Written by: Colin Lorimer
Art by: Joana Lafuente
Publisher: Image
The problem with most Image comics, and by proxy The Hunt, is that they really read better as trades. I just finished #5 (which I’ll be buying on Wednesday), and had to go back through the first few issues. It’s less that I forgot because the comics forgot to cover something and more that I forgot because it’s been five months since I read #1, but I did forget some things.
After a quick refresher, I’m all set for some positivity!
Normally I start with plot and characters, but today I want to start with artwork. Holy bloody hell is The Hunt a fantastic looking book. Between its style and rock-solid coloring, I’d say it’s the most gorgeous comic I’m reading right now—and that includes Wayward and The Autumnlands. Every. Freaking. Page! Is phenomenal to look at, and that goes for each issue. #1 is just as amazing as #5.
It’s perhaps the lighting. The lighting and subsequent shading are breathtaking, breaking the supernatural elements into brilliant backgrounds and magic into awe-inspiring foregrounds.
The Hunt is the kind of comic that justifies comics as an artistic medium. It’s the kind of comic that does the bulk of its storytelling through artwork. There are pages of zero text, pages of solid colors, and pages of facial expressions that say more than words ever could. It demands you pay attention, but damn, when you do is it worthwhile.
As to the plot and characters, well I did need to skim the last four issues to really get myself caught up. It’s hard to blame Lorimer for that given the monthly release schedule, but I did end this issue a hair confused. As it turns out, there really are two factions of supernatural entities, and as it turns out, politics, backstabbing, and general shenanigans play a part in everything.
Not that that should surprise anyone, I suppose.
What it comes down to is Orla being a badass as normal, and the supernatural figures talking out the aftermath of said badassery. It’s not as brilliant as I’d like—certainly not as brilliant as the artwork—but it does manage to work. Orla’s actions left me reeling, and as it turns out, she left the supernatural figures reeling as well.
To say anything more might tread into spoiler territory, which I absolutely do not want to do. Suffice to say, this comic ends in the same way it began: unpredictably.
The Hunt has always been a hard comic to talk about. I look at Wayward or The Autumnlands and feel compelled to analyze them, to break them down into their respective parts and examine everything; for this comic, I have no such inclination. I just want to read it. It’s a fantastic story with some fantastic characters, and while it doesn’t force any extra mental gymnastics, I don’t see that as a flaw. Good fiction is good fiction.
The Hunt is good fiction.
