Limbo #1 |
The great thing about being a comic book fan is occasionally you have a series come out of nowhere and just knock it out of the park. You have heard me over the last month praise series like The Goddamned, Black Magick, and Monstress. Each had a great premiere issue to series that have a lot of promise and potential. However, for me personally, those were all highly anticipated comics that I had been looking forward to. Not to sell Dan Watters and Caspar Wijngaard short but Limbo is a series that flew under the radar for me and was not even a pull list consideration until early this week. The solicit text was very promising, but I am always hesitant to pick up single issues of a limited series. The premise was there, but I was leaning towards trade waiting this particular series.
Following high praise from the gang over at the Major Spoilers website, I decided that this series would be worth checking out in single issues. Boy am I glad I made an extra trip to the local comic book store, because this issue was fantastic.
A goat eating television, a suited man wearing a luchador mask, a damsel in distress, a dancing voodoo witch doctor/receptionist, Dia De Los Muertos, ghosts summoned through cassettes, fishmen, an amnesiac main protagonist, a damn fine cup of coffee lizard on a stick, and a very important chicken. This issue has it all! Readers are introduced to Mr. Clay, an amnesiac private investigator, who can’t remember anything beyond the last 9 months, and a man with a lot of questions. Limbo was described as, “a NEW surreal neon-noir series crossing 50s pulp with an 80s VHS visual aesthetic drawing from the likes of Carpenter, Cronenbrg, and Lynch.” The description could not be more fitting for this series. If asked, I would describe this as Lynch does a noir private investigator story with strong 80s overtones.
After an altercation with the fishmen, described as being something uglier than if a redneck seduced a trout, Mr. Clay finds our femme fatale, Bridgette, waiting to become Mr. Clay’s P.I. client. Mr. Clay is hired after Bridgette declares she feels unsafe after witnessing one of the many surreal events of this first issue involving The Thumb, drug lord of Dedande City. Much like Mr. Clay thought fingering The Thumb would be an open and shut case, if you think this is your standard detective noir story, you will be mistaken. There are a lot of different elements presented in this introductory issue and I’m hoping that Watters is able to build on each of them because I found each very intriguing.
Watters and Wijngaard do a superb job of crafting the noir, private eye mood of the series. The dialogue is strong, the story is captivating, and the atmosphere and world building is done fantastically. Wijngaard really shines on art duties this issue. The use of color is unique and very satisfying. The art perfectly encapsulates the noir atmosphere of the book. Wijngaard gives our main characters their own color tones which is really unique and something I found to be a nice touch. I spent a lot of time admiring each and every panel, appreciating the color tones and every background detail.
Verdict: 4.5 out of 5 long boxes. This was a great read. Even without the surprising twist and mysterious chicken presented in the last few panels, I was hooked on this series. Make room in those long boxes and pick this series up. Based on the first issue this series is well worth the monthly read. Seriously, pick it up!
Following high praise from the gang over at the Major Spoilers website, I decided that this series would be worth checking out in single issues. Boy am I glad I made an extra trip to the local comic book store, because this issue was fantastic.
A goat eating television, a suited man wearing a luchador mask, a damsel in distress, a dancing voodoo witch doctor/receptionist, Dia De Los Muertos, ghosts summoned through cassettes, fishmen, an amnesiac main protagonist, a damn fine cup of coffee lizard on a stick, and a very important chicken. This issue has it all! Readers are introduced to Mr. Clay, an amnesiac private investigator, who can’t remember anything beyond the last 9 months, and a man with a lot of questions. Limbo was described as, “a NEW surreal neon-noir series crossing 50s pulp with an 80s VHS visual aesthetic drawing from the likes of Carpenter, Cronenbrg, and Lynch.” The description could not be more fitting for this series. If asked, I would describe this as Lynch does a noir private investigator story with strong 80s overtones.
After an altercation with the fishmen, described as being something uglier than if a redneck seduced a trout, Mr. Clay finds our femme fatale, Bridgette, waiting to become Mr. Clay’s P.I. client. Mr. Clay is hired after Bridgette declares she feels unsafe after witnessing one of the many surreal events of this first issue involving The Thumb, drug lord of Dedande City. Much like Mr. Clay thought fingering The Thumb would be an open and shut case, if you think this is your standard detective noir story, you will be mistaken. There are a lot of different elements presented in this introductory issue and I’m hoping that Watters is able to build on each of them because I found each very intriguing.
Watters and Wijngaard do a superb job of crafting the noir, private eye mood of the series. The dialogue is strong, the story is captivating, and the atmosphere and world building is done fantastically. Wijngaard really shines on art duties this issue. The use of color is unique and very satisfying. The art perfectly encapsulates the noir atmosphere of the book. Wijngaard gives our main characters their own color tones which is really unique and something I found to be a nice touch. I spent a lot of time admiring each and every panel, appreciating the color tones and every background detail.
Verdict: 4.5 out of 5 long boxes. This was a great read. Even without the surprising twist and mysterious chicken presented in the last few panels, I was hooked on this series. Make room in those long boxes and pick this series up. Based on the first issue this series is well worth the monthly read. Seriously, pick it up!