The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft #3 – Review

By Mac Carter (Writer), Tony Salmons (Pencils & Inks), and Adam Byrne (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: I didn’t review the last issue of The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft because I wasn’t able to get my hands on it until last week. Now that I’ve read it, I can say that I found it bizarre and somewhat frustrating because of how surreal the Lovecraft scenes were. It was enjoyable, sure, but not quite as clear as I would have liked.

The Story: Lovecraft is the target of a manhunt after the events at Sylvia’s fiancé’s house. He knows how the creature that kills comes into being. But will anyone believe him?

What’s Good: The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft #3 is quite compelling and fixes nearly all the problems that plagued the last issue. The moody artwork is easier to follow, the storytelling isn’t as jarring, and the plot moves forward at a better pace. In short, my faith is renewed in the creative team, thanks to how “Never Again to Sleep” plays out.

Mac Carter ramps up his mini-series by effectively telling two interconnected stories (one’s about H.P. Lovecraft’s encounter/battle with the supernatural and the other’s about the manhunt for H.P. Lovecraft) without really sacrificing anything. What’s most notable about Carter’s writing is how well H.P. Lovecraft is written. He’s appropriately desperate and intense when the situation calls for it, yet heart-wrenchingly melancholy and self-depreciating when narrating.

With Carter’s effective storytelling, Tony Salmons’ artwork adds a lot to the surreal tone of the story. Tony Salmons handles the characters well and does a nice job of bringing Lovecraft’s horrors to the page. Also, as I mentioned in my review of the first issue of The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft, Salmons’ style continues to really capture the story’s time period.

What’s Not So Good: Predictability is one thing that brings down Carter’s Lovecraft story. You can see pretty much everything coming from pages away and it takes away from a lot of the suspense that Carter is clearly working hard to build. Another thing that brings down Carter’s mini-series is some of the artwork. While Adam Byrne’s colors add a lot to the more surreal scenes (a few of which look awesome), the average panel seems muddy or lacking with a final layer of polish. I’m all for the “indie” look, but not when the visual storytelling suffers because of it.

Conclusion: The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft #3 is predictable and features some frustrating artwork. That said, it’s also well written and does justice to the horrors that Lovecraft is known for. It’s definitely worth a look if you are a fan of the author or just looking for a good horror story.

Grade: C+

-Kyle Posluszny

The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft #1 – Review

By Mac Carter (Story), Tony Salmons (Pencils & Inks), and Adam Byrne (Colors)

The Story: Writer H.P. Lovecraft has got a bad case of heartache and a worse case of writer’s block. Odd for a man who’s mind is loaded all sorts of macabre things. But a string of events changes things and soon Lovecraft is thinking about his masterwork…

What’s Good: Mac Carter does a wonderful job creating just the right tone for a story about the life of the famous horror author. The dialogue effectively captures the liveliness of the 1920’s (as does most of the stylized artwork), while Lovecraft’s inner monologues manage to be melancholy, sinister, and frustrated all at the same time. Carter makes you feel for the brooding writer, doing a really impressive job of writing the monologues in a way that reflects the style of Lovecraft’s works.

The story itself is off to a good start, though it’s a bit too early to tell whether things will successfully and satisfyingly play out in only four issues. Enough happens in chapter one to hook the reader, but it’s mostly all set up. That said, it’s some pretty solid set up.

What’s Not So Good: The artwork by Tony Salmons and Adam Byrne is really hit or miss throughout the book. And it proves to be frustrating because when the visuals work, they work really well. For every few scenes that do an admirable job of capturing the story and the setting, there is one that looks off in some way. Either the coloring is far too dark and muddy or the action is delivered in a confusing manner.

Conclusion: The Strange Adventures of H.P. Lovecraft is off to a promising start. The writing delivers in a big way and, if the visuals can do an effective job of playing catch up, I think the mini-series could deliver in a big way. I recommend it for fans of the author and fans of supernatural stories in general.

Grade: B

-Kyle Posluszny