success. He dominates space and creates such powerfully evocative images that will rest in the reader’s memory long after they’ve experienced his work. And that’s something readers can always expect from a project as intimate as this one.

4.5/5 Skulls

Reviewed By – ShadowJayd