Ghostlore Vol. 1 [Comic Review]
Image: BOOM! Studios
I was excited to read Ghostlore, written by Cullen Bunn (Dead Parish, The Empty Man, Harrow County), since I’m a fan of his horror writing. Bunn’s work is complemented by art from Leomacs (Basketful of Heads), along with guest artists Brian Hurtt (The Sixth Gun), Danny Luckert (The Red Mother), and Vanesa R. Del Rey (The Joker Presents: A Puzzlebox). This first volume collects the first four issues of the twelve issue miniseries.
The book’s official synopsis mentions The Sixth Sense, a comparison that’s spot-on. Ghostlore introduces us to a father and daughter who, after surviving a deadly accident that claims the lives of their family, gain the ability to see and talk with the dead. These specters are desperate to be heard, anchored to reality by the need to unburden themselves of their guilty consciences, to confess their sins. Our protagonists have the ability to exorcize these ghosts, to give them peace to move on, by listening to their stories—though father and daughter have unique approaches to this. We’re also introduced to other characters with this ability who have mysterious and possibly malicious motivations. I do wish we learned just a little bit more about these characters here, considering this series is only twelve issues. Do we really need human villains? So far the story hasn’t convinced me we do, as the protagonists’ personal emotional struggles are already more interesting.
The central gimmick of the book is that we get to see the haunting stories the ghosts tell. These short ghost stories are the highlight of the book; they’re varied, spooky, and are gorgeously brought to life by the guest artists. They’re the cherry on top of the sundae. The downside is that I’m always left waiting for the next story, because they overshadow the narrative for me. Perhaps this is because the pages spent on these stories are pages not spent on developing the main characters. The main story is obviously supposed to be more than just a framing device for the short stories, but it feels like it isn’t by much.
Leomac’s art is serviceable, but feels like a step down from his work in Basketful of Heads. It’s hard to tell if the absence of Dave Stewart’s colors in this book contributes to that perception. The other problem is that the guest artists’ work in the short stories outshines Leomac and colorist Jason Wordie.
Despite my criticisms, I enjoyed this volume of Ghostlore and found it engaging. I’m hopeful that the next volume will be an improvement, and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the miniseries.
Ghostlore Vol. 1 (softcover) will be available on November 8, 2023.
