Review: ‘Something Is Killing The Children’ #33 Starts To Return To Form

It’s taken way too long, but in the latest issue of Something is Killing the Children reminds us why we fell in love with the title in the first place.

After way too many ho-hum issues, SIKTC returns to form in issue #33, with danger, deception, irreverent humor and, of course, monsters. There’s talk. There’s action. There’s great artwork. And they are all presented in a alchemical combination. Again, that’s something that has been missing for far too long.

Maybe it’s because this overly long story arc is finally reaching its conclusion. But whatever the answer, writer James Tynion IV’s script is strong and keeps the story moving. On-the-mend heroine Erica Slaughter is preparing for a dual showdown between a creature that has taken her appearance and another human monster, Charlotte Cutter. Cutter is from a rival house and has been tasked with dispatching Erica.

Tynion focuses the script on Erica’s preparation for the big showdown. While the issue’s opening is slow and runs the risk of spending too much time on secondary characters we really don’t care about – as has been too much of the case lately – it turns out to be the right setup for this chapter.

The strong story also gives artist Werther Dell’Edera a fun sandbox to play in. We finally get to see the monstrous duplicitype again, and Dell’Edera has a field day with it. In a wonderful splash page, he makes the creature look like a venomized version of Slaughter – in the best possible way. It’s a great setup for the battle that is coming in the next two issues.

Most readers are willing to overlook a subpar issue or two. But this once-great series had so many issues of bloat that it’s great to see it back on track. Hopefully the audience is willing to give it another shot.

Something is Killing the Children #33 is available for purchase today.