Clue #1 –
IDW Publishing
Written by Paul Allor
Art by Nelson Daniel
Letters by Neil Uyetake
Imagine it’s a Friday night and you’re getting settled in for what will, hopefully be, a nice weekend. The whole family is home, dinner is done and you’re looking for something to do. Problem is, the power has just gone out. What do you do? I guess, in 2017, you grab the smart phone right? Well, there was a time, when board games were the go-to in this situation. Remember those? IDW does, but this time we’re going from the board to the panels. Let’s dive into Clue #1 from one of our past guests, Paul Allor.
The first thing about this comic is that it’s very self aware. If you’re familiar with the game (and the movie) of Clue, a some familiar names await you in this book. Being a murder mystery, you know what’s coming, and you SHOULD know who the victim is before even turning a page. One thing that is different are the stories of who some of these characters are, plus some new faces. The story takes place at the classic mansion during a dinner party with quite an interesting array of guests. It is also narrated by the butler, Upton, who pops in from time to time. There’s not much more I can really say in terms of the plot without spoiling anything, but one of the editions of this comic comes with a few extra pages which gives clues that may help unravel the mystery.
Right away this book has a very likeable vibe. Even though you know the basis of what this is going to be about, Allor finds a way to make it feel fresh and really make you wonder what is going on. Even in the first issue, he also gives you a reason to care about and/or suspect each member of the dinner party. There is also the matter of making what seems obvious, not so obvious. One of the things that Allor had to accomplish here, much like the game, is to make you doubt yourself. He succeeds in that, and much more. I can imagine that this is how Mel Brooks would have approached a Clue story and brought it to life. With solid art to back things up, I’m certainly interested to keep trying to solve the mysteries of whodunnit.
RATING: PULL / BUY