Thursday, April 5, 2012

Dollar Bin Horror Spotlight - The Legend of Henry Brewer: The Axe Man

In the late 1930s the small farming community of Whitechaple, Iowa lives in fear of a psychological and murderous war waged against it by not one, but two serial killers.For years the two act independently of each other until, by chance, they meet and form a reluctant friendship that goes beyond both life and death.

When it comes to indie comics, It's hard to get that perfect combination of a great story and just the right graphics to tell it perfectly. But artist John Airo and writer James Di Angelo have put together a magnificent gem in The Axe Man. The first thing you look at when your reading a graphic novel is, of course, the graphics. Airo uses a rough sketch quality in his drawings with just the right amount of detail to depict the sorrow, fear and down right dread of the characters. The roughness of the drawing is a nice contrast to more refined and polished artwork, especially given the tone of the story. The art doesn't rely on bright, flashy colors either, but instead has a dark atmosphere flowing throughout every frame and page. The visuals draw you in...then the story grabs you from all emotional directions.
Di Angelo writes a story that horrifying, but not just in the sense of "omg there's a killer!" but "omg look how they treated him!" The character of Henry, the main character of course, is both heart breaking and frightening. I don't want to go into detail and give to much away, but when everything you've gotten close to is taken away because others see them as useless, what do you expect to happen!?! By the end of the book, I both wanted to condemn and hug our antagonist.
With it's dark and dreary atmosphere, The Legend of Henry Brewer: The Axe Man is a fantastic graphic novel that fans of both the horror genre and comic books will not be able to put down and will be talking about. To learn more and to order your copy, click HERE!

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