Written by: Robert Kirkman
Illustrated by: Greg CapulloBefore he died, Doctor Shillinger was working toward achieving the reanimation of dead tissue. Along the way he stumbled across something much more deadly. Now, what he discovered has been perfected – and HAUNT must face his greatest threat yet!
I won’t lie; I had originally given up on this book. When I first heard of it, it seemed like a slam dunk. I mean, I’ve loved nearly every single piece of independent work Robert Kirkman has touched, plus Mr. Spawn himself Todd McFarlane and original series after Ryan Ottley piqued my interest like crazy, but something just did not click with me during those first few issues and I dropped it once Ottley left the book with issue 5. A few months later, New York Comic-Con came and went and my interest in Kirkman’s work was higher than it was ever been. High enough that I could not let an ongoing series by him, even one that rubbed me the wrong way, slip through my fingers. So, thanks to friends-of-Multiversity New England comics, I got myself caught up and read issues 6-10 in one sitting. In short: I am so glad I came back, because this book managed to rise above the slightly slow pacing of the first few issues to become a great, super violent, supernatural spy thriller and this issue in particular continued the great precedent set by the arc so far.
The issue opens mid-fight between Haunt and his government agency co-works and Hurg’s new super soldiers. This series has spared no expense in its portrayal of brutal violence and this scene was no exception as our heroes get thoroughly trounced by these brutish new abominations Hurg’s men created using the stolen notes of Dr. Shillinger. From there, the issue moves rather quickly toward its end with a few fast paced scenes. First, Agency Director Beth lies in a coma as Agency Doctor’s struggle to save her life following the gunshot would be obtained during the fight, then Daniel gets a surprise visit from Charity the prostitute while Hurg demos the Shillinger drones for some very stereotypically Arab looking buyers. After this we’re given a series of cliff hangers to tie up the issue as number one Daniel fan Sam manages to track down Hurg and his secret warehouse hideout. The issue ends not only with Haunt and very well armed battalion of Agency troops approaching Hurg’s lair, but with Beth’s life still hanging in the balance and Mirage finally introducing herself to Kurt’s late wife Amanda. Next issue, the final issue of the arc, now has a LOT of pick up on. However, given the decent pacing the last few issues have had, I fully expect things to wrapped up nicely.
On the art end, Greg Capullo continues to shine with the impressively dynamic and utterly brutal style that made him an A-Grade player back on Spawn. His fluid style lends itself well to a character that almost flutters and glides through a room impaling people with its ectoplasmic claws, further proving that while Ottley is greatly missed on this book, the proper replacement was definitely chosen. However, the art itself would not be quite as effective without the depth and perspective provided by McFarlane and Jonathan Glapion’s inks. The definition they provide the book helps to create the downplayed, darkly-toned horror atmosphere that really gives the book its punch. While I believe he is no longer co-writing the book with Kirkman, it’s certainly great that ol’ Todd stuck around in some capacity.
For a book that essentially began with a historic industry loudmouth (Kirkman) daring another historic industry loudmouth (McFarlane) to repeat the magic created by the latter with Spawn, this book has really grown into something with its own unique look and feel and a story that gets more compelling, brutal and downright fun with every issue. As long as it continues to operate at this high a level, I’ll keep picking it up.
Final Verdict: 8.5 — Buy
