Comics
[Comic Book Review] “Shutter” #6 Proves Intrigue Isn’t Everything
“Shutter” stumbles this month and has me incredibly torn. On the one hand it’s got a fight scene where someone rides a triceratops and on the other it adds even more uninteresting mysteries. The ambiguity is beginning to wear thin.
WRITTEN BY: Joe Keatinge
ART BY: Leila De Duca
PUBLISHER: Image
PRICE: $3.50
RELEASE: September 17, 2014
Reviewed By: Torbin Chimners
Take for example the mystery of Kate’s siblings; we’re introduced to another one who briefly touches on the fact that there are even more. I’m starting to feel like there’s going to be a revolving door of siblings all with incredibly vague motivations that come into conflict with Kate.
I expected we’d have at least a mild grasp of what’s going on in Kate’s world at this point, but I feel more lost than ever. It’s becoming convoluted to the point of insanity. I like these characters (I like them a lot) and they’re deeply engaging, but the plot they are being pulled through means almost nothing to me now because every machination of it feels random. We’re 6 issues in now and the plot has amounted to Kate learning she’s been lied to about having siblings, she meets one and then decides to run away with him to get answers. It feels like we’re getting nowhere slowly.
One of my biggest issues this month is the way Ekland and Shaw are treated. They’re given a redundant scene that’s just there to make sure you really know these are the bad guys, then SPOILER they’re killed in the next scene. It’s already been thoroughly established that they’re bad; Ekland is even introduced massacring a bar full of people. It makes me question the point of them in the first place. They could have been introduced in this issue, had the scene showing they’re tough shit so you’re worried for Kate and Chris then die and be done with it. What was the point building both of them up in the background of the last 5 issues to have them go out with such a whimper?
While I’ve got my fair share of concerns when it comes to the plot I have no qualms with the stellar art. Leila Del Duca does nothing but kill it every issue of “Shutter” with some of the most beautiful 2 page spreads ever conceived this book is a visual powerhouse. Long after the story’s stopped making sense “Shutter” will be worth it for the art.
Over the last 5 issues I’ve heard and read about a lot of people becoming frustrated with Shutters continued convolution. I used to be on the opposite side of the fence, embracing its perplexing and quirky plot but now it’s pushed me over that fence headfirst. I want to keep enjoying “Shutter” but it’s making that one hell of a challenge.
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Torbin Chimners AKA 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@Vulgar_Rhombus
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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