From writer Jude Ellison S. Doyle and artist Lisandro Estherren comes a dark piece of religious horror in Be Not Afraid #1. Featuring colors by Francesco Segala and lettering by Simon Bowland, this opening issue brings readers along on the start of a journey of holy mystery and dread. Feeling like a mix of The Omen and Mike Carey’s run on Lucifer, this comic sets up a phenomenally tense piece of atmosphere while giving readers just enough information to keep the story compelling while still withholding larger details. Be Not Afraid is one of the most promising horror comic’s of the year so far.
“Cora Rehms lived the isolated life of a simple farm girl until one fateful summer day, prophetic visions brought her a visitor made of pure light… an angel. In the aftermath, Cora gave birth to a child, a Nephilim: the offspring of an angel and a human woman, seemingly imbued with evil itself. 17 years later, that child’s cherubic appearance can no longer hide his monstrous nature. Frogs boil in their skins as he passes. Crops rot. The townspeople live in fear, knowing that atrocities follow closely behind him. Now, on the eve of his 18th birthday, Cora receives a new vision… Heaven itself has called upon her to destroy the abomination born of her own flesh and blood.”
Writing & Plot
Jude Doyle drops us into a tale of tense dread and woe right at the start of Be Not Afraid #1. In a work of grim religious horror, he turns the notion of immaculate conception on its head by producing a child straight from hell. Every sequence with this child is deeply uncomfortable, increasingly so as we spend more time with him and discover his effect on the world around him. The small town this boy and his mother live in is cursed, and that terror seeps in to every page. Doyle’s careful choices with how he progresses the story increases the tension in the comic due to how little we know as we begin. There’s little by way of exposition, but we put together the larger truth of the story by the interactions between characters and specifically how the boy affects the world and people around him. The result of this storytelling approach makes every moment feel surprising and disturbing. Thematically, horror stories regarding religion and the subversion of childbirth have always been deeply unsettling depending on how they’re told – and this one is off to a fantastic start. I can’t wait to see Doyle’s overall plans with the rest of this series.
Art Direction
While Doyle’s script pulls us in to this fascinating story, it’s Lisandro Estherren’s haunting visual work that makes Be Not Afraid #1 such a haunting story. The Redneck artist’s unique approach to character design and direction makes every sequence in this issue feel memorable. His heavily shaded lines and sort of forced-perspective shots give certain characters a sort of uneasy sense whenever we see them on the page – and this goes especially for the cursed buy the story mostly follows. Few silhouettes bring the sense of unease that the wide-brim hat preacher outfit does in this comic, and Estherren really utilizes that design. The alien appearance of a presence that – at least in certain more traditional circles – is supposed to bring comfort just adds to the subversive feeling of horror this comic offers. Every panel in Be Not Afraid feels at best like a liminal space of unease, and at worst like a blood-filled nightmare. Estherren’s pencils are some of the most suited for the horror genre in contemporary comics. His work here is brought to life by Francesco Segala’s color art, which imbues every page with a gloomy and unsettling color palette that blends in perfectly with Estherren’s chaotic line work. Every page looks as though it has a haze of dust and corrosion over the scenery, adding to the foreboding sense we get from the characters. Simon Bowland’s lettering adds a clever sense of readability to the experience as well, using his distinct style and reflexive dialogue-work in the absence of any SFX letters. Overall, Be Not Afraid is off to a brilliantly unsettling start in the visual storytelling department.
Verdict
Be Not Afraid #1 is a gripping, unsettling opening chapter to this religious horror series. Jude Doyle’s script leads readers into a haunting world of the unholy, letting events and terrors wash over us as we figure out why these demented events are happening. The visuals from Lisandro Estherren and Francesco Segala are atmospherically rich and often disturbing, perfectly capturing the tone of this horror comic. Be sure to grab this new release when it hits shelves on June 4th!
