REVIEW: Miskatonic #1

Writer: Mark Sable
Artist: Giorgio Pontrelli
Colors: Pippa Bowland
Letters: Thomas Mauer
Cover: Jeremy Haun and Nick Filardi
Editor: Christina Harrington
Publisher: AfterShock Comics

I keep saying “no new titles in my pulls”. I’ve come to realize that’s never going to happen for a few reasons. 

First of all with the amount of spin offs from the series I follow there are going to be new titles. Not picking those up will leave me in the dark when things come full circle.

Secondly I’m that expensive hybrid of fanboy and collector. I love being on the ground floor for a new title so I can tell everyone about how awesome the book is AFTER I have mine.

Third and most importantly, new titles open up different worlds and universes to us. That’s why I believe books are like the TARDIS. They can take you anywhere in time and space.

Miskatonic #1 takes us to New England, circa 1924. In the town of Innsmouth, Massachusetts a man is killed by a bomb delivered in the mail. The Bureau of Investigation’s Acting Director, J. Edgar Hoover, is convinced that the same people behind the Red Scare are connected to this.

He sends Agent Miranda Keller to Innsmouth to invistigate. With assistance from bureau liaison Tom Malone Agent Keller discovers things are in a much grander scale than anyone could have imagined.

What will Keller and Malone do next? Even if they survive this ordeal who would believe their story?

Artwork:

.75 Stars 

I saw a promotional photo of this cover months ago and the hint of a historical fiction book beckoned. 

The interior artwork was very effective in meshing with the story and moving it along in places. I would have liked more facial expressions on Tom and J. Edgar Hoover. 

Story:

.75 Stars 

I loved how this story came out of the gate ready to take the world by storm. It was Dick Tracy meets the The X-Files. Things slowed down a little bit when we were exploring Innsmouth. That was to be expected.

The “special romance” scene near the end of the issue disappointed me. If it doesn’t tie back into the story in a future issue it’s gratuitous.

Up to that point it was a cool story that I could let my kid read. That made it a hard pass for him.

Dialogue:

1 Star 

Overall the dialogue is very effective for giving the reader information while moving the story along. 

Some of the comments made by Tom and J. Edgar Hoover help give you a feel of the era.

Editing:

.75 Stars 

The lettering is incredible throughout this book. I really liked the use of a different font for the creatures.

The entire time I was reading this issue there was a nagging question: “What year is it?” I know it’s between 1920 and early 1933 because of women’s suffrage and prohibition.
Hoover became Director at the Bureau in 1924. 

A caption with a date would have been appreciated.

Mechanics:

.75 Stars 

Miskatonic #1 starts out very intense and pulls the reader in quickly. A touch more character development and smoother transitions between scenes will keep them locked in.

At one point I found myself turning a page back and forth trying to figure out what I had missed or if I’d accidentally turned two pages.

For being the the first issue in a new series I see a lot of potential. With a bit of fine tuning this can be one of the greats.

Thanks for reading!

Until next time gang!