Comics / Spotlight / Black Astronaut

The Evil Inside #1

By Leroy Douresseaux
October 11, 2007 - 11:17

THE EVIL INSIDE #1

APPROBATION COMICS
WRITER: Bart A. Thompson
ARTISTS: Paul Schultz, Jake Sumbing, and Giovanni P. Timpano
LETTERS: Brent W. Fowler
COVER DESIGN: Bart A. Thompson
28 pp., B&W, $3.50

When Bart A. Thompson and his publishing company, Approbation Comics, aren’t attempting to revamp the romance comics anthology, they’re endeavoring to do the same with the horror comics anthology, in this case with the recent addition to his publishing line, The Evil Inside.

The Evil Inside #1 features three stories written by Thompson.  In “Southern Hospitalityâ€� (drawn by Paul Schultz), two young business types make a stop off the beaten path and meet the kind of backwoods freaks found in films like Deliverance and Wrong Turn.  However, the real danger is closer to home.

In “Word is Bond,â€� (drawn by Jake Sumbing), a man wouldn’t mind trading his soul for one night with a dream blonde, but he should watch what he says and to whom he says it.  A store holdup turns really weird, and it’s a game of who is the most dangerous in “The Fox in the Henhouseâ€� (drawn by Giovanni P. Timpano).

THE LOWDOWN:  As in Amour #1, Bart A. Thompson proves to be an imaginative and inventive short story writer.  “Southern Hospitalityâ€� has a good premise, but seems to collapse in on itself at the end.  “Word is Bondâ€� has a killer ending to go with a delicately sweet setup.  “The Fox in the Henhouseâ€� has a nice ending, but the premise and setup or much stronger.

For what is essentially a low budget, under the radar, self-published/indie comic, The Evil Inside #1 features impressive storytelling from the artists even if they lack the polish and visual chops of big time comic book artists and illustrators.  Still, they clearly understand visual storytelling, and their tidy translations of Thompson’s scripts create some winning tales of terror.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  Readers who like Western Tales of Terror will enjoy this comic magazine.

B

 

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12