Advance Review — Man Remains Visible, And Terrifying In ‘Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man’ #2
by Tom Smithyman
Overview
The writing is terrifying. The artwork is stunning. This story of a very visible man’s descent into madness is a master class in storytelling. You don’t need to like horror to love this series. So pick it up – now!
Overall
10/10It’s not a joke to say that halfway through the limited series Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man, we still don’t see the main character. What’s fascinating is that the writing is so strong and the artwork in the Image books are so good that readers won’t care.
As with the first issue, this next chapter chronicles lab assistant Jack Griffin’s decent into madness. He has discovered a formula that turned a rat invisible (and mad) but now is having trouble reproducing the effect on larger animals. His frustration spills over to his lab partner, his boss, and even his girlfriend. Jack, it seems, doesn’t need the formula to drive him crazy; he’s pretty much there already.
Writer James Tynion IV navigates that journey expertly. Instead of giving readers what they want (or, more correctly, what they think they want), Tynion crafts a compelling, terrifying story without an invisible man. It’s a real testament to his skills as a horror writer that he can keep his audience’s attention for so long without a real payoff.
Still, there is plenty of intrigue to sink your teeth into as we see Jack mess with his colleague’s experiment because it’s bothering him. He even gets uppity with his boss – a big no-no in the Victorian England setting.
Artist Dani delivers again here as well. You truly feel transported into the setting while getting to know the characters. What is most stunning is how she plays with depicting Jack while he is still visible. Throughout the first two issues, Jack is almost always somehow hidden, whether through unique angles or with shadows. Dani finally reveals his full face (pretty much – he’s wearing very dark glasses) late in this installment, with frightening results.
I never would have thought that the creative team could have successfully stuck to their guns through the first half of this series and deliver such a great story without actually getting to an invisible man. And yet here we are, with a story that is a contender for one of the best of the year.
Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #2 will be available in comic book stores and digital platforms on September 24th from Image Comics.
