Harrow County #3 (Comics) Review

Harrow County continues as Emmy faces things in the dark of the woods that’d best be left undisturbed, and one of her own aims to to her in permanently.

I hadn’t been reading Harrow County before I picked up the third issue (in stores today), and I’m sorry to say that as this is one pretty awesome book. More of a fright book than something that I’d cal ‘horror’, Harrow County hits all the right notes and is something that you truly don’t see all that often outside of Mike Mignola’s Hellboy universe.

It is horror as far as genre is concerned, but a smart horror, and one that is beautifully told and illustrated. It feels like an older comic and, although it does have some, it doesn’t need blood and guts to spook you, and pulls you right into its world, which I already want to know everything about.

Emmy is a teenage girl, one who just might be the reincarnation of a witch who practiced the not-so-nice kind of magic. Killed by townsfolk 18 years prior, Hester wasn’t the best person in the world, at least that’s what I got from Emmy’s dad in this issue, as he related things to his daughter… just before he tried to kill her.

It was a shocking moment in a book that was full of them, not the least reason of which because I hadn’t been caught up before I started reading. It definitely seems as though the force is strong with young Emmy though, as spirits watch over her and even protect her in times of trouble.

Unfortunately, there are others though, things out in the wood that she is compelled to explore, who would see harm come to her. Things of the otherworldly -and human- kind. This is a universe that I was instantly drawn into, and I couldn’t be happier.

Writer Cullen Bunn is at his absolutely best here, crafting a tale filled with magic and mystery that I have to believe that anyone who digs a little bit of the supernatural would absolutely love. I know I do. There’s a stunning amount of stuff happening here too, and a great amount of detail, and yet there’s nothing that feels rushed or breezed through. Sure there are elements that don’t get a totally satisfactory explanation, but unlike in some books those things don’t leave you wanting and instead come across as deliberately placed.

The artwork is equally good, jumping off the pencils of illustrator Tyler Crook as he quite frankly crafts a masterpiece. Harrow County’s visuals come off as a unique mix of classic Halloween horror and Disney charm and it works flawlessly. There’s definitely a little Nightmare Before Christmas flavoring sprinkled into this mix and it has an incredibly page-turning effect. I literally could not wait to flip the page and see what happened next- and I mean that in terms of the narrative as well as the imagery.

Final Thoughts

Simply a fantastic horror book, Harrow County #3 isn’t to be missed by anyone who’s into the genre’s finer and more mysterious side. You won’t find too much gore here (though there is a little), but what you will find is a continuation of one of the smartest scary stories I’ve read in a long time.

Oh, and it’s downright pretty too.