Blackwood #3
Writer: Evan Dorkin
Artist: Veronica Fish
Letterer: Andy Fish
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
A review by Stephanie Pouliotte
Can things get any weirder than a contagiously undead Dean, a two-headed lab experiment gone wild, and a homeless woman with a pet monstrous centipede? In Blackwood #3, we discover that the answer is a chilling ‘yes’, buzzing in your ear on the wings of a millions little nightmares.
Coming directly off the heels of the last pages of Blackwood #2, the first panel of this issue is shocking and wholly unexpected. Considering what’s happened thus far, I shouldn’t be all that surprised, but I thought this tale would follow some of the rules; turns out the rulebook’s been tossed down the haunted well. Things just get increasingly more unsettling as the issue progresses, boring a hole in your gut and leaving you with one unrelenting thought: this will not end well.
What I really liked about Dorkin’s writing in Blackwood #3 is that it doesn’t get in the way of the story. This issue is essentially a lot of set up when you think about it, but it’s done in a way that keeps the pacing tight. The Bug Mother pushes the plot forward, while allowing room to convey some much needed information on our group of occult outcasts and the mysteries surrounding Blackwood College.
Fish continues to deliver some truly amazing artwork. The back of each issue is a single silhouette of one of the students, the images within lining up beautifully with their facial features, particularly their eyes. I’ve loved each one, but Blackwood #3 features Reiko and it is beyond my favorite.
Verdict
Buy it! By the end of Blackwood #3 we only know one thing for sure: the halls of Blackwood will run blood red in the next issue, and they’ll most definitely need to find a good exterminator or, as the next cover teases, a good flamethrower.
