Comics
Review: ‘Curse’ #3
A horror story never gets better for anyone involved. Michael Moreci & Tim Daniel are very aware of that fact this month as they push all of their characters to the brink. The small town politics erupt into chaos and the mythology of the werewolf is uniquely developed in another chilling chapter of “Curse.”
WRITTEN BY: Michael Moreci & Tim Daniel
ART BY: Colin Lorimer & Riley Rossmo
PUBLISHER: BOOM! Studios
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: March 19, 2014
Finishing this issue actually had me utter the words “God fucking damn it.” I couldn’t believe how screwed things were for Laney, and how this guy believes he’s just trying to do the right thing.
Except he’s not. He’s a noble man with a seemingly noble cause, but he’s caught in his past. Moreci and Daniel remind us of this constantly. Yet, this month it becomes abundantly clear Laney isn’t acting with the best intentions. His motivations are selfish and blind. Within an issue of revelations the script makes an effort to put its own spin on werewolf mythology and succeeds admirably. I love the new approach and find it brings a new flavor something already so delicious.
The artwork is still dark, brooding, and gorgeous. In fact the hollow settings of the narrative actually pop off the page thanks to Colin Lorimer and Riley Rossmo. Again, Lorimer takes the duties for the bulk of the book, and manages to use hard angles to create a great sense of dread. His work in the latter half of the issue shows Laney in complete control and evokes a certain sense of domination. While Rossmo’s work in the past is completely different and stellar. He adds a layer of vulnerable reality to the character that I haven’t seen in a werewolf story. It makes the character of Anton a tragic and compelling asshole reminiscent of Cassidy.
“Curse” is one of the greatest looks at werewolf mythology there has even been. It doesn’t focus on the beast but instead opts to concern itself with the human side of the problem. The loss of being a werewolf coupled with the losses brought on by a werewolf and everyone in between. Within this balance it strikes a distinctly different chord with familiar stories and characters. It humanizes the beast and monsterizes the human.
You still root for Laney, but its becoming increasingly clear he’s not the best man that he could be. His mindless pursuit of the beast makes him unable to move on and care about the things close to him. He isolates himself in the cold in the name of some higher calling but he doesn’t manage to save himself or anyone else. It’s not even clear what his endgame is, it’s just blind pursuit at this point, driven by something he should have walked away from years ago. Yet, amongst all this he still remains compelling and sympathetic, because who among us would do anything different?
Rating: 4.5/5 Skulls.
Comics
‘You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive’ – IDW Dark’s Next Horror Comic Will Make You Question Reality
Five friends. Four houses. One perfect life. Bloody Disgusting is excited to exclusively announce You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive, a brand new horror comic from IDW Dark.
From Eisner-Nominated writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly, and rising horror artist Heather Vaughan, You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is described as a “paranoia-laced, socially-conscious, horror mystery that will leave you questioning reality, and reveal that this crafted world is more of a nightmare than the idealistic dream they were expecting.”
Phoebe Joplin has never questioned the world her parents built: a secluded community where she and her friends were raised to be smarter, stronger, and better than anyone else. No distractions. No dangers. No secrets. Until the night of their graduation.
When one of them dies under impossible circumstances, Phee starts to pull at the edges of her perfect life—and what she finds is something far more terrifying than she ever imagined.
Because this place isn’t a sanctuary. It’s a cage. And no one who discovers the truth ever leaves it alive.
Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing (Batman – One Bad Day: Clayface, Star Trek: The Last Starship) co-write the upcoming IDW Dark horror comic, featuring art by Heather Vaughan.
Jackson Lanzing said in a statement to Bloody Disgusting, “You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive is in many ways a spiritual successor to our last creator-owned horror, The Principles of Necromancy – a dive into the promise and consequence of playing god with the blood of innocents. But the Hivemind book this reminds me of most is Clayface: One Bad Day. This is a deeply human story with intensely raw emotions – five best friends and their five mysterious parents, tearing one another apart for the promise of some impossible glory that’s waiting just beyond their darkest actions. We’re thrilled to be bringing this story to life with our long-time partner in crime, editor Heather Antos, at IDW Dark – and we’re particularly excited to give our Clayface fans a new, brutal and emotional horror made just for them.”
Adds Collin Kelly, “We’re deconstructing a feeling that seems universal these days; our elders have a death grip on their power, without any intention of giving it up to the generations that come next. YNLTPA is about growing up with the limitless potential of the future… and realizing how much it’s a lie we’ve been fed to keep us under the yoke of the past. Bringing this brutal experience to life is our artist and co-creator, Heather Vaughan, who brings an incredible amount of humanity to our cast. But it’s in our youthful leads that Heather’s art really shines – you are going to fall in love with these young people, even as they go through the worst experience of their lives. What we’ve all crafted together is going to be tragic, painful, but above all else, sincere – with a future so uncertain, there’s only one thing we can trust: you’ll never leave this place alive.”
“Some horror stories are about monsters in the dark. YNLTPA is about realizing the monsters raised you,” previews Senior Group Editor Heather Antos. “Working with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly on this series has been a dream in the darkest possible way. They’ve built a story that’s layered, brutal, and deeply emotional, and every issue gives artist Heather Vaughan opportunities to push the art into places that feel both haunting and deeply personal. Some horror comics will keep you up at night…this is one that will stick with you for years to come.”
The first issue of You’ll Never Leave This Place Alive goes on sale October 14, 2026! Make sure to pre-order at your local comic shop by September to guarantee a copy.
Exclusively check out the various covers for Issue #1 down below.
IDW Publishing’s horror imprint IDW DARK features comics like A Quiet Place: Storm Warning, Smile: For the Camera, The Exorcism at 1600 Penn, Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees, The Twilight Zone, Event Horizon: Dark Descent & Event Horizon: Inferno, and more.
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