In this week’s Wednesday Comics Reviews, the team reviews a pair of Christmas horror anthologies with Dread the Halls and Startling Tales of Santa Claus, as well as new Criminal and new Briar! Plus, Ensign’s Log and The Prog Report!
Dread the Halls 2025 #1
Writers: Jordan Hart & Chris Ryall
Artists: Luana Vecchio, Lee Ferguson, Keithan Jones, Walter Pax, and Fabio Veras
Letterer: Jordan Hart
Publisher: Image Comics – Syzygy Publishing
Review by Javier Perez
Here we are again, the third installment of Dread The Halls. Let me be the broken clock that is right once a year and tell you to pick up this book. Like falling leaves signaling the change of season, Chris Ryall and Jordan Hart are back to start the holidays with some frights in a new offering of Dread The Halls. And I was especially looking forward to this because one of my favorite artists is joining the Dread The Halls crew.
The announcement of Luana Vecchio joining the Syzygy team on this third installment of Dread the Halls piqued my interest. In case you aren’t familiar, Vecchio is one of the most talented comic creators out there. Check out Lovesick and Doll Parts, if you haven’t already. You will have a hard time bringing up her books during this holiday season, though. Some may find them grotesque and even off-putting, but her previous work really strikes a chord for me. Here is an artist who is willing to look at some very uncomfortable topics, and the result is a story from which you can’t look away.
A lot of Vecchio’s work centers on revenge, and I was glad to see that theme run through this 72-page holiday horror anthology. These are five sweet tales of vengeance and payback with a light hint of holiday spice. “Yule” by Hart and Vecchio jumps off the page in how bubbly the characters are illustrated, making the conclusion have that much more impact.
Make sure to check out the Beat’s exclusive preview to see more.
Next up is “Chains Forged in Life” by Ryall and Lee Ferguson. I’d describe this one as A Christmas Carol if it had happened to a Rush Limbaugh-like character. Ferguson does an incredible job of selling all the humor and punchlines with the main character’s facial reactions and charisma. This new issue was a delight; I loved the use of the gutter to show the different locations and even show the passage of time. Maybe I didn’t take the right lesson from this, but it left me thinking that I should start using my talents for evil.
“The Alp” by Ryall and Walter Pax and “The Martians Conquer Santa Claus” by Ryall and Keithan Jones are what Dread The Halls is all about. Pax’s incredible talents shine here: these are detailed charcoal illustrations I could look at all day. Syzygy has previously published some of its books in rough, unprepared paper, and I hope they do so again with this story. It’s great when a comic uses lettering effectively. It’s an unappreciated art, and the alien dialogue really made use of it. Jones illustrates Santa flying into unfriendly airspace, and we celebrate the first Martian Christmas. These are creepy and beautifully illustrated stories that are just wacky enough to work.
The last story, “Counting Days” by Hart and Fabio Veras, was my favorite. I had a really fun time going back to the first page to anticipate what would happen next or make sense of what was going on. I don’t think any story this year has given me that much anxiety.
Hart and Ryall have laid excellent groundwork in the previous installments of Dread The Halls, and now they get to flex their creative muscles in this year’s installment fully. This horror anthology is proof of quality over quantity. Yes, other horror collections are coming from different publishers, but Dread The Halls has been consistently excellent, and this is a victory lap.
Startling Tales of Santa Claus #1
Writer: Benito Cereno
Artists: Seakae, Evan “Doc” Shaner, Emmett Graham, and Anthony Clark
Colorist: Nick Filardi (on the Graham story)
Letterer: Jodie Troutman (on the Graham story)
Publisher: Image Comics
Review by Tim Rooney
Like any good Christmas special, these stories are tales of light in the darkness, of hope amid the dying light of winter cold. Cereno and his collaborators have built out something thrilling, heartwarming, and truly timeless. It’s a must buy, and Cereno’s Santaverse deserves to be an annual comic shop tradition.
Briar Night’s Terror #1
Writer: Christopher Cantwell
Artist: Alex Lins
Colorist: Mar Silvestre & Luis NCT
Letterer: AndWorld Design
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Review by Khalid Johnson
Briar: Night’s Terror #1 takes its time moving around the world, initially catching the readers up in a wonderful vignette recapping the events of Briar and how we got to this point. This two-page reintroduction makes stepping back into the world of Briar or even stepping into the world of Briar that much easier.
There’s a sense of finality that the initial pages and narration key us into while also moving on the path of a final big confrontation. The peace that is built up early is so well constructed by writer Christopher Cantwell feels real and yet like it’s begging to be shattered in the narrative. With the art of Alex Lins and colors by Marc Silvestri & Luis NCT, the idyllic nature of this fragile peace is cemented before we move through locales and shatter it both through Briar’s preparation for a final confrontation and then invasion.
There are sweeping environmental spreads as we’re moved through the world and a real foreboding shift when we shift to Gendrid’s castle amidst revelations that add some more emotional stakes amidst the already lovable cast and their chemistry. The letters of AndWorld Design really complement the art with an emphasized expressiveness and character that plays off of the strong designs of Lins.
For me, the queerness of Briar and Spider and taking the time to sit with their romance is grounding, instantly compelling, and their preparation to take on the world together after indulging in each other and the creative team indulging us in this tenderness just got me prepared for the action that they sit on the precipice of.
The art is excellent and full of movement as we traverse different spaces on our journey with these characters and approaching finality here, knowing that a conclusion is in sight is a strength that this first issue really capitalizes on.
Giant Size Criminal #1
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artist: Sean Phillips
Colorist: Jacob Phillips
Publisher: Image Comics
Review by Jared Bird
Bay City, 2004. Ricky Lawless is part thief, part con-man and all sorts of a mess. After a series of bad bets on horses, Ricky owes someone a lot of money, and he’s been given the chance to make it back; rob a phenomenally talented Poker player in a luxury hotel. What could go wrong? The first Criminal single issue since 2020, and a physical comic shop exclusive, Giant Size Criminal is unsurprisingly phenomenal, crafting one hell of a punch that’s bound to delight readers.
Ricky Lawless has always been a slightly illusive figure in Criminal. His brother, Tracy, is debatably the main character of the series, whilst his father Teeg is referred to almost mythically. Since the start of the series, Ricky has been dead, although we have glimpsed his childhood through stories like Cruel Summer. Giant Size Criminal finally shows him in his ‘prime’ as a criminal so to speak, and it’s something to behold. A drugged-out, somewhat pathetic viewpoint, he’s a superbly written and rendered character, completely unlike any of the series’ other protagonists to this point. You both feel sympathetic for him and get frustrated with his consistent incompetence, and it makes for a great and thrilling crime story because he just can’t do anything right. Even if this single issue story is your first encounter with the world of Criminal, it stands alone and is compelling as a narrative, but if you’re a long-term reader like myself, it’s incredibly satisfying to see some of the pieces of the larger narrative click together, especially when it comes to the circumstances surrounding Ricky’s death. It’s a fun, self-contained story that’s thrilling at every turn, and packed full of surprises even if the total story isn’t all that long compared to some of Brubaker and Phillips’ other work.
Ed Brubaker seems to be doing some of the best work of his career in the last year or so, and it’s been delightful to see. The return to Criminal could easily be phoned in to tie into the upcoming Prime Video television series, but he seems to be putting in the effort to make sure the stories are still top notch. Even a shorter narrative like this, which is just over the length of a single issue, shows that he’s gotten his plotting down to a fine art; so much characterisation, tension and excitement packed into such a short span, and it never feels too dense or hard to comprehend. If the upcoming graphic novel focused on Ricky, Five Gears in Reverse, is anywhere as good as this, it’ll be another masterful OGN from the team.
Likewise, Sean Phillips is hardly phoning in the return to Criminal either. His artwork has gained a wonderful stylistic shift in recent years, becoming even better than it already was and inducing a remarkable atmosphere to every page. His action work here shines, particularly in a fight sequence towards the issue’s climax, but he’s also brilliant at character work, with Ricky’s shit-eating grin a real highlight of the issue. These books would not have the same effortless style without his stunning artwork, and he continues to be one of the best artists working in the industry today. Colorist Jacob Phillips brings out the best in him as well, pushing the artwork into new and more interesting spaces with his brilliant color work.
Overall, Giant Size Criminal #1 is a fantastic single-issue addition to the Criminal canon, a sharp and stylish short story that will absolutely compel both new and old readers alike. We are finally getting to see more of Ricky Lawless after so much time and it’s wonderful, with Brubaker and Phillips doing excellent work as they return to Criminal after a lengthy hiatus. It also has some fun back material as well, including comic strips discussing Ed Brubaker’s experience as a showrunner for the Criminal show, a role-playing game by Kieron Gillen, and a how-to guide for new readers. So don’t wait, and go to your local comics shop to pick this up for sure.
Ensign’s Log
As IDW’s Star Trek comics continue to expand, Ensign Avery Kaplan has enlisted here to keep a careful log!
Star Trek: Red Shirts #5
Writer: Christopher Cantwell
Artist: Megan Levens
Colorist: Charlie Kirchoff
Letterer: Jodie Troutman
Design & Production: Neil Uyetake
Publisher: IDW Publishing
The final issue of Star Trek: Red Shirts has arrived, and it does not disappoint. While I won’t share the specifics, readers won’t be surprised to discover there are some twists and turns in this conclusive issue. Suffice to say that these wrinkles open up the possibility of strange new sequels to Red Shirts, but probably about slightly different topics. That being said, those same revelations only underscore that this is and always has been a series about red shirts, the famously expendable class of Starfleet officers.
I don’t think I will be spoiling anything by saying that Ensign Miller is the focal point of this issue. The story circles back to use Miller’s “origin story” exceedingly well, while never backing down from the original premise of the series. In other words, Cantwell nails the ending. Levens and Kirchoff continue to deliver galaxy-class art (even if this issue doesn’t have anything as horribly unforgettable as issue #3’s transporter accident… and maybe that’s for the best). Whether a human, a Romulan or a Klingon is speaking, Troutman’s lettering is always excellent. And Uyetake’s design maintains its high standard.
Red Shirts was gripping from the very beginning, and while some of the characters were less memorable than their causes of death, Miller stands out as an interesting and original creation who readers will hope to see again elsewhere in IDW’s Star Trek universe. If the publisher can keep producing unique stories like Red Shirts, which is wholly informed by our favorite onscreen sci-fi Franchise but tells an original tale about original characters, then baby, we’ve got a Talaxian stew going.
The Prog Report
2000AD 2461 (Rebellion Publishing): The highlight this week for me is a new story called Deadtown, from regular collaborators writer David Barnett, artist Luke Horsman, and letterer Simon Bowland. And it’s a bit of a departure from the team’s previous strips, including Barrel and Hammer as well as Enemy Earth. The premise — which is laid out in two panels, through a nice bit of newscaster exposition — is that three thousand dead people were reanimated after a Russian Satellite crashed into a graveyard, and now they’ve been given legal protections and the right to work. As such, the Manchester City Police have hired an undead detective to the force, an undead detective who worked in the same department back when he was living. This first chapter does a nice job laying out the history of its story and a lot of its interesting status quo. It feels like a procedural crime comic with zombie horror layered in, and it’s a relatively novel take on zombie horror, in that not only do the zombies show no interest in eating brains, they’re mostly normal people who just want to return to their lives (albeit a bit worse for the wear). This is a double-sized debut chapter, clocking in at 12 pages, so it has a lot of space to get into all that. And I thought it was an entertaining and intriguing read. It was nice to see Horsman illustrate a more grounded strip, rather than sci-fi and fantasy, too. Overall, I ended up anxious for the next chapter, a sure sign of a successful debut. This week’s cover (above) is by Alex Ronald. As always, you can pick up a digital copy of The Prog here. —Zack Quaintance
Column edited by Zack Quaintance.
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