Broken Frontier

With subtle precision, Scott Allie brings to light a dark and avenging anti-hero.

Solomon Kane: Death’s Black Riders #1, written by Dark Horse Editor Scott Allie, with art by Mario Guevara , is a dark and cold tale told deftly and with a minimalist approach. Allie takes into account that the story’s protagonist is not a hero, but a force of nature. The events of the story happen to him and he reacts in kind. 

Being unfamiliar with Robert E. Howard’s original character and not having read the previous miniseries, I went into this endeavor cold. Coming out of it, I found a stoic and bleak horror tale that gives the reader just what they need to know. Allie and his team are smart to characterize their lead through the eyes of his co-stars. Solomon does not wax poetic about how he came to be or where he is heading. He provides facts and results. This is not unlike how the creative team handles the interior pages of this issue.

Coming into this character and book uninitiated is not going to leave the reader with confusion, but rather, a healthy interest. Who is Solomon Kane and where do his skills come from? Where is he going and why does he travel? Even more so, we find ourselves asking, why is he so nonplussed by the grotesque creatures featured in this book? These are all good things to take out of the first issue in a four-part mini. It is effectively intriguing and a great jumping on point.

Artist Mario Guevara, with colors by Juan Ferreyra, beautifully translates the tone of Solomon Kane visually. Guevara has a fluent and kinetic line that captures quick motion without losing sight of the book’s dark atmosphere. Their styles sometimes resemble a strange hybrid of Mike Mignola and Leinil Yu, put into an anime blender.

The result is an eerie, cold (quite literally) and kinetic success.

Allie writes and constructs his plot to the artist’s strengths, so much in fact, that one could remove text boxes without missing the story’s forward movement. You can follow the artists’ storytelling skills with plot construction and layouts alone, leading us to believe that these guys know how to put together an entertaining book. 

Scott Allie’s take on the character is reminiscent of early Hellboy, but in a contrary manner. Whereas Hellboy was in many ways a comedic relief for the fantastical elements around him, Kane is un-phased and hard in his witness to the supernatural. They are both characters put on destiny’s path through the dark realm of fantasy, but handle the burden in wildly contrasting ways.

Having read my fair share of Hellboy, it was a natural fit to compare the two men. Each man is maybe a traumatic event or two from becoming one another. Maybe if Kane had someone like Professor Broom in his life, he’d be lighter in his demeanor like HB? This is the fun of such a minimally told, but well-defined story. Though being its own unique entity, it lends favorable to comparison and leaves doors open for interpretation. 

Solomon Kane: Death’s Black Riders #1 is highly recommended and deserves a look. It’s moody, fun, creepy, and action packed.  What more could you ask for?