Dark Horse Previews Picks: December 2024
Above-the-Board Recommendation:
Beasts of Burden Omnibus
If there’s one thing that bugs me about the solicitation for this omnibus collection of this series, it would be the fact how the four volumes collected here are described as “all four” and not “the first four.” Which implies that we won’t be getting any more of Evan Dorkin and Jill Thompson’s (and later with Sarah Dyer co-writing and Benjamin Dewey illustrating) delightful supernatural series about a group of dogs, and one cat, who protect the residents of Burden Hill from things that go bump in the night. That’s a damn shame as the series is every bit as good as you’d expect something that won nine Eisner Awards during its active life to be, deftly mixing humor, horror, adventure together with memorable characters in an effortless manner. It’s even more impressive when you consider that this series won me, an avowed cat person, with its mix of rascally pups.
Oh yeah, and there was even a crossover with Hellboy which worked surprisingly well. If you needed any more incentive to pick this up.
Shadow of the Golden Crane #1: This is the latest flashback “B.P.R.D.” story and either creator Mike Mignola isn’t co-writing these any more, or the person who wrote up the solicitations got lazy. This time we have regular steward of the era, Chris Roberson, having Agent Sue Xiang investigate the titular organization and the link it has to her past. I’m sure it’ll be fine, but the real draw here will be seeing what occasional Mignolaverse visitor Michael Avon Oeming will do when he’s turned loose on this setting.
Those Not Afraid #1: Kyle Starks is back with another gruesomely premised miniseries. This time it’s about two serial killers who find out they’re both close to breaking the state record for kills by a single murderer. Which is why they decide to make a game of it, and woe be to anyone who crosses their path. While this miniseries, which features art from Patrick Piazzalunga, isn’t pitched as a dark comedy, I can’t help but imagine it being anything but. I mean, you could play something like this straight, but that sounds miserable…
Ripperland #1: It’s the year 2188 and Brexit turned out to be a huge mistake as England now makes most of its money operating a gigantic Victorian-themed amusement park in exchange for American money and protection. Everyone has been prepared to keep enduring this status quo, until the son of an American mogul is killed in the middle of the park. Is it the work of a brilliant maniac? Superior American technology at work? The English Underground resistance? Or, as the title implies and the solicitation text tells us, it could be the second coming of Jack the Ripper. Steve Orlando (a Yank) and John Harris Dunning (a Brit) are here to find out along with artist Alessandro Oliveri in a series with a premise that becomes more interesting the more I think about it.
Behemoth: We’ve seen stories about ordinary people struggling through giant monster attacks in the city before, but not quite like this. Co-writers Grant Sputore and Ryan Engle, and artist Jay Martin are going to show us what happens to a bunch of people on the bus… who are all eaten at once by a giant monster. Digestive juices would seem like the biggest threat here, except that the solicitation text tells us that there’s something worse luring within the bowels of this beast. Probably not worse than what you’re imagining, but still pretty bad. I like clever twists on familiar setups, so I’ll have to keep an eye out for this one.
Dr. Werthless: The Man Who Studied Murder (and Nearly Killed the Comics Industry) HC: This is Harold Schechter and Eric Powell’s follow-up to their true-crime examination of Ed Gein. They’ve taken on a slightly less reprehensible individual this time. Well, maybe that’s being a little extreme here as, despite the title and Dr. Frederick Wertham’s well-deserved reputation within the comics industry, the creators appear inclined to give the man some credit. Such as for opening a clinic for the disadvantaged in Harlem that helped play a role in the desegregation of schools in the U.S. That said, he’ll live on in infamy for the panic he helped create against comic books with his book “Seduction of the Innocent” and how it stymied the maturation of the industry in ways that we’re still feeling today. This is all to say that I think Schechter and Powell have picked a great subject to give the same kind of deep dive they gave to one Mr. Eddie Gein.
Gunsmith Cats Omnibus vol. 1: Apparently these omnibi are going for stupid prices on Ebay these days. So it’s good to see Dark Horse giving them a reprint so that whoever wants a copy can get one at a reasonable price. Which everyone should! What it lacks in depth, the series makes up for in style with its action-driven take on the life of two bounty-hunting gunsmiths in Chicago. Just, be sure you stop reading after the fourth omnibus. Mangaka Kenichi Sonoda returned with a follow-up series several years later called “Burst” which showed he had nothing left in the tank, and proceeded to wipe out a lot of my goodwill towards him by the end of it.
Helen of Wyndhorn HC: Tom King and Bilquis Evely’s miniseries about the daughter of a pulp writer who returns to his family house upon his death and finds out that his literary creations were more real than she imagined gets a collected edition. I’ve got no problem picking up the latest miniseries from a creative team that has done good work separately, and flawed-but-still-enjoyable-work together. At least, I didn’t until I saw that this was going to be solicited first as a hardcover. Which means that this six-issue, 176-page collection will set you back $30 when it comes out. Maybe I’ll pick it up when it comes out and retailing for 40% off cover price, or maybe I’ll wait for a digital sale at Dark Horse.