Black's Myth #02

Black’s Myth #02

Ahoy Comics 2021

Written by Eric Palicki

Illustrated by Wendell Cavalcanti

Lettered by Rob Steen

The werewolf crime story continues!

The mystery deepens after Strummer and Ben meet with the somewhat shady Rainsford Black. But who might want bullets that could kill the unkillable? The answer is unthinkable.

I’m digging this book because it’s really unique and not like anything I am seeing on stands right now, this seems to be going around a lot and I couldn’t be any happier about that either. I’m also thrilled that we’re seeing Private Investigators again, it seemed that fad left a while ago but bringing it back is a great thing to see and allows for multiple story arcs to happen and for the opportunity to watch the characters continue to grow and evolve over time. This issue does a number of things that absolutely thrills me and you’ll have to read the issue because I’m not telling you what they are but suffice it to say that this world they inhabit just got infinitely more interesting because of what we learn and see.

I am very much enjoying the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how they act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter continues to flesh them out in some really great ways. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing more and more of the story we’re drawn deeper and deeper into this world and the mystery surrounding who shot Strummer and is after her.

I really rather quite appreciate the way that we see this being structured as well as how the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow, evolve and strengthen. The layers and the new avenues we see opening up and continuing really allow the reader to get more involved and invested in the story as well as add this great depth, dimension and complexity to the story. There are some great moments here that make you want to see certain things explored more and while I doubt they will be that doesn’t mean we don’t want to see it, it’s just how well the story is being told. The way that everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is achieved exceptionally well.

I love, love the interiors here. I am so happy that I’ve come to appreciate seeing books in black & white. The linework and the inking here are just exquisitely rendered and how they work with the varying weights and techniques to create this massive attention to detail we see is bloody brilliant! Because of how strong the work is I really want to see more backgrounds being utilised, especially in this mansion with everything in it the creativity and imagination moments are truly unlimited. How we see the composition within the panels bringing out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story is sensational. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling.

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This is so much better than I could have dared hoped for, and considering the quality of the books that Ahoy has been putting out, well that’s saying something. From the concept through the execution of this insanely good writing & characterisation to the sheer brilliance of the interiors this will take you by surprise and leave you begging for more. It really is one of those interesting, intriguing and intensely satisfying reads out there right now.