Writer: Evan Dorkin
Artist: Veronica Fish
Layouts: Andy Fish
Lettering: Andy Fish
Colors: Veronica Fish
Cover: Veronica Fish
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Spoilers
If anyone knows whether prints of the covers of this comic are going to be sold, please clue me in. They are amazing! The layout and colors of this issue’s standard cover is really striking and sets the mood of the comic right away. I’m going to have to track down the variant covers to see if they are just as appealing to me.
The story does move along at a faster pace in this second issue of Blackwood and there were some great college freshmen quips, albeit among a bunch of corny lines. There was some extraneous dialogue that I really could have done without. Yet, I also felt that many conversations were left hanging and not in the “we are going to cut off here so that readers will continue to turn the pages to find out what happens or what something means” kind of way.
The beginning of this issue threw us right in where the last one left off, which was a good hook. The creators definitely upped the weird factor this time around, and the addition of a two-headed chimp character was interesting, but then we didn’t get to see enough of it. I also really liked the ending, but not sure I was convinced by the vast majority of the story leading up to it. The character development suffered in this issue because a lot was introduced in the first book that wasn’t built upon or explained at all here. In fact, the character’s actions seemed quite choppy, especially Stephen’s reaction after returning from the well, and Dennis’ decision to leave the school. I also would like to mention Leslie’s sudden attraction to Dennis that was never hinted at previously, so it seems like an add-on to get us to empathize more with Dennis (not to mention that they’ve been there one day and night, so…that is not enough time to start any meaningful relationship with anyone, especially two people we haven’t even seen interacting up to this point).
Although the story is not advancing as I had hoped with this issue, there were still some aspects I enjoyed. It’s a fast read and some of the scenes are drawn and colored superbly, so for that, it’s a worthwhile purchase.
Overall: 6.5/10
Tee LaFrance Todd writes, edits, reads, explores, and creates whenever she can find the time. When she’s not engaged in some form of storytelling, you can find Tee traversing the world with her husband and her dog, making things, reading tarot cards, and generally striving to live a life beyond anything she can imagine.
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