Review — The Opera Ghost Is Gloriously Unmasked In ‘Universal Monsters: Phantom Of The Opera’ #4
by Tom Smithyman
Overview
Masterful artwork and a plot twist put a bow on this great limited series. While it will be sad to see it go, it will be remembered as one of the best miniseries of the year.
Overall
9.5/10Some artwork catches your eye. Others grab you in the stomach. Martin Simmonds’ manages to do both.
From the very first panel in Universal Monsters: Phantom of the Opera #4, Simmonds demands your attention. As the Phantom guides the emerging prima donna Christine Daae into the catacombs under the opera house, we realize they are walking into a massive eye. As we take in the entire page, we realize that we’re also looking at the Phantom’s eye beneath his fearsome mask.
Few if any Simmonds fans will be surprised by his clever use of space, given his outstanding work on Phantom’s sister book, which focused on Dracula, as well as his standout The Department of Truth. It’s a disservice to those other books to say that he’s outdone himself here. Instead, we’ll leave it at this: if you are looking for someone to depict ethereal terror, Simmonds is your man.
The Phantom himself, while quite human (his true identity is a welcome shock provided by writer Tyler Boss), almost always depicts the ghoul as a true opera ghost floating behind his mask. It’s a wonderful effect that maintains the book’s supernatural feel while still grounding things in reality.
The danger in fawning over Simmonds’ artwork is that Boss’ script gets left out of the praise. But Boss deserves credit for the surprise reveal, making this Phantom different from previous versions, but still squarely making his obsession with Christine his North Star.
If you’re looking for a tidy ending to this limited series though, look elsewhere. There is no great confrontation or battle between good and evil — largely because the lines are very blurry here.
The Universal Monsters series has consistently published strong title after strong title. If Skybound and Image Comics can get these two creators to work on more of the series, they’ll be even more successful.
Universal Monsters: Phantom of the Opera #4 – written by Tyler Boss, illustrated by Martin Simmonds, and lettered by Becca Carey – is now available in comic book stores and on digital platforms from Image Comics.
