Deeper and deeper we go into the gore-filled rabbit hole that is Justin Jordan’s “Spread.” Lines are blurred as the trials increase for our heroes No, Molly, and baby Hope. Issue #4 picks up as super-babe Ravello intervenes in Jack’s hack-and-slash way of justice, seemingly rescuing No from a Crock-Pot style ending. As our trio is separated, their connections with the villains of the series come together.
WRITTEN BY: Justin Jordan
ART BY: Kyle Strahm
PUBLISHER: Image Comics
PRICE: $3.50
RELEASE: November 5, 2014
Reviewed by Nick Brehmer
Turns out, Molly’s been exposed to Ravello before and I suspect that there’s some detail regarding infanticide that has yet to be revealed. What has been revealed though is that the Preacher and his minions consider baby Hope to be the anti-Christ and an end to their spread-infested perfect world. Given the power her tears hold over the infection, it makes sense that her extermination would be paramount for this Spread-centered religious movement.
The plane from issue #1 makes a return in this latest issue as referenced by Ravello. Jack, who insists that the outside world and all things from it have ceased to exist, however, quickly refutes its existence. This echoes my statement from my previous review that Revello’s villainous role may not be as obvious as it seems. I get the impression from “Spread” that that Jordan likes to play with expectations.
The narrative structure that Jordan continues in each issue is pretty seamless. He has the narrator Hope position each past situation within a context of gritty, painful realism. With that said, her narration itself provides the chaos of “Spread” with a significant amount of her namesake, hope. The only problem is that we as reader have yet to actually see much of it within in panels. We can cheer for No and Molly, be suspicious of Ravello, and we can cringe at Preacher all we want, but the world of “Spread” remains a very, very nasty place.
There’s heaps of violent anticipation thrown our way in this issue. Looking forward to what bloody mess Jordan has in store for us next time.
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A product of the harsh lands of Northern Ontario, Nick Brehmer is in fact a sensitive flower currently blooming in the GTA. He spends his downtime wishing he was British. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @nicholasbrehmer