By Dustin Cabeal
I’ve written about this many times in reviews, but there was one point in my review life that I feared first issues more than second issues. The first issue is the journey into the unknown. You can’t possibly know if you’ll like the book at all until you crack up the pages for the first time. This, of course, leads to finding a lot of comics that aren’t in your wheelhouse. A few years back though it was as if every creator figured out the formula for a successful first issue. It could have been something amazing, but instead what happened was mediocre to poor second issues that felt more like first issues. It was like someone pulled some zero issue bullshit and so one after the other, I read horrible second issues. Suddenly, first issues didn’t even phase me. I expected them to be good to great, but to this day I still live in fear of the second issue because they still rear their ugly heads and send me away from a series faster than you can count the number of first issues released by Marvel in the past year.
Having loved the first issue of Blackwood, I have both been waiting and fearing the day the second issue would arrive in my inbox. Then I got busy and kind of forgot about it and barely read it in time for the release, but that’s just a peek behind the curtain for anyone that cares. I should have remembered that this is a series by Evan Dorkin and he’s never Sophomore slumped and that continues with Blackwood.
At the end of the last issue, the surely dead Dean dragged one of the four newbies down a murder well with him. The three remaining students are confused, frightened and without any resources to save their roomie, when Campus security busts in with guns drawn. Eventually, the water spits Stephen out and puts some occult symbols on the ground. Very little compassion is shown for him outside of his new friends. One dude wants to know what happened to the Dean, while another Professor wants them not to touch the glyphs on the ground. After that, the kids are given a crash course about the school and told that they were chosen for scholarships because they showed potential in the occult. Unfortunately, the Dean isn’t done yet as Monster Dean comes back with some parting words that bind all of the student’s fates.
The refreshing thing about this title is that all the characters talk like normal people. The Professor briefing the kids is so pissed that he has to be the Dean and do the pretend side of the school that he can’t focus on anything else. It’s a very human action to think of yourself first, he’s not like, “Well, we’re in this together and here’s some inspiring shit.” No, instead he looks like he wants to fall into a bottle and wake up in a week. Additionally, not all the students are cool with this being occult school. Possibly the only normal girl is the most excited, while everyone else is finding it all a bit much to chew.
What’s also refreshing is that even though there are great comedic moments, the story is still scary as shit. The school feels dangerous. The people that work and live there don’t get off on the occult it’s more like they’re stuck helping keep it at bay. The two type of mindsets presented are the people that are so far gone that it’s all fun and games, and the others that are afraid something is going to kill them at any moment. This balance of humor and danger makes the story feel grounded in reality. I can’t say, “that’s exactly what I would do” or anything like that, but I can relate to how a particular character is handling themselves in the situation. Dorkin’s writing is just masterful on this issue as his pacing and structure hold your attention the entire way through. There’s never a lull in the story or something that feels like filler as the story waits to get to the good part. Everything comes across as important to the plot. All the little details in the conversations that don’t make sense given our limited knowledge of the school and students. It puts the reader firmly into the position of the four kids making for a great read.
Veronica and Andy Fish are killing it on the artwork. With Andy doing layouts and lettering, it feels like a back and forth between them, and it works. There are so many smart panel selections throughout the issue; particularly, at the beginning with the water, as it flows all over the page. The art makes it feel as if it’s moving and at the same time it guides your eye as you navigate the story. The coloring makes the story pop. The blues that Veronica chose for the nighttime gives it a distinct look. Everything is easy to see, but you still get an eerie dark vibe. The scene with the students in front of the stain glass window was one of the best of the entire issue, and it’s so very simple. That and the cliffhanger… fucking hell, that shit is creepy as fuck and yet beautiful in its grossness.
The only disappointing thing about this issue is that it means the story is half over, which is a damn shame. Not that I expected Dorkin to write an ongoing, I don’t know if that’s his particular style and Fish is in high demand for reasons that you’ll see in this issue. But, part of me hoped that this would be a longer narrative because it’s already screaming to be one. I’m sure it could be revisited after the initial mini like a lot of Dark Horse titles, but this could have been a hell of a replacement for Harrow County. It’s been pretty rare that a second issue has surpassed the first issue, but that’s exactly what Blackwood #2 has done, so be sure to check it out if you enjoyed the first issue.
Score: 5/5
Blackwood #2
Dark Horse Comics