BOOM! Studios latest comic book series is an adaption for Dr. Colm Kelleher and George Knapp “Hunt for the Skinwalker: Science Confronts the Unexplained at a Remote Ranch in Utah.” Simply titled Hunt for the Skinwalker, the series is being written former Cable writer Zac Thompson and artwork by Castle Full of Blackbirds’ Valeria Burzo. Hunt for the Skinwalker is a book that I have not read yet but the preview for the comic book adaptation got me interested in what this series would do with the paranormal genre. We got an early look at Hunt for the Skinwalker #1. Find out how it turned out with our advance review.
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Zac Thompson
Artist: Valeria Burzo
Colorist: Jason Wordie
Letterer: Joe Sabino
SOLICITATION
“Unidentified flying objects. Animal mutilation. Terrifying otherworldly cryptids. Countless strange phenomena. For more than 50 years, a remote ranch in the Uinta Basin has been the most significant nexus for the paranormal.
Inspired by one family’s confrontation with the unexplainable and terrifying… and what happened when they invited the largest scientific investigation of the paranormal to their ranch.
Based on the 2005 groundbreaking, electrifying nonfiction book by Dr. Colm Kelleher and veteran investigative journalist George Knapp that revealed the captivating true history of Gorman Ranch for the first time, seizing mainstream imagination and inspiring high profile investigations, documentaries, and genre fiction in various media.
Now, working hand-in-hand with Kelleher and Knapp, and incorporating never-before-seen new revelations, writer Zac Thompson (X-Men Unlimited, Undone By Blood) with Valeria Burzo (Castle Full of Blackbirds) adapts the category-defying tale in a series perfect for fans of I Hate This Place and The Low, Low Woods!” – BOOM! Studios
REVIEW
One of the trickiest narrative tactics in comic books is the use of a narrator. There is an art to it as it could easily derail a comic book story with the writer of the book overexplaining things. While Hunt for the Skinwalker #1 does not revolutionize the art of narrators for a comic book story it does work in that it did sound this was a tale being retold rather than simply Zac Thompson explaining everything.
The greatest strength for the approach that Thompson took with the narration is that it hit the tone of a found film. There is a sense that the narrator is someone that has pieced together this story from all their research and found footage. While that is not the direction of the story itself, since we don’t have someone filming everything, having this tone made it so the narrator did not come off as intrusive.
In showing us how the cast of characters experience so many different random events that quickly get them to believe there is some paranormal explanation. As the viewer seeing the characters go through these random events we see that there are ways to explain them. But since the characters don’t have that top view look, the way they easily get convinced by what can be seen as phenomena is what you expect from these characters.
Adding in the horror elements of how the characters go about looking for answers add to all the paranormal elements of the story. The space offered by the ranch setting is utilized well, with one particular scene in the middle of this issue to put over the journey of this story.
Its in the horror elements of this story that Valeria Burzo artwork stands out. Burzo captures how scary all these random events are. The designs for the creatures and devices gets you to buy into the direction of the story more.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Zac Thompson and Valeria Burzo work well together to showcase how the unexplained can be the launching point of something greater going on with Hunt for the Skinwalker #1. If you are a fan of paranormal stories this is a comic book to check out.
Story Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10