Review: Feast Your Eyes On ‘Mine Is A Long, Lonesome Grave’ #1

The premiere issue of Mine is a Long, Lonesome Grave starts off with an eye-popping page. Pretty much literally.

We see a man tied up and gagged. And there’s another man explaining why he’s about to pound railway spikes through the guy’s eye. Apparently the spikes trap the soul within the body.

Okay, you have my attention.

Much of the rest of the issue details how the characters got there. In the story by Justin Jordan, Harley Creed has just been released from a 20-year prison sentence for killing his wife. He makes his way back to Briar Falls, West Virginia, to make sure his daughter Maybelle has the money he stashed away.

As Creed is about to leave town for good, he realizes that his wife’s family, the Weavers, have put a hex on him. He has seven days to live. Unless he can kill the person to cast the spell.

Jordan spins quite a compelling story in these first few pages. He is immediately able to grab the reader and leaves plenty of unanswered questions along with some clues in the rest of the issue.

The greatest mysteries, though, are the characters. Creed may be our protagonist, but he’s certainly no good guy. The circumstances around his wife’s death seem suspect, but he’s clearly not afraid to take a life, especially when his is on the line. An anti-hero, for sure. Maybe even a bad guy of a different ilk altogether.

Chris Sheehan’s artwork pairs well with the story. Readers will have no trouble believing they’re in Appalachia as they discover the settings and the characters. Creed, in particular, is illustrated as having a rough life after two decades in prison. His thinning hair and under-eye bags tell as much of the story as the words.

If nothing else, the story practically demands that readers come back for more to see if their suspicions are correct and to witness how far this “good guy” will sink to save himself and his family.

Mine is a Long, Lonesome Grave #1 is available at comic book shops today from Oni Press.