Written by Tim Seeley
Illustrated by Daniel LeisterHACK/SLASH returns in all-new ongoing series by the creative team behind the hit HACK/SLASH: MY FIRST MANIAC mini! Cassie Hack, killer of killers, and her partner Vlad hunt a slasher who haunts a small town’s Make Out Point.
Meanwhile, Cat Curio, Former Teen Detective, searches for the man who put her in a coma and the murderous cult that employed him. What she finds will set up the biggest HACK/SLASH story yet. A great jumping on point for new readers!
I really dug Tim Seeley’s Ant-Man & Wasp mini-series, I’d heard really good things about Hack/Slash, and I’m finding it increasingly difficult to pass up on Image #1’s. All in all, that combined to make this book a must buy.
Did I regret the purchase? Find out after the jump.
It’s weird – even though I’ve been hearing of Hack/Slash very positively for the past few years, for some reason I never pursued the book. I always kind of held myself at a distance from the book and I never really knew why.
But with a brand new ongoing hitting the shelves, it was high time I got in on this book and I’m very glad I did. Even though things were a little difficult to put together at first (big thanks to Tim Seeley and the team though for putting together the introduction of characters on the first two pages), it was still a hugely enjoyable book that served as a superb jumping on point for new readers.
As a new reader, two things really jumped out at me: the humor and the dense but well-defined ensemble cast. After the introduction, Seeley took time to introduce each character in memorable fashion. Having those opening two pages to flip back to helped a lot, but any scene in which a killer-hunting monster having man talk with a dog-like demon (a prescient one at that) and a normal dude is going to be a favorite scene for yours truly.
Each character though was given moments to really step up and connect with readers, and I find myself immediately taken with each character.
While I’m a bit flimsy on the overarching plot so far (one addition that would have been nice is another intro page stating “here’s the story so far”), I figured it out quick enough to really, really enjoy the story. For fans of monster flicks and humorous ones at that (think “Slither”), Tim Seeley is crafting your wet dream right here in this book. This book features monster hunting, a tangled conspiracy and enough ridiculous situations to entertain even the most jaded of readers.
Daniel Leister’s art, while at first jarring because it’s so reminiscent of old Image house style, is actually ridiculously good. His style doesn’t define him, and whether he’s drawing demonic squirrels, attractive women or a good ol’ acid based hot tubbing, this guy can tell a mean story and deliver some gorgeous pictures. While not an artist I was previously familiar with, his work is perfect for this title.
A brief shout-out for the brief back-up “Hoax Hunters.” While this was such a fast story that it was difficult to really connect with anything, I like the set-up from Steve Seeley and Michael Moreci and am definitely excited to see where it goes (although three pages is such a tease!). I’ve previously raved about artist JM Ringuet for his work on the Zuda entry “Snipe Hunting,” and I continue to really enjoy his work here.
I’m really excited to see where Hack/Slash goes from here, and with the powerhouse combo of Seeley and Leister, I feel like this book is in damn good hands. With just one issue under my belt, I not only feel connected to it in a really tangible way, but I also want to go back and read previous trades. That’s a hell of a thing, and says a lot about these creators’ talents.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy
