Writer: Justin JordanÂ
Illustrator: Chris ShehanÂ
Colors: Alessandro Santoro
Letters: Micah MyersÂ
Cover: Chris ShehanÂ
Cover B: Matthew RobertsÂ
Cover C: Kelsey RamsayÂ
Published by: Oni Press
Mine is a Long, Lonesome Grave is a murder mystery where dark folk magic seeps into everything in Briar Falls, WV, and people use curses and murder to get even with one another.
Summary:
The comic opens with a distressing scene of our main character, Harley Creed, about to do something very, very bad.Â
Then we cut to a scene from earlier in the day and learn that Creed has just been released from a 20-year prison sentence. He leaves the prison and walks home. A mysterious vehicle tails him on his way.
He reminisces about his wife and daughter while he digs up a strange box in his backyard. The box has a hex on it that can only be opened with his blood. Inside is filled with cash that he intends to give his daughter and then disappear from Briar Falls altogether.Â
On his way to find his daughter, Creed never manages to lose that vehicle tailing him, and he has an uncomfortable encounter with some locals who tell him he’s not wanted in this area.
We learn that Creed wants to keep his daughter away from his deceased wife’s family, the Weavers, but we don’t know why just yet. Harley’s daughter believes that he murdered her mother and wants nothing to do with him, but she takes the money and leaves town.
Before he can leave town, Creed finds himself placed under a vengeance curse by one of the Weavers. He knows that he only has seven days to kill the person who placed it on him or die himself, and now he’s going on a violent streak to keep his life.Â
Thoughts:
This issue opens up with a scene of Harley Creed saying that the eyes are the windows to the soul, which foreshadows the gruesome scene on the last page. The story opens and closes on this scene. For as dark as this supernatural tale seems to be, I appreciate that it doesn’t rely on gore. Artist Chris Shehan conveys a strong tone of sadness and despair that comes across in Harley Creed’s character. Creed is unsettling and dark, with a peculiar and clever way of murdering people, but that doesn’t make him entirely unlikeable. He seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.Â
Some of the strongest elements of Mine is a Long, Lonesome Grave are the pacing and the strong scene-to-scene storytelling. The panel-to-panel storytelling is clear from page to page; each scene is distinct and propels the story forward, and the colors follow a muted palette.Â
Writer Justin Jordan and artist Chris Shehan interplay well and keep the pacing steady in this slow-burn horror. I’m left wondering about the strange things that happen in Briar Falls. What happened to Harley’s wife? And who cursed him? How many people will he murder? And will he make it?    Â
Overall: 7.5/10
K.L.Murphy has BA in English, writes and reviews comics, and habitually pets cats. Comics are all unique and each one represents an enormous amount of thought and effort. Murphy reviews comics based on a variety of factors, but focuses on the artwork, storytelling, and pacing.
