“Criminal Macabre: The Third Child” has easily been some of Steve Niles’ best writing in the entire series. It’s deeper, darker, relies more on emotion rather than wit (although this final issue very much went back to the wittier side of Cal, he was completely on it and wow…), and makes very heavy statements that are hard to just set down and walk away from. “The Third Child” has been Cal’s most poignant arc; his darkest four issues. As with most emotionally intense forms of entertainment, I’m sad to see it end but I’m happy to see it move on.

WRITTEN BY: Steve Niles

ART BY: Christopher Mitten

PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics

PRICE: $3.99

RELEASE: December 17, 2014

The world is fighting the world and Niles states that so poetically, “It isn’t a war if there are no sides…. This is an implosion on a massive scale. This is the world committing suicide.” And this is what Cal & Co. are up against. Since the last issue when he figured out that he was, indeed, the Third Child, he sets off to find Hemlock and the demon bubblegum babies to stop the madness. Meanwhile Hemlock is literally ripping his skin off his bones to prove to the demons that he is the Third Child. I love this turn of events. Hemlock has been so powerful and while Cal has been physically strong, he’s emotionally weak. This issue showed us a fantastic role reversal as Hemlock battles with his own inferiority and Cal steps on the scene with all the coolness of James Dean.

I had to laugh as Hemlock went so far to try and prove to the demon babies that he was the Third Child. The way he stood there, frazzled and a mess, emotions laid out on the table, willing to do anything as the babies just demanded things from him and mocked him…it reminded me of babysitting. It’s a terribly brilliant scene with lots of rightful payback that the fans and Cal deserve.

The interactions between Cal, the demons, and Hemlock show some of Niles’ sharper writing, it’s all clever insults, stoic remarks, and badass threats. It was a pleasure to read Cal in these panels. You think for a second that Hemlock gets the drop on Cal until those damn wings again! The way that Chris Mitten has illustrated the power of those wings is nothing short of marvelous. Once Hemlock meets his end (I won’t say how but I will say that Wheatley is the biggest badass in this issue, in fact, he reminds me of a very, very early Cal) it’s just Cal and the demon babies.

There are a couple of pages of some excitedly weird shit: a bit Mogwai after midnight-ish, a little Cthulhu-ish, kind of Godzilla-y? Basically terrifying. And although Cal’s transformation has been seen as a negative thing and he hates it, the second [SPOILER ALERT] his wings are torn off by the demon monster, you feel this heart-stopping moment of sadness. And there’s Cal, bloody and crumpled on the ground. It’s an interesting thing Niles has made us feel for Monster Cal. It’s truly a testament to the writing and the emotive illustrations.

There’s a lot more to this issue and it has the coolest ending but you’ll need to read it yourself. As I mentioned many times in this arc, Niles has dipped into a deeper pool of emotion to draw out some very difficult and raw scenes. This intimacy with Cal has been much appreciated. In Niles’ interview with Famous Monsters of Filmland, he said, “To me, Cal has always been a private detective at heart. So probably after this arc, I’m going to tell some more intimate stories with him on just one case.” Can’t fucking wait.