Something’s going a lot more than bump in the night.

I really enjoyed the first issue of Spring Heeled Jack that I checked out a ways back, but I was wholly shocked and surprised by what I felt to be a quantum leap forward in all areas in the second and third issues of Tony Deans’ horror romp.  This has become a story that has surpassed what I thought it could be, and it’s worth your time to check out the strong arc that’s continuing through these issues.

First, I want to take a moment for the artwork by Seth Kumpf.  He gives us a wonderful world to check out and handles the requisite gore in a understated, yet wholly gruesome, way.  It’s a difficult thing to describe, but it’s at once simple (i.e., no bits of bodily flotsam mucking about) without losing the grotesque nature of such horrific crimes.

Fleshing out what felt like a Holmes/Watson trope in the first issue, Deans layers a unique twist to the stereotype and gives a wonderful depth and intelligence to both of his law enforcement characters.  His demon in Jack is a wonderful, malevolent spirit and has the power to be truly frightening.  Each page brings us more intrigue and tension, and at no point are we given permission to look away.

This is a great Victorian horror story, and each issue gets better than the last.  Fans of English terror tales like Sweeney Todd and Jack the Ripper, as well as anyone up for a bit of supernatural spookery, will most certainly love what lies between these pages.

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