51 Serif St. Volume 1: The Breaking Review
Written by: Horatiu Radoiu
Art by: Horatiu Radoiu
Reviewed by: Ross Rivers
Summary: Daniel Rosdower is a crook looking for a second chance. So when he is offered a chance to spend the rest of his sentence at the 51 Serif St. rehabilitation house, he jumps at the offer. But he soon discovers there is more to the hollowed halls of this house than he ever thought, as he drifts deeper into madness, and gets to know the other patients and their dark pasts.
Review: Horror needs to be done just right in any medium. There’s so much you can get wrong. Terrible actors, boring monster/slasher, bad lightning, and misguided attempts at CGI- the list goes on. But with comic books there’s less to mess up but, at the same time, it’s more difficult.
Good pacing is difficult to achieve in comic book format so the horror has to come from somewhere other than jump scares and brief glimpses of a monster. They have to be creepy, morbidly beautiful, and well told.
And that’s where 51 Serif St. comes in.
The star of the show is Daniel Rosdowe, a con man who found himself in a bad situation after a con went wrong. Jailed for murder, he’s not looking for a second chance; he’s looking for a way out. Pretending to reform is the only plan he has. He aims to be sent to a minimum security prison, somewhere he can break out of. Instead he’s sent to “51 House” to be rehabilitated.
But House 51 isn’t what it seems. The first thing he notices when arriving is that the walls seem to be watching him. There are no doctors or therapists. Just guards keeping an eye on the inmates.
The inmates themselves will have nothing to do with him. He’s just another face to them. But he thinks he’s ok with it. He doesn’t need them, he just needs an opportunity. But lack of human contact like that can drive a man insane.
In comes Dora, a mysterious inmate of 51 House. She knows everybody’s story. She knows more about David’s story and thoughts than he’s comfortable with but she’s the first human contact he’s had since he arrived so he’s thankful.
The book’s about 54 pages long and is pretty much full of Dora filling him in on the inmates and the house’s reluctance to let them go. She says it’s the end of the line for both of them. But for a book filled with dialogue and inner monologue’s it’s good horror. Its pacing is good despite the lack of action and it creates an atmosphere that a lot of horror comics could only dream of.
This is helped along by the art which resembles Ben Templesmith but stays unique. It’s gorgeously presented with plenty of shadow and horrific moments that aren’t violent but creepy and disturbing.
It’s also nice to see how the character’s features distort in places, matching their state of mind. Each panel is beautifully crafted.
There’s more to the book besides dialogue, of course. As the book progresses more is revealed about the house and those behind it but saying much more than that will give the game away.
Horatiu Radoiu, who provides the art, lettering, and writing for the book seems to know his horror. He’s created something intriguing and horrific without relying on violence and cheap tricks. He’s created a claustrophobic setting in the 51 House and he’s created a protagonist that is egotistical, mean, and a joy to read. It’s not easy to create a bad guy worth caring about.
It does have problems of course. The downside to art like this, is it’s sometimes difficult to tell two characters apart. Thankfully they all seem to be different enough that it’s not an issue but as more characters are introduced, it could be a problem.
There’s also a fair few spelling mistakes which, if it’s something that bothers you, can take you out of the scene. The inner monologues and dialogue also needs sharpening up a little, as it comes off a bit stiff in places. Some of it reads like a B-Movie script.
But, flaws aside, this book is well worth your money. There are plenty of great horror comics in the world but this is an exceptional one. I’m very much looking forward to volume 2.
Editor's Note: To find out where you can acquire yourself a copy. Head here!
Written by: Horatiu Radoiu
Art by: Horatiu Radoiu
Reviewed by: Ross Rivers
Summary: Daniel Rosdower is a crook looking for a second chance. So when he is offered a chance to spend the rest of his sentence at the 51 Serif St. rehabilitation house, he jumps at the offer. But he soon discovers there is more to the hollowed halls of this house than he ever thought, as he drifts deeper into madness, and gets to know the other patients and their dark pasts.
Review: Horror needs to be done just right in any medium. There’s so much you can get wrong. Terrible actors, boring monster/slasher, bad lightning, and misguided attempts at CGI- the list goes on. But with comic books there’s less to mess up but, at the same time, it’s more difficult.
Good pacing is difficult to achieve in comic book format so the horror has to come from somewhere other than jump scares and brief glimpses of a monster. They have to be creepy, morbidly beautiful, and well told.
And that’s where 51 Serif St. comes in.
The star of the show is Daniel Rosdowe, a con man who found himself in a bad situation after a con went wrong. Jailed for murder, he’s not looking for a second chance; he’s looking for a way out. Pretending to reform is the only plan he has. He aims to be sent to a minimum security prison, somewhere he can break out of. Instead he’s sent to “51 House” to be rehabilitated.
But House 51 isn’t what it seems. The first thing he notices when arriving is that the walls seem to be watching him. There are no doctors or therapists. Just guards keeping an eye on the inmates.
The inmates themselves will have nothing to do with him. He’s just another face to them. But he thinks he’s ok with it. He doesn’t need them, he just needs an opportunity. But lack of human contact like that can drive a man insane.
In comes Dora, a mysterious inmate of 51 House. She knows everybody’s story. She knows more about David’s story and thoughts than he’s comfortable with but she’s the first human contact he’s had since he arrived so he’s thankful.
The book’s about 54 pages long and is pretty much full of Dora filling him in on the inmates and the house’s reluctance to let them go. She says it’s the end of the line for both of them. But for a book filled with dialogue and inner monologue’s it’s good horror. Its pacing is good despite the lack of action and it creates an atmosphere that a lot of horror comics could only dream of.
This is helped along by the art which resembles Ben Templesmith but stays unique. It’s gorgeously presented with plenty of shadow and horrific moments that aren’t violent but creepy and disturbing.
It’s also nice to see how the character’s features distort in places, matching their state of mind. Each panel is beautifully crafted.
There’s more to the book besides dialogue, of course. As the book progresses more is revealed about the house and those behind it but saying much more than that will give the game away.
Horatiu Radoiu, who provides the art, lettering, and writing for the book seems to know his horror. He’s created something intriguing and horrific without relying on violence and cheap tricks. He’s created a claustrophobic setting in the 51 House and he’s created a protagonist that is egotistical, mean, and a joy to read. It’s not easy to create a bad guy worth caring about.
It does have problems of course. The downside to art like this, is it’s sometimes difficult to tell two characters apart. Thankfully they all seem to be different enough that it’s not an issue but as more characters are introduced, it could be a problem.
There’s also a fair few spelling mistakes which, if it’s something that bothers you, can take you out of the scene. The inner monologues and dialogue also needs sharpening up a little, as it comes off a bit stiff in places. Some of it reads like a B-Movie script.
But, flaws aside, this book is well worth your money. There are plenty of great horror comics in the world but this is an exceptional one. I’m very much looking forward to volume 2.
Editor's Note: To find out where you can acquire yourself a copy. Head here!