Reviewed by Taylor Hoffman // @taylorcheckers
We’ve all been lied to, science is a complete farce that hides the truth of all the world’s problems – magic. “Mythic” #1 is a refreshing dip into the supernatural side of the indie scene. At only $1.99 for the first issue with two beautiful and strange covers choices, there’s absolutely nothing to lose giving this one a try. Image Comics seems like it’s giving its audience a book to digest that fulfills that craving for darker ‘edginess’ of the days of yore.
Story by: Phil Hester
Art By: John McCrea
Publisher: Image Comics
Price: $1.99
Release Date: May 13, 2015
Phil Hester has been in comics for quite a long time and it’s a nice surprise to see him create a new series. The supernatural horror here is engaging from the beginning pages full of grotesque boils protruding from a clearly disease ridden face that borderlines on zombie territory, but luckily it takes a turn for the demonic very quickly.
Our main character is Nate who is just a very normal dude who gets by selling generic phones and reads Stephen King’s Christine when no customers are around. This day, though, Nate’s world changes forever with a bad transaction that turns bloody in an unexpected turn of events, the aforementioned boil-man is just a charade for some creepy creatures. John McCrea impresses with his rendering of monstrous things from the get go by channeling some classic horror with disfigurements of backwards joints and awkward sword-like hands. These creatures look like a killer size-shifting mixture of every evil pokemon and the Wicked Witch’s flying monkeys. Monsters of bright teal and purple are a nice contrast to the dull, sickly greens and many hues of orange.
The action sequences are fast and focused as most of the fighting is one-on-one. Somehow, Nate is an excellent monster fighter and this skill is discovered by Patterson, the recruiting guy for a “Mythic Lore Services.” The plot so far is predictable and familiar to B.P.R.D –– just about everything looks very Mignola inspired –– and all those other secret services that keep the public away from the truth.
There’s a good dose of self-aware comedy in this issue, the characters know that they’re not taken seriously by others, but know that they are the only ones who can fix these particularly messy and unnatural problems. As the mysterious and hardcore prophet Cassandra explains, “science is a useful illusion for humanity, a balm for your bone-deep ignorance… an opiate for the masses,” which both fulfills both the Arrested Development and Karl Marx quote quotas.
This arc “Cloudbusting” has captured my attention and I anticipate what will happen next with huge lizard beasts attacking from a realm beyond our knowledge.