The Creeping Below
by Brian Azzarello, art by Vanesa Del Rey, color by Hilary Jenkins
Big thanks to Boom! Studios and NetGalley for providing an
advanced copy of The Creeping Below, a Norwegian black metal, folk-horror
revenge tale that was eerie, gory, and imaginative. I learned about this after
reading a review for another recent Norwegian black metal comic, the humorous
and entertaining Dark Regards by Dave Hill. In contrast, The Creeping
Below is much darker and ominous, telling the story of Val, an American
photographer visiting Norway for a metal festival. Throughout these issues,
there are instances of metal lyrics, and I have to say that they seemed
realistic. As I was reading along, I could imagine the blast beats pumping
while guttural growls groaned out these bleak lyrics. Val visits a bar and
quickly befriends a band who take her out to the forests of Norway to show her
some of the darkest, bleakest spots that Norway has to offer. However, unknown
to Val, she is the sacrificial offering to the band’s dark gods that will propel
them to success. She’s drugged, beaten, and tied up as an offering to the old
gods, left to wither and rot in the forest.
However, something dark awakens her seven years later, and
she arises, craggy and mossy, seeking revenge for her abandonment. Vanesa Del
Rey’s artwork, especially in the forest as Val is left for dead and then as she
awakens is incredible. The dark colors and blending of human and plant life creates
a dark, foreboding, almost ancient and folk-horror like scene that pervades
over the rest of the story. I won’t get into the story as Val seeks revenge
from the band members, but it’s a really cool revenge story with horror
elements. The artwork is impressive- both scary and haunting. I only wish there
was more to the story, especially more explanation about how and why Val was
awakened, and what her connection to the old gods of the forest was. Nevertheless,
I really enjoyed this collection of 4 issues. It was a quick read, but it was
also entertaining for a more serious horror comic. Sometimes these horror
stories can be a little lighter or feature more comedy, but this one was filled
with terror and shock- a great combination of several dark genres. Highly
recommended!
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