Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Andrea Sorrentino
Colours: Dave Stewart
Release Date: 14th September 2022

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Bringing us the second instalment in the Bone Orchard Mythos, Ten Thousand Black Feathers is a story of best friends, gamers, and an evil darkness blurring of the lines between fantasy and reality.

Before I go any further, make sure this is on your pull list for next month. Don’t stop and think about it, just go out and make it happen. And when you’ve done that, go grab a copy of the first chapter/arc ‘The Passageway’ (if you haven’t already); like I just did.  All done?  Right, then let’s continue…

I have a weird blind spot when it comes to Jeff Lemire’s projects (apologies Mr. Lemire) in that I never seem to hear about them, or get onboard until way down the line. The Bone Orchard Mythos series is no exception. I picked this out of our review list this week, without any prior knowledge of the preceding book or just how ambitious the plans are for this going forward, and man am I glad I did.

This is a creative team that should be an automatic, no-brainer, add to your pull list, every single time. Gideon Falls was an absolute masterpiece of mind-bending, reality-blurring cosmic horror. Primordial was an absolute sci-fi masterpiece, transporting me back to watching films like 2001: A Space Odyssey for the first time, and with an absolutely heartbreaking ending. And, as expected, The Bone Orchard Mythos looks very like it’s going to be another stellar series.

Lemire’s typically superb writing aside, Andrea Sorrentino’s artwork just gets better and better every time I see it, and when combine that with my own personal G.O.A.T. colourist Dave Stewart, then you’re left with something that is by turns visually stunning, haunting, and legitimately horrifying. I loved the contrast between the bright, colourful, and hopeful images of Trish and Jackie’s childhood, and the harsh, dark, dirty almost photorealistic depiction of Trish’s adult life. It’s almost as if two different artists have worked on the book.

I would love to talk more about the story, but – being slightly hampered by not having read the first arc yet, and mindful of entering into spoiler territory – the best I can do is tell you that it’s a great story. It’s engaging, emotional, disturbing, horrific, and I really wish I’d started this series sooner.

Rating: 5/5.

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The writer of this piece was: Mark Scott
Mark Tweets from @macoy_comicgeek ‏

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