Hack/Slash: The Series #1 Featured Reviews 

“Hack/Slash: The Series” #1

By | September 4th, 2018
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

New to the world of Tim Seeley’s “Hack/Slash?” With ‘Gross Anatomy,’ multi-faceted writing, fascinating artwork, and revealing colors provide ample space and desire to dive into the deconstructive horror-hunter series with its very first ongoing, and a great way to put one foot into the acclaimed series.

Cover by Tim Seeley
Written by Tim Seeley
Illustrated by Emily Stone
Colored by Courtney Via
Lettered by Brian J. Crowley

With a standalone introduction to the world first created as a collection of one-shot comics and a miniseries, “Hack/Slash: The Series” #1 provides a master class in how to bring together disparate elements of a series to provide a both literally and figuratively engrossing examination of both the core elements of a series and the internal and external struggles of a physically and psychologically scarred protagonist in a standalone issue.

Through the use of the horrifying Doctor Edmund Gross and his torturous “therapy,” Tim Seeley demonstrates a host of different elements for the story to come in the very first ongoing series for “Hack/Slash.” First and foremost is the depravity of the villains, with Gross torturing protagonist Cassandra “Cassie” Hack over the course of an impromptu psychoanalysis. Gross is a thoroughly disturbing villain, bringing together the creepiest parts of Doctor Hannibal Lecter and DC Comics’s Scarecrow with nothing but mundane tools and his nearly always soft-spoken words. Seeley makes sure that he does not overstay his welcome, but also makes sure to use the sheer mundane nature of Gross’s methods (minus his physical disfigurement) to give readers a good look at the discrepancy in power between Cassie and her foes, along with giving a look at one of the many methods by which she deals with that power difference in the process.

Secondly, using a villainous psychologist as the first foe of the ongoing gives another focus: Cassie’s intricate psychopathology. Gross himself puts it particularly well: “What kind of person seeks out killers and sadists, Ms. Hack? What kind of person follows a trail… of blood?” While Seeley’s characterization has her put on a strong face in the present day, the sheer fact that a psychopathic serial killer is able to even partly provide an accurate assessment of her psyche and possible real-life psychological diagnosis is particularly traumatizing, which comes up in her most vulnerable moments. The physical traumas are also disturbing in their own right, but by having Cassie overcome them without a word, Seeley allows vulnerabilities brought about by her horrific, traumatizing past to balance against her ability to shoulder through it all and come out, if not without her realistic scars, at least momentarily triumphant. Still, when balancing the terror of facing villains out of slasher movies against the emotional maturity of a teenaged girl, the result is, while beautifully put together, heartbreakingly human and, on some level, relatable in spite of her plethora of psychological issues.

In order to give a grasp of the life and mentality of Cassie Hack, Seeley utilizes Gross’s questions to prompt flashbacks. Only a page or two each, these scenes are used to examine key elements of Cassie’s psychological problems, ranging from the treatment by her peers at a young age, to the final moments of her mother in her first life, to the disappearance of her father, along with one bright spot in all of it: the beginning of her first truly lasting friendship with her partner, Vlad. All of these flashbacks make perfect sense in context, and each of them provide the most important elements of her story for readers to pay attention to going forward, acting as a perfect way to jump on to the story of the slasher slayer without needing exposure to any of the previous stories over the preceding three years.

While the characterizations of Cassie and Doctor Gross are sources of sheer horror, Seeley uses her sidekick Vlad to showcase the more humorous aspects of “Hack/Slash,” along with its positive heart in spite of everything else. With his limited vocabulary and social skills, the sheer seriousness of Vlad’s behavior is played for laughs, especially due to the earnestness with which he says everything, unaware of any mistakes he might make. While Cassie might represent the sheer darkness of the world in which she lives, Vlad seems to represent its brighter sides, the hope for a better tomorrow and for comfort when things seem darkest.

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While the writing itself was amazing, it is difficult to overstate the effect that Emily Stone has on the art for this series. Her highly realistic, almost photorealistic designs emphasize the humanity of even the most inhuman people, whether it be to demonstrate Cassie’s aforementioned strength and weakness, the emotional volatility of the Lunch Lady, or the way in which Gross’s visage dips directly down into the uncanny valley, so close to human that he appears to be as monstrous as he acts. In the case of the former, the looks of agony as she is cut with a small buzz saw are almost physically painful to the readers, while the sardonic smile she gives at times helps to demonstrate both strength and emotional distance. In the case of the latter, the flayed body, with realistic musculature and surprisingly expressive eyes for a lack of eyelids are presented in absolutely revolting detail. Furthermore, Stone’s hyperrealism allows for emphasis on darkness versus light, with the darkness-based scenes being much more realistically presented in contrast to the more roughly drawn lighter areas, as if to show that to Cassie and Vlad, the normal world in the light seems less “real” to them than the various profane elements in the shadows.

Stone uses perspective to phenomenal effect, both from a distance and up close. While the close-ups are well handled, the positioning of the figurative camera is essential. By moving away from the point of impact of the saw and focusing in on the agonized expression on Cassie’s face, the effect of the torture is all the more potent on readers, terrifying them and causing them to hate Gross all the more. At the same time, a wider perspective can have a very different effect, from a demonstration of how far a fall is for someone dropping to their death, to a wide view of a sobbing person, to the widening angle in the flashback regarding Cassie’s father. Each of these provides some form of intense emotional response, from catharsis to sympathy or overall sadness.

Working together with Stone’s use of light and shadow, Courtney Via provides a complementary color palette. The slasher slayer lifestyle, both in flashbacks and in the modern day, has a distinctly darker look to it, from the dark blood to the aforementioned deepened shadows to even the way that the light seems to be nearly absent from scenes involving such violence or the things that surround it, providing additional credence to the idea of how harmful and hellish Cassie’s chosen, bloody lifestyle is for her, including the psychological and physical scars she suffers from as a result. In contrast, the scenes around relatively normal people and before her choice to hunt are much lighter, with emphasis on the bright lights around that easily show how people are seen, devoid of the same mysterious nature that the light presents. Coupled with a scene of the dark-associated modern Cassie in a brightly lit bathroom, the entire feeling can be seen as one of isolation and an inability to fit in with the modern world anymore, with the contrast evoking pity if her actions in said scene did not.


//TAGS | evergreen

Gregory Ellner

Greg Ellner hails from New York City. He can be found on Twitter as @GregoryEllner or over on his Tumblr.

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