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“The Marked Halloween Special” #1

By | October 21st, 2022
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

“The Marked” is not a series for everyone, but I think it is super rad! It helps that I’m such a mark for this kind of urban fantasy, which falls somewhere between Charmed and The Crow. It’s silly in some places, and self serious in others. But this isn’t just another issue of “The Marked;” this is a Halloween special. And who doesn’t love a Halloween special? Light, goth, and breezy to read, “The Marked Halloween Special” #1 is a great place to dip your toe into the series’ inky waters.

Cover by Brian Haberlin

Written by David Hine and Brian Haberlin
Illustrated by Brian Haberlin
Colored by Geirrod Van Dyke
Lettered by Francis Takenaga

YOUR FAVORITE TATTOOED WITCHES RETURN FOR A VERY SPECIAL HALLOWEEN ONE-SHOT!

The Marked are faced with a terrifying once-in-a-century threat. It’s Halloween, and the town of Holy Mountain Texas has been invaded by a horde of Trickster Demons whose bloody version of trick-or-treat leaves a trail of the maimed and the dead. The Marked are tasked with protecting the locals, even though most of them happen to be rabid right-wing bigots. When Bad goes Evil, the Good go Ugly!!!

At its core, “The Marked” is a series about witches. The titular coven have secret knowledge of ancient glyphs, which they draw from tattoos on their own body. As such, “The Marked” is also a series about the kinds of people who would get tattoos. Which is to say: counter-cultural, with goth trappings. So we’ve got a manic waif girl partnered with a pale gentle giant. There’s also a whiteboy musician who dresses a lot like Blade. And a meek nerd who hides her ink under a lavender sweater. This being a one-shot, it wastes no time in introducing the main ensemble and giving them each a moment to show the reader what they are about. They are quickly dispatched to battle some demons and an ancient recurring curse.

The reason I keep coming back to “The Marked” is the art. It’s illustrated by Brian Haberlin and colored by Geirrod Van Dyke. Brian Haberlin is an OG Image comics guy, most famous as the co-creator of Witchblade. His earliest work was drawn with pencils (in a very 90s Image style) but he became most famous as an experimenter with early digital colors in comics. By the time we get to “The Marked,” Haberlin is still trying to push the envelope with what you can do with digital art.

The tattoos in this book are a perfect example. Each of them is incredibly intricate. One panel of four characters talking can turn into four panels of work when you also have to draw everyone’s tattoos. With digital though, you can copy and paste and manipulate and combine images. Not only that, you can render them in 3D and then rotate the images to be seen from different angles. What you end up with is an unusually busy comic book which could be a disaster, but Haberlin is extremely intentional with how he approaches each panel.

Does this leave you with a good story? Well, yeah. It’s very of a genre, and it’s not that interested in clever subversion. Writer David Hine (who also worked with Haberlin on “Spawn”) knows what he’s doing. This isn’t an epic blockbuster, it’s a holiday special, charming but disposable. To some people, the exxxtreme 90s are best left in the past. And I’m sure other people (a lot of people) are put off by the digital art, which sometimes wanders into the uncanny valley. But to an aging Millennial goth, it’s catnip.
If I am being honest, the Image 90s style had a lot of influence on me. Witchblade wasn’t just a comic, it was a TV show and an anime, the kind you had to buy from a dude on the subway platform so your parents don’t see you make the purchase. It’s very interesting to see how this aesthetic has grown. “The Marked” tries to dial back the male gaze, and seems aware of the sexism in this genre, even while it’s completely in love with that exploitation look. How successful the comic is pretty subjective, but I do think this Halloween special is perfect representation for the larger series.

If that sounds like fun to you but maybe you were put off by the art, maybe check it out! Try to look at the weird digital art, really look at it, as something experimental. When judged against other contemporary comics, it’s not going to be voted the most beautiful. But the complexity of the panels, and the way realistic is juxtaposed against abstraction, goes to places you couldn’t get to in a traditionally drawn comic. It’s trying to be different, and it hits more than it misses. This is a fun goth midnight special, and who knows? It could also be the future of comic art.

Final Verdict: 7.5 – Spooky, goth, and breezy; a seasonal treat.


Jaina Hill

Jaina is from New York. She currently lives in Ohio. Ask her, and she'll swear she's one of those people who loves both Star Wars and Star Trek equally. Say hi to her on twitter @Rambling_Moose!

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