Si Spencer’s “Bodies” is a work of beautifully planned brilliance. The premise is simple, what if criminal investigators in four different time periods find the same body, with the same M.O. It should be endless complicated, but it’s a smooth read watching different detectives slowly pull at the threads of an overwhelming mystery that’s soaked in absolute terror.
WRITTEN BY: Si Spencer
ART BY: 1890 Dean Ormston, 1940 Phil Winslade, 2050 Tula Lotay, 2014 Meghan Hetrick
PUBLISHER: Vertigo Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: September 24, 2014
Honestly “Bodies” is the perfect Vertigo Comic. It’s brilliantly dark, and deceptively simple, but the execution is gorgeous. It puts other comics to shame, by using the medium to tell a story perfectly suited for comics. It takes the intensely personal experience of looking for a body, and amplifies the mystery ten fold when the same body shows up in four different time periods. I know I already said it, but it bares repeating because it’s so awesome.
Spencer’s script wastes no time getting into a little more detail with what exactly is going on with the mystery. Threads are beginning to connect and it’s clear that more than the bodies are connecting these stories. It’s an impressive weave that is watertight across the board. I can’t even really pick my favorite, because each of them are compelling in their own way. Although 1890 has that perfect Lovecraftian feel that I can’t get enough of.
While the insanely imaginative plot should be enough to sell the book, the art is something else entirely. I find Dean Ormston’s grey drab look for 1890 so compelling thanks to his Lee Loughridge’s colors adding flair in all the right spots. Tula Lotay manages to create a whimsical ride into the future that feels like and otherworldly. It’s a breath of fresh air in the dark book. Phil Winslade is unrivaled in his detailed 1940’s layouts. Seriously this chapter has one of the best and most gruesome depictions of polaroid’s I’ve ever had the pleasure of seeing. And Meghan Hetrick brings the unpredictability of modern London to the page with ease.
A few weeks ago we ran a handy glossary filled with terms to help you read “Bodies” and I suggest brushing up ASAP. This was a book that wasn’t on my radar for the past two months, but it’s now officially one of my most desired books of the month. It’s a fantastic blend of horror and mystery that is provocative on every level. It pushes the medium to new heights and shows that Vertigo is still the unrivaled master in adult comics.
After two issues of pleasantly scratching my head, wondering what’s going on, “Bodies” #3 defintely makes things a little clearer. Yet, it still manages to add heaping piles of mystery on top of what’s already there. I’m literally frothing at the mouth to see what happens next.