This week we’re diving into my old friend horror comics, the genre that I claim to never want to read, and yet always seem to find myself reviewing. Perhaps the universe is sending me a message?
Last week I reviewed the excellent first issue of Cullen Bunn’s Book of Shadows. This week we’re looking at another Bunn title, A Legacy of Violence, the first ever ongoing series from Mad Cave Studios, illustrated by one of my current favorite artists, Andrea Mutti.
It’s a scary book with some heavy hitters, so lets stop beating around the bush and get to it!
Here’s the blurb:
| When Dr. Nicholas Shaw joins a humanitarian medical outfit in Honduras, he hopes to recover from a recent traumatic event and actually help those in need. But something sinister has followed Dr. Shaw, something that wants to put his medical skills to ghastly tests, something connected to the young doctor’s past… and to untold horrors that occurred long before he was born. Publication Date: October 5, 2022 |
There’s a lot to unpack with this A Legacy of Violence, and not many answers to go along with it, but so far issue one has me hooked. Right of the bat Bunn is once again showing why he is one of the best horror writers in the game.
Our story opens on a man, beaten, bleeding, and strapped to an examination table in a dark room. He’s desperate, pleading for an end to his suffering, when a mysterious figure dressed all in black and wearing a skull mask steps out of the dark, promising him only more pain and abuse.
Cut to a local hospital, where our protagonist, Dr. Shaw, learns about a new mystery patient that they believe has injured himself. It’s the man from the beginning, driven mad by what he endured, but desperate to deliver a message to Dr Shaw, a message that sends him running from the country, but unable to ever get away.
From page one A Legacy of Violence had me hooked. Cullen Bunn knows how to ratchet up the tension and the horror, and I found myself eager for more. This first issue has a lot of twists and turns, as well as a lot of puzzle pieces we’ll be trying to figure out as we go, and I can’t wait to see where this series is headed.
The icing on the cake, though, is the fantastic art by Mutti. Mutti came to my attention with his work on Maniac of New York, a fan favourite horror comic that recently wrapped its second mini series. If you loved that series as much as I did you are going to love A Legacy of Violence too. Mutti has a unique style perfectly suited for the horror genre, and when I saw his name on this book I knew were were in for something special.
Mad Cave Studios has the makings of a real hit on their hands here. If you love horror comics, you’ll definitely want to check A Legacy of Violence out for yourself.
Sorry for the shorter review this week, but I am currently getting my kit together for next week. I’ll be attending C2E2 and sharing updates from the con each day. Make sure you come back to check out my reports from the show, and if you’re out there yourself make sure to say hi!
Until next week, Stay Safe.