I’m not a Lovecraft guy. It’s not because of the man. It’s not because of his writing. It’s not because of his obsessive and sometimes annoying fanbase. I’m just not a fan. I personally think his writing works better as just that… his writing. I’ve read Lovecraft inspired comics before and they just don’t do anything for me… much like his writing. Guy Thomas’ The Statement of Randolph Carter is his adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s The Statement of Randolph Carter. There’s a twist of modernism to it due to the visuals. Other than that it’s pretty straightforward. Even if you haven’t read Lovecraft’s version, you can basically figure out what’s going to happen.

The artwork is not very good. The proportions are very loose. I don’t know if it was intentional to have one character’s head be almost three times the size as the other character’s head, but it just looks like a proportional nightmare and not a stylistic choice. Panels are all very simple. They lack a lot of detail and really they lack any interest. There’s not a single panel that is worth looking at, it’s a visual for visual sake and not for an artistic or story sake. They’re just boring and that’s unfortunate when you can tell it’s trying to build suspense and be terrifying. It was neither.

The lettering is all handwritten and difficult to read. Really difficult to read. Especially when the panel uses a grey background and the letters switch to black with a white stoke around it. I did my best to read it, but it was just too difficult and really at that point I wasn’t enjoying the comic; I finished it more as a chore for this review.

I wouldn’t recommend this comic. It doesn’t work. It doesn’t capture anything that Lovecraft was attempting to capture in his original. I won’t argue the quality of the original since that’s not the point of this review. Overall, it’s a comic without a point and without a unique voice to make it stand out. It’s time that would have been better served creating something original, rather than something that comes off rushed.

Score: 1/5

Creator: Guy Thomas Publisher: This City Press Price” $3.00 Website