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Friday Recommendation: Rachel Rising

By | May 4th, 2012
Posted in Columns | % Comments

I was asked to step in for Friday Rec this week, as our regularly scheduled man was tied up for the column. The good news is, I had something that I’ve been meaning to talk about here. A book that is woefully under read and deserves a much bigger audience. That book, of course, is Terry Moore’s “Rachel Rising.”

It’s a horror mystery that finds lead character Rachel alive in a shallow grave, wondering what happened to her, why nearly everything about her indicates that she’s dead (yet she’s still walking and talking), and who did this to her. What she finds is a wicked web of surprises, mostly bad, and trouble for both her and the people closest to her. It gets better with each passing issue, with the most recent one being particularly great.

My attempt to convince you will be sharing five reasons why this is one of the best books on the market today. Those are below, and if I successfully convince you, may I guide you to the Amazon page for the book’s first trade paperback? It’s out-of-stock right now (because it is awesome) and only $11.55. Get onboard people!

1. It’s nominated for two freaking Eisners

In case you don’t know what they are, the Eisner Awards are like the Oscars for comics. They’re sort of a big deal. While they aren’t always perfect, they provide pretty good insight into what was good in comics on any given year. And in this year’s edition, they chose to highlight “Rachel Rising” with two big nominations: Best Continuing Series (aka ongoing) and Best Writer/Artist for Moore.

Sure, the win for either might be a longshot, but just a nomination? That’s pretty great, and speaks volumes of the quality of the book.

2. This is creator-owned at its most creator-owned

At Multiversity, we’re big supporters of creator-owned comics. Not because they are creator-owned, but because it seems to us that some of the best books out there are creator-owned. Now, not all creator-owned books are created equal, and Moore’s book? It’s seriously creator-owned. He releases it through his own imprint called Abstract Studio, just like he’s been doing for years. “Strangers in Paradise” and “Echo” preceded this title, and it’s incredible that he’s done such a phenomenal job for so long operating out of the great machine of comics.

Given that this book was a top 200 seller last month, it’s hard to argue that he isn’t hugely successful at this. But at the same time, this is a book that deserves a far larger audience.

3. It comes out like clockwork

For a book that is written, illustrated and published all by Moore, you’d be forgiving if it suffered from delays like many creator-owned books do. But “Rachel” operates on a pretty regular schedule, as the first issue dropped in August of last year and we’ve since had 7 issues drop. Assuming a regular monthly schedule, it would only be at issue #9 if it was hitting exactly monthly.

I’ll take that any day of the week, especially given the quality Moore maintains on this book.

4. Because Robert Kirkman says so

Even though its released by Moore’s own Abstract Studio, Robert Kirkman still put a preview for the first volume of “Rachel Rising” in an issue of Image’s “The Walking Dead” (issue number 95 if you missed it). Why? Because Kirkman recognizes the greatness of Moore’s book. As he wrote in that issue, “Terry is a personal hero of mine dating back to my self-publishing days.”

“I’ve always been a fan of his work and an admirer of everything he’s been able to accomplish independently.”

Come on people. Kirkman says you should so you should.

5. It’s Terry freaking Moore

“Strangers in Paradise” deservedly has a place in many comic fans hearts. It’s an incredible book with unforgettable characters. “Echo,” the title that followed up on “Strangers,” was a huge departure in genre as it left reality and told a superb sci-fi, apocalyptic story. Now “Rachel,” with its roots firmly entrenched in horror, is the next step.

Everywhere he goes, he succeeds because he knows that good storytelling, at its core, is all about the characters. Moore has an unfailing gift to create characters that feel real no matter the situation, yet are entertaining and enthralling at each and every turn. It also helps that his art is superb and he makes the characters look real as well. There are no Barbie or Ken dolls here. Everyone from the leads to the supporting cast looks like someone you could meet any day of the week.

It also helps that Moore creates some of the most dynamic female characters in all of comics.

Somehow, it feels like there is a huge portion of the comic reading population that isn’t aware of all of this. That hasn’t read these books. That’s a shame, because books like “Rachel Rising?” They should be the prototype for quality comic book storytelling. I rarely write Friday Recommendations, but I’m glad to have the opportunity so I can preach the gospel of Moore. Amen!


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David Harper

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