The Whispering Dark #1 (of 4) - Dark Horse Comics
Written by Christofer Emgård
Art by Tomás Aira
Letters by Mauro Mantella
War stories have probably been told since the aftermath of the first conflict of man. There is a conflict in the fascination to both tell and hear these stories, isn't there? Some can be heroic, some can be horrific or both. Triumph or tragedy, they are always there to teach or entertain. Dark Horse Comics brings another one of these tales to it's pages, with a bit of a twist. Let's find out what lurks in The Whispering Dark.
The stories follows Hannah Vance, a pilot who has found herself shot down, behind enemy lines and fighting, both literally and figuratively. We find out in the beginning of the book that Hannah is a woman of faith, as is her father, who we see her talking to. As the action slows, and the story settles in, we see a lot of familiar beats that we've seen in war stories before. In the background, we get to hear what it going in inside Hannah's head, and that is the real beauty of this story. That inner monologue is really what kept my interest, timed beautifully to what is happening on the page. At one point we get a quick glimpse of something that, once it plays out, will certainly make this more than just your typical behind enemy lines story. How this first issue ends will certainly lend itself to that, as well.
This was a solid start for Emgård and the art team. His experience writing these war stories, like in Battlefield, really came through and felt very authentic. Still this story needed more, and the internal struggle of Hannah Vance certainly provided that. My only worry is that we are only talking about a four issue arc, and I'm not sure that is enough to play out the mystery aspect that is teased in this first issue. I also wonder how these characters are going to combat that, but I feel the answer may be a bit more simple than it appears. To me, it just feels like we are being set up for multiple arcs. I'm sure that is always the hope, I just hope things don't seem rushed. The art is incredibly detailed and provides a couple of interesting easter eggs if you're paying attention throughout. I was on the fence over how to rate this book, but this feels like a winner to me, so I'm going out in a limb. Something tells me you won't be sorry if you add this to your pull box and finish out this four issue arc.
RATING: PULL / BUY