Comics
[Comic Book Review] “POP” #4 Is Profound.
“POP” #4 concludes Curt Pires’ and Jason Copland’s critical examination of pop culture. The series has had its narrative ups and downs, and has invoked more than it has actually said. But in the end, as a whole, these guys have created a really solid story that is as visually spectacular as it is smart. “POP” isn’t exactly what I thought it was going to be, but for such a high-concept mini series dealing with the kinds of themes its dealing with, I’m really impressed. We need more stories like “POP”.
WRITTEN BY: Curt Pires
ART BY: Jason Copland
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: November 26, 2014
Reviewed By Eric Switzer
As a reviewer, I try to ascertain the intention of the creators before giving a qualitative assessment of their work. I want to judge things for what they are, or what they are trying to be, rather than weigh them against the success of other creators or my own expectations of what something ought to be. The “success” of a book critically lives and dies on one factor: did it accomplish what the creators set out to accomplish? Did the themes, style, plot, characters, and everything else draw a straight line back to mission statement of the book. “POP” has been one of the more difficult series for me to critique for reasons that I will get in to. The answer to the question, did “POP” do what Pires and Copland set out to do, is emphatically yes. The book is a successful piece of art, and one that I enjoyed thoroughly from beginning to end.
When a new series begins there are an infinite number of possible directions the book could take narratively and thematically. After reading “POP” #1 and knowing a little bit about Curt and Jason, I expected “POP” to continue examining these themes, addressing cultural phenomenons, and ideally to hold a mirror up to the consumer. A tall order for a 4-issue miniseries to be sure, and one that ended up being unrealistic. Instead, Pires chose to focus on character and story over themes and social critique. My “POP” would have been a different book, but as I said before, objective criticism is about judging art for what it is and not what you want it to be. This has been difficult as I’ve examined “POP”.
That isn’t to say the themes are present, even pervasive at times. It is clear that Pires and Copland are inviting us to reflect, but “POP” never really traverses beyond that initial question. Instead the focus is on our fleeing protagonists, their would-be captors, and the men in charge that make it all happen. It isn’t an entirely new kind of story, but it is in a sense that the themes sort of serve as a backdrop for the story.
“POP” is a book that encourages you to read deeper. It almost appears to alternate from straight forward plotting to rich, thematic storytelling, and I really want to believe the message is there, deep within the page. A lot of my theorizing revolves around the deus ex figure that saves the day and what he represents. Perhaps it is like the big boss says on the last page, “There are no answers”.
Whether “POP” accomplishes everything it was capable of, or meets my own personal expectations is another issue, and one that is sort of irrelevant outside of this review. But if nothing else I say resonates with you please pay attention to this: go buy “POP”, read “POP”, talk about “POP”, encourage art like “POP”, be part of this conversation. I think this kind of media is really important. “POP” may not be this generation’s “Fight Club”, but it inserts itself into a pretty profound issue. It deserves your attention.
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Eric Switzer is an aspiring filmmaker and screenplay writer living in Los Angeles. His work tends to focus on the lighter side of entropy, dystopic futures, and man’s innate struggle with his own mortality. He can be found on twitter @epicswitzer or reached via email at ericswitzerfilm@gmail.com.
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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