Tattered Man #1

Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti bring The Tattered Man to life in the pages of their all new horror graphic novel!

The Good

If I ever head to the comic shop and am at a loss at what to purchase, I know I can't go wrong with anything from Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray. Once again, I am right. This creative team is one of my absolute favorites, and seeing them dabble in the horror genre with The Tattered Man was something I was looking forward to. The issue opens with a group of kids who break into the home of a defenseless old man with the intention of robbing him. The old man proceeds tell the group of kids the story of The Tattered Man, and his experience as a child confined to Nazi concentration camps during World War II Germany. The story takes an interesting turn with the introduction of The Tattered Man, a figure inspired by The Watchers, fallen angels alluded to in the Old Testament. I enjoyed Norberto Fernandez's pencils in the black, white and grey scenes moreso than in the ones in color. I did think he was a good choice as artist on this book. The pacing in the story is good. It's clear the Jimmy and Justin work very well together and manage to tell an interesting (and rather unlikely) story. I don't read very many horror comics, but I definitely enjoyed this one.

The Bad

The book was so short! This is definitely a good story, but I think there is a lot of room for the writers to develop these characters. I would love to know more about them. One example is Dannika's character. We know based on the dialogue that she is a troubled young girl who has been running around with the wrong crowd, but the writers could have explored her character more deeply. Why did she stray? What made her tick? Does she eventually reform, or does she constantly live in fear?

The Verdict

While I wish there was more exploration of these characters, I still enjoyed the book for what it was. I thought it was very interesting to take something from the Old Testament and make it into this looming, threatening being that haunts the story. The pacing was good, the story was good, and the art was appropriate. While it is on the small side, (about the size of two comic issues), it's a self contained story and is easy for anyone to pick up and delve into. I personally wish that this could be a full mini-series; maybe someday.