Writer: Shawn Aldridge
Artist: Scott Godlewski
The second issue of The Dark & Bloody lets you know from the opening panel that it is uncompromising and doesn’t pull any punches. This creative team is a force to be reckoned with, proving the first issue was no fluke.
Iris is one complicated fellow. It’s not enough the experience of war weighs heavily enough on him – now he has whatever the hell is going on to deal with. Shawn Aldridge does a fine job of putting us in his shoes and once again supplies some authentic dialogue, an ingredient that earned the previous installment top marks with us.
Scott Godlewski once again provides the artwork and, let me tell you, it’s perhaps the best stuff I’ve seen in a recent horror comic outside of what Archie has been publishing lately. If you have ever read a copy of Afterlife with Archie or Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, you know how much of a high compliment I mean that to be.
This issue is another slow burn, but that’s not a bad thing because Aldridge does a terrific job of developing his characters. When the terror finally does arrive, it hits you like an unexpected punch in the face. It seems like such a simple thing to pull off, but these guys know how to execute a turn-the-page reveal exceedingly well.
There is a brewing mystery here that is something to behold. I have no idea what it is, but I’m enjoying the ride. Rest assured the final panel will make you say, “What the hell?!”
