2010’s miniseries “Mystery Society” was remarkable for a lot of things, from Steve Niles’ fun and inventive script to the smooth and lovely art from Fiona Staples. It’s about time this Gothic series about a myth-investigating duo and their madcap team revisited the shelves – but with a new artist and a scaled-down story, does this one-shot fit in with the original run?
Written by Steve Niles
Illustrated by Andrew RitchieThe Mystery Society returns!
Our outlandish heroes plumb the depths of the ocean to carry out an exchange with an eccentric collector who isn’t what he seems.
What horrors await Nick Mystery, Anastasia, Secret Skull and the rest of the team at the bottom of the sea?
At the end of the last series, the Mystery Society found themselves in possession of Edgar Allan Poe’s magical poetry-reciting skull – and now, the question is exactly what they’re going to do with it. In this issue, the plan is to give it to a mysterious “collector” in exchange for the (sentient) beings he’s been imprisoning – but of course, the transaction doesn’t go off as well as that. As the team negotiates his underground lair and discovers its creepy (and familiar) inhabitants, there’s danger aplenty in store for everybody.
Steve Niles excels at genuinely funny throwaway lines, and these are to be found all through the issue, complementing and accenting the horrors of the collector’s secret lair. The playful dynamic between the main couple, Nick and Anastasia Mystery, is still very much present, although there’s also a neat ensemble feel to this comic as everybody collaborates in getting out of their sticky situation. Meanwhile, there’s still a hint of bantering romance between Verne and Secret Skull, which adds another dimension of charm for those familiar with the characters. But the writing succeeds on a macro level too, with an excellent feel for pacing as the sense of dread mounts and mounts in the final pages, and those who didn’t read the first series should be able to appreciate the energetic antics going on here.
Once again, it’s worth mentioning that the original miniseries was illustrated by Fiona Staples, and those are some gorgeous shoes to fill. Andrew Ritchie’s style is so different from Staples’, though, that there really isn’t a basis for comparison. Where Staples typically opted for luscious and charming in her portrayals of the main characters, Ritchie keeps them thin and wan, using fragile, scratchy lines and heavy shadows to keep things good and eerie. In that respect there’s a neat EC horror feel to his work that suits the funhouse-macabre tone of Niles’ writing very well, although it is a little alienating in regards to characters who are supposed to be endearing, like the “atomic twins” Nina and Sally. That said, his monsters – and oh boy, are there ever monsters – are horrific and unnerving, as well as sympathetic and compelling when the moment requires it, and his storytelling is concise, getting the job done without a hitch.
The colours, meanwhile, have the effect of making the book look like a newsprint comic from the 60’s that has spent some time in a dank basement getting yellow and spotted, and it’s actually quite gorgeous. It underscores the camp factor of the proceedings, making use of a limited range of muted tones and really bringing home a sense of old-fashioned adventure.
Overall, this is a fun and fitting addition to the Mystery Society mythos, and required reading for any fan of the series – even if the art might alienate some readers. Otherwise, it’s a solid one-shot comic that should arouse some interest in the series as a whole while still being entertaining on its own. Now let’s just hope there’s more where this came from.
Final Verdict: 7.9 – Recommended browse
