Comics
Review: “Furious” #5
Review by – Bree Ogden
“Furious” concluded its 5-issue arc with all of the redemption and comeuppance that the previous issues both built up to and demanded. This series has remained spotty for me the majority of its run, and although it rounded out nicely, it may have rounded out a little too nice.
WRITTEN BY: Bryan J. L. Glass
ART BY: Victor Santos
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: May 28, 2014
This issue’s present tense thread remains (primarily) in one place: mid-air. Furious and Perfidious fight it out mid-flight while Furious simultaneously dives after the rapidly plummeting toddler, Christine. It’s exactly the type of adrenaline-filled moment before death that Furious needs to make amends with her past. Previous issues have shown us bits of Cadence Lark’s sordid history but it’s these last twenty pages that delve into the heart of it.
As per usual with the “Furious” modus operandi, it’s the flashback scenes that carry the issue. Cadence Lark has just saved (albeit flippantly) Jodie, a street girl who is on the verge of being killed by her sadistic pimp. Cadence has taken this young girl out of her horrific environment only to give her a place in Lark’s environment, treating her to a heavy life of debauchery and drugs. The girls are lonely, desperate, delirious, and angry at the world when they decide to take their lives together in a suicide pact. When both survive, it’s a turning point in their lives. One gets better and wants absolution, while the other, Jodie, decides to get retribution…becoming Perfidious.
I don’t have much of anything profound to say about this comic. It’s fairly straightforward. Sometimes so straightforward that it feels as if the creators are spelling it out for us. While the last couple of issues have shown a significantly stronger storyline, major character and plot developments, non-clichéd action, and real heart, the overall arc lacks the depth I really craved. All superheroes are seeking absolution while dodging a villainous foe. I wanted more from this.
For example, in issue #4, we are introduced to Detective Christopher McKnight. In McKnight, Furious has finally met her match. He’s not like the other cops. He’s not going to play the blame game; he wants to know why Furious does what she does. He sees the scared girl she is and not the maniac she portrays. I’m genuinely saddened that this ripe character, one of the first well-rounded peripheral characters of the series, was only used in a handful of panels. If the series returns for a new arc, I can only hope they utilize more characters like McKnight.
In the end, this series feels too neat for my taste. Any characters or storylines that would take deeper exploration are cut short or eliminated. While there is a lot about the arc that works—fantastic art, some interesting social commentary, and loads of action—the overall product left me wanting.
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.
You must be logged in to post a comment.