Dark Horse quietly releases a one-shot this month, entitled The Quiet Kind.
Writer Chuck Brown (Bitter Root, The Punisher, Black Panther) works with artist Jeremy Treece (backup story illustrated by Kelly Williams) in this story about gaining great power.
Oh, great power is ‘great’, as long as you are willing to shoulder the responsibility that comes with it.
Do you seek revenge, or have empathy? Solomon, a young boy is about to find out. He is suddenly gifted with the powers of the ancient gods. Solomon has been a target of bullies. “Oh, I think I can see where this is going,” you say.
Only it’s not as straightforward as all that. The scenes are a bit cryptic; There is a mystical fox and a dragon. Perhaps they are the off-world controllers of power. They make their presence known in dreams, and maybe in an allegorical fashion, behave as natural puppet masters of the powers at play.
I loved the basic “I was bullied and I fought back’ premise of the young and empowered. However, I became confused at the supernatural aspects, sometimes becoming disoriented at the flow of the story. Just what is going on, and who are all these animals?
I also found that although the artwork had edgy passion and intensity, it also sacrificed clarity for drama. The colouring is shadowy and shady, ideal for this kind of horror/supernatural tale. The faces and bodies are heavily exaggerated and caricatured. The layouts tilt and disorient. We get extremely close up to gruesome stuff. Things appear and we are going to understand what they are by studying them.
It’s not for everyone, but for those looking to get quietly involved in the struggles of the newly powerful, it’s an intense foray into a new world. Good versus unkillable evil. Light against dark. The eternal battle continues.
Its origins are examined in the backup story, where the clock is turned back to an earlier, though not more innocent time.
Dark Horse Comics, The Quiet Kind (one-shot), $5.99 for 60 pages of content. Assume Teen + rating.
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