DEAD OF WINTER #2

by Doug Warren on September 13, 2017

Writer: Kyle Starks
Artist: Gabriel “Gabo” Bautista
Colourist: Gabriel “Gabo” Bautista
Publisher: Oni Press

It’s no secret that I loved issue no. 1 of Dead of Winter. It was the perfect blend of humor, quirk, and action that completely engaged me. However, issue #2 seems to be lacking on all three of those fronts. What I thought would be a cutting edge, exciting series is all of a sudden looking so . . . normal.
Most of the book was wrapped up with being captured by a deranged cop, so it adds to the camp, but it is slow going. The limited setting made the world of the book, with infinite possibilities, feel small. There was some back-story with the dog that tied through the piece and gave a bit of suspense along the way and kept the reader turning the pages, but it wasn’t an action/adrenaline rush.  Maybe they thought the suspense would come from the lack of zombies, because I felt like was waiting forever to see them. The thought actually crossed my mind that there might not be any zombies in this issue. But, there were. Finally. I felt like I needed to say spoiler alert, but, having zombies in a zombie book isn’t a spoiler.

Gabo’s art again shines through, although that might be the wrong word to use for the gray, dull, horror atmosphere he creates. Faces, reactions, expressions, they all bring this story to life and make this comic real.  

In all though, it was still a good book. It has great potential, and I am really hoping this issue is just leading up to something huge.
 

Our Score:

7/10

A Look Inside