Broken Frontier

This great series from Red 5 comes to a satisfying and entertaining conclusion. Writers Christopher Leone and Laura Harkcom have impressed me with every issue of this mini-series, especially considering it’s their first comics work. A six issue mini is a brave first entry, but with their experience creating the TV mini-series The Lost Room, the pair are familiar with sequential storytelling.

I think the best thing I can say about this series overall is that it’s accessible. It’s a sad state of affairs when that’s a selling point, but for someone who reads multiple superhero and indie tales, remembering what happened in previous issues is sometimes difficult. With We Kill Monsters, each issue has been so memorable that I can dive right in to the next offering without missing a beat.

This last issue picks up moments after the previous issue’s dramatic reveal of the big bad of the series and his mad plans involving monsters and breakfast cereal. The Basher brothers, Andrew and Jake (the one with the handy monster arm), and their long-time friend Vanessa confront him, or at least do their best when surrounded by manufactured beasties. It turns out that Dennis (Vanessa’s soon to be ex) and the conglomerate he works for, has been replicating monsters as a cure-all for human illnesses, but smarmy company men with grand ambitions and playing God proclivities never get exactly what they want.

This isn’t as funny as past issues, but it tidies everything up nicely. It also throws in some monster vs monster action, which includes a few particularly nasty looking oddities. (Mr. Bunny is the scariest walking rabbit since Donnie Darko.) The absurd plot developments never feel out of place and the characters have all been well-rounded and handled superbly. We Kill Monsters has been a pleasant surprise and well crafted package. Each issue has been built upon the previous one, while adding to it, which means it’ll make for an even more enjoyable read in trade form.

Brian Churilla’s (The Anchor) pencils may not be for everyone, with their streamlined approach and bare backgrounds, but he draws great monsters, and facial expressions. Plus, he has good timing, which is important in a series like this that mixes action and comedy with precision.

Like any good action film, there’s room for a continuation of the story. With a title like We Kill Monsters, there could certainly be a few more stories yet.