Review: ‘The Sandman Universe: Dead Boy Detectives’ #3 Gets Desperate

Charles and Edwin’s investigation might actually be getting further from the truth, and that makes Dead Boy Detectives #3 a bit more challenging read. That may be a good thing though.

Pornsak Pichetshote, Jeff Stokely, Craig Taillefer, Miquel Muerto, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou continue to face the horror in Los Angeles.

Charles and Edwin are under attack, and are surprised by an enemy that can hurt them. Now Edwin needs to forge forward alone to try to save his new friends. Will Charles ever recover, or could this be the end of the detectives?

A large part of this issue is mythology exposition and set-up for the next act of the story. That’s often a difficult place to be, but here Pichetshote adds so much character work. It makes sure we care about what’s happening, and the resolution. I often don’t like these set-up issues, but this one does so much to help us empathize with both the titular boys and their new Thai companions.

Stokely and Taillefer’s line art looks great. Stokely’s cartooning keeps the horror from becoming too much, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t make it scary. Each page has something stomach turning, and his softer style makes it catch you even more unawares. Taillefer’s inks are light on the pencils, enhancing them and not distracting. Muerto tells the story with the colors, bringing the locations to life and setting the mood and tone of each scene.

Otsmane-Elhaou does a solid job throughout, but in one particular scene he really stands out. One of the Thai ghosts hears the voices of his bullies. He’s able to make the very difficult and harsh language (including some racial slurs that Pichetshote makes a special note of) layered and claustrophobic. It’s a good example of what a letterer can bring to a story.

A much stronger issue than I expected at first brought the horror for me. I continue to anticipate what’s next.

The Sandman Universe: Dead Boy Detectives#3 is available now from DC Comics/Black Label.