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Casefile: ARKHAM #1
Casefile: ARKHAM
“What if Raymond Chander wrote Lovecraft stories?”
Set in the mid-1940s, Casefile: ARKHAM follows Hank Flynn, a down on his luck private eye who is back from the war and now working the mean streets of the most cursed city on Earth—Arkham, Massachusetts. And things only get worse for Flynn when a wealthy uptown socialite hires him to track down an artist by the name of Pickman. What begins as a simple missing persons case leads Flynn down a dark path of flesh eating ghouls, vengeful witches, and the notorious Innsmouth mafia.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Intended as an on-going series of graphic novels, each installment of Casefile: ARKHAM will follow Detective Hank Flynn as he peels back the thin veil of reality to confront H.P. Lovecraft’s most enduring horrors. Especially the ones that exist not in the spaces we know, but the ones in between.
Set in the mid-1940s, Casefile: ARKHAM follows Hank Flynn, a down on his luck private eye who is back from the war and now working the mean streets of the most cursed city on Earth—Arkham, Massachusetts. And things only get worse for Flynn when a wealthy uptown socialite hires him to track down an artist by the name of Pickman. What begins as a simple missing persons case leads Flynn down a dark path of flesh eating ghouls, vengeful witches, and the notorious Innsmouth mafia.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Intended as an on-going series of graphic novels, each installment of Casefile: ARKHAM will follow Detective Hank Flynn as he peels back the thin veil of reality to confront H.P. Lovecraft’s most enduring horrors. Especially the ones that exist not in the spaces we know, but the ones in between.
128 pages, Paperback
First published October 28, 2015
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30 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
November 22, 2015
It was the mid 1940’s and things weren’t going well for Private eye Hank Flynn. He just got out of the war and moved to the mean streets of Arkham. Or out of the frying pan and into the fryer. Hank has seen terror in the war but that doesn’t compare to what he sees when he is hired by a wealthy socialite to find an artist named Pickman. Hank’s search leads him into a world of witches, ghouls, black magic and straight into the hands of the Innsmouth mafia. Hank is up against an evil that he has never experienced and he is the only one that can stop the darkness that threatens Arkham.
Casefile: Arkham is written by Josh Finney and Illustrated by Patrick McEvoy and is an original take on the works of H.P. Lovecraft with a nod to Raymond Chandler. While reading this I felt like I was watching an old 1940’s mystery movie. The dialogue, the way the characters acted and the fact that everyone smoked and wore a hat, made this book feel like an old movie.
Josh Finney’s writing style is excellent, and Patrick McEvoy’s art adds to the creepiness factor. When this book begins there is a sense of dread, The city of Arkham is a dark place and Hank’s knows this but he is hoping for a new start. Right there the reader is invested in the story because you instantly like Hank but wonder in a place where monsters dwell (and we see in the beginning that there are real monsters here)how can you find something to be happy about?
I love the character of Hank Flynn. There is a scene where his client sends him to a fortune-teller and we hear a commentary of him questioning god. Hank is a catholic but after fighting in the war he is angry with god. He questions religion but he still wants to believe. Before seeing the fortune-teller he has a great speech where he mentions whether it’s a crystal ball or a bible, the name of the game is to get rubes to part with their hard-earned cash. I love how Hank feels, he is a man looking for answers for his clients and for himself. Later we meet a woman named Glynda, a Wiccan who runs a book store and is one of the few people who Hank seems to trust. I loved how Hank has feelings for her but because he is Catholic he feels that being with her would be blasphemy. Hank is a man at conflict with himself and Arkham is a place where evil dwels. I found myself rooting for him to get a happy ending despite the world being against him
I can’t say enough good things about this book. The story is good, the characters are deep and realistic and the art is beautiful. Casefile: Arkham is a work of art and a good example of how art and great storytelling can be combined to make the perfect graphic novel. You could tell this book was a labor of love. I hope this book gets enough support where 01 Publishing can turn it into a series because it made me want to seek out more horror comics to read.
Casefile: Arkham is written by Josh Finney and Illustrated by Patrick McEvoy and is an original take on the works of H.P. Lovecraft with a nod to Raymond Chandler. While reading this I felt like I was watching an old 1940’s mystery movie. The dialogue, the way the characters acted and the fact that everyone smoked and wore a hat, made this book feel like an old movie.
Josh Finney’s writing style is excellent, and Patrick McEvoy’s art adds to the creepiness factor. When this book begins there is a sense of dread, The city of Arkham is a dark place and Hank’s knows this but he is hoping for a new start. Right there the reader is invested in the story because you instantly like Hank but wonder in a place where monsters dwell (and we see in the beginning that there are real monsters here)how can you find something to be happy about?
I love the character of Hank Flynn. There is a scene where his client sends him to a fortune-teller and we hear a commentary of him questioning god. Hank is a catholic but after fighting in the war he is angry with god. He questions religion but he still wants to believe. Before seeing the fortune-teller he has a great speech where he mentions whether it’s a crystal ball or a bible, the name of the game is to get rubes to part with their hard-earned cash. I love how Hank feels, he is a man looking for answers for his clients and for himself. Later we meet a woman named Glynda, a Wiccan who runs a book store and is one of the few people who Hank seems to trust. I loved how Hank has feelings for her but because he is Catholic he feels that being with her would be blasphemy. Hank is a man at conflict with himself and Arkham is a place where evil dwels. I found myself rooting for him to get a happy ending despite the world being against him
I can’t say enough good things about this book. The story is good, the characters are deep and realistic and the art is beautiful. Casefile: Arkham is a work of art and a good example of how art and great storytelling can be combined to make the perfect graphic novel. You could tell this book was a labor of love. I hope this book gets enough support where 01 Publishing can turn it into a series because it made me want to seek out more horror comics to read.
February 5, 2016
The detective noir voice owns its pulp-cliche niche often making any particular story into a guilty pleasure, yes, but not a standout. Then comes PI Hank Flynn, PTSD-rattled WWII vet, to buck the trend in 2 very important ways. 1) The black-and-white inked artwork by Patrick McEvoy in this graphic novel is pure stylized pleasure. Bonus points must be awarded for melding a couple of images and adding color to create the classic horror movie poster look for the cover. 2) Author Josh Finney's balanced incorporation of Lovecraftian mythos infuses the tale with horror-filled outre and layers left unplumbed for future volumes. There had better be future volumes.
Hank Flynn is hired by a young widowed socialite--at the request of a tarot-reader--to find missing person Richard Pickman, a controversial talented artist that paints hellish landscapes. Flynn has the help of a few buddy cops and the provocative Glynda, his own personal good witch:
The city of Arkham is Jackson Pollocked with the blood of art patrons, and nobody seems to have a clue as to why. The missing artist also has some unexplained tie to the mobsters of Innsmouth, so the detective is not alone in his hunt. A secret artist loft. Underground tunnel systems riddled with bones. The mysteries just keep adding up. But Flynn is our everyman probing and musing his way to an answer:
I highly recommend this detective noir in graphic novel form. I received my copy of this novel directly from 01 Publishing through bookreviewdirectory.wordpress.com. I've previously reviewed this author's Utopiates , an extremely creative graphic work of near future speculative fiction.
Hank Flynn is hired by a young widowed socialite--at the request of a tarot-reader--to find missing person Richard Pickman, a controversial talented artist that paints hellish landscapes. Flynn has the help of a few buddy cops and the provocative Glynda, his own personal good witch:
Sure, I was sweet on the girl. I would've had to have been blind not to be, and yeah . . .maybe there was something just a bit blasphemous about making time with a proud heretic . . . but that's the benefit of being Catholic, right? If I ever did get lucky enough to get a bite of that apple . . . I could always go to confession in the morning.
The city of Arkham is Jackson Pollocked with the blood of art patrons, and nobody seems to have a clue as to why. The missing artist also has some unexplained tie to the mobsters of Innsmouth, so the detective is not alone in his hunt. A secret artist loft. Underground tunnel systems riddled with bones. The mysteries just keep adding up. But Flynn is our everyman probing and musing his way to an answer:
With a full meal in my belly, the fog had lifted from my brain just enough for the jigsaw pieces to begin falling into place. Minot's carved up corpse . . . What was it doing in Pickman's cellar? Being turned into fine art, obviously. But how'd it get there?
I highly recommend this detective noir in graphic novel form. I received my copy of this novel directly from 01 Publishing through bookreviewdirectory.wordpress.com. I've previously reviewed this author's Utopiates , an extremely creative graphic work of near future speculative fiction.
April 5, 2016
H.P. Lovecraft's stories continue to influence contemporary tales. For instance, the 1926 short story, “Pickman's Model,” published in the October 1927 issue of Weird Tales, is one such tale that recently inspired Casefile: Arkham. This new graphic novel is written by Josh Finney, illustrated by artist Patrick McEvoy, edited by Kat Rocha, and published by 01Publishing. The black-and-white edition is an enthralling visual experience that incorporates several elements of the Lovecraft story and evolves into its own fascinating tale of noir macabre.
Finney pushes Casefile: Arkham forward by twenty years into a post-World War II noir setting. The protagonist, Henry Flynn, is a hardboiled private investigator who lands a case to find the missing artist Richard Pickman....
Please read the full review at Fanboy Comics:
http://www.fanboycomics.net/index.php...
Finney pushes Casefile: Arkham forward by twenty years into a post-World War II noir setting. The protagonist, Henry Flynn, is a hardboiled private investigator who lands a case to find the missing artist Richard Pickman....
Please read the full review at Fanboy Comics:
http://www.fanboycomics.net/index.php...
October 21, 2020
A long overdue read of a book that I backed on Kickstarter, which now feels, like a millennia ago.
Loved the design of the ghouls and the monochrome art style kept the tale feeling very noir.
Will be definitely be picking up the next volume.
Loved the design of the ghouls and the monochrome art style kept the tale feeling very noir.
Will be definitely be picking up the next volume.
December 28, 2017
Solid pulpy riff on Lovecraft
Really the only complaint I have is that there isn’t more to the story. I blazed through this enjoying pretty much every page, its horrors, mysteries, engaging protagonist and moody, dynamic artwork.
Really the only complaint I have is that there isn’t more to the story. I blazed through this enjoying pretty much every page, its horrors, mysteries, engaging protagonist and moody, dynamic artwork.
December 27, 2016
A fantastic blend of Noir and Lovecraftian nightmare. We've seen Patrick McEvoy's art in big, splash type capacity of the Lovecraft gaming art and it translates better than imaginable to a sequential environment. PI Hank Flynn, both through Patrick's visuals and Josh Finney's characterization and dialogue feels both familiar and fresh; Finney melds the nightmares with the noir so perfectly I found myself wondering if some of my favorite noir films and the genre in general might not easily be interpreted as having some hidden, Lovecraftian impetus. Of course that's not the case, but it is here. Finney and McEvoy summon many a familiar name from the HPL mythos and reinvent them to populate this shadowy world of bad decisions and worse magick.
Highly recommended, especially in light of the forth-coming sequel.
Highly recommended, especially in light of the forth-coming sequel.
March 7, 2018
I believe this casefile predates the one I reviewed previously. So I’ve kind of read them out of order, but it doesn’t really change the story. This one just fills in some background story that the other one kinda touched on and worked off of. So this helps fill in a few minor blanks left by the 2nd book if you had read it first.
Again, I really liked the artwork. Very well done and finely detailed at times when it was needed and less detailed when it wasn’t needed.
The writing was pretty good and the characters are in the process of being developed. I enjoyed reading this graphic novel and learning more about the characters.
Overall, I’m pretty impressed with this series and am really enjoying reading them.
It does have DRM though, so I have to subtract a point for that.
Again, I really liked the artwork. Very well done and finely detailed at times when it was needed and less detailed when it wasn’t needed.
The writing was pretty good and the characters are in the process of being developed. I enjoyed reading this graphic novel and learning more about the characters.
Overall, I’m pretty impressed with this series and am really enjoying reading them.
It does have DRM though, so I have to subtract a point for that.
February 1, 2016
Taking the Lovecraft story of Pickman's Model and inserting it into a hard-boiled noir setting, this graphic novel delivers an original take on what happened to Richard Upton Pickman. Hired by May Derleth to find the missing artist, Harry Flynn finds himself drawn into a realm of monsters and sorcery unlike any he knew existed. A great read for Lovecraft fans, who want to get a look at the weird fiction from a different perspective.
January 18, 2023
Excellent story with some great artwork (one panel in particular near the beginning showing a panorama of 1946 Arkham blew me away). While not exactly faithful to the source material, it’s great fun and very fast-paced. I really look forward to reading the next in the series.
January 23, 2016
Great, evocative black and white art throughout works well for the story. Some of the first half of the book is a little rough, but once it evens out it is a solid pulp - style read.
February 6, 2016
I supported this book on Kickstarter and I'm delighted with the end product. Beautiful B&W art and a relentless pulpy detective story with Lovecraftian elements? Sign me up!
May 7, 2018
The love child of the best of classic horror B movies and Noir detective stories. It's all dark panels and gore in the best possible way.
April 22, 2019
The gritiness of Dick Tracy meets the cosmic nightmares of H.P. Lovecraft. I can't wait to read the second volume, so I'm gonna start it right now!
February 24, 2023
CASEFILE: ARKHAM is a black and white comic book by J. Ishiro Finney that moves the premise of HP Lovecraft's stories from the 1920s to the 1940s. Arkham is now a town full of gangsters who are ex-bootleggers, protagonist Hank Flynn is a WW2 veteran, and there's a strong Maltese Falcon sort of feeling to everything. Oddly, Hank Flynn is drawn to look a lot like Robert Mitchum who played Phillip Marlowe so it's more a Big Sleep feeling.
Hank is hired to investigate the disappearance of Richard Pickman, who is an insane bohemian artist. The woman who hired him was clearly having an affair with the artist and while the reader knows that Richard became a ghoul/is working with them, Hank certainly doesn't. He's a very likable protagonist and aided by his beautiful witch companion Glynda. Even if she's more hot and sexy than the Good With of the South ever was.
I really liked it. Noir and Cthulhu are my peanut butter and jelly.
Hank is hired to investigate the disappearance of Richard Pickman, who is an insane bohemian artist. The woman who hired him was clearly having an affair with the artist and while the reader knows that Richard became a ghoul/is working with them, Hank certainly doesn't. He's a very likable protagonist and aided by his beautiful witch companion Glynda. Even if she's more hot and sexy than the Good With of the South ever was.
I really liked it. Noir and Cthulhu are my peanut butter and jelly.
July 18, 2017
The story moves at a good pace; seemed a lot shorter than 120+ pages. I liked the hard-boiled detective vibe, the sexy female sidekick, and the black and white art.
However, the plot could have been developed better after a promising start. The set-up was better than the pay-off.
Note: This isn't Batman's Arkham.
However, the plot could have been developed better after a promising start. The set-up was better than the pay-off.
Note: This isn't Batman's Arkham.
June 9, 2021
The art gets a little shaky her and there (and a couple of characters definitely have an anachronistic "look"), but it's a pretty good hard-boiled Mythos tale, as if Raymond Chandler had written "Pickman's Model."
November 30, 2016
Great mix of crime noir detective story and Lovecraftian Horror
September 27, 2016
Originally posted at: http://amazingstoriesmag.com/2016/09/...
O, HP Lovecraft. Is there no genre that can't be combined with your stories of cosmic horror? In fact, Lovecraft's ability to inspire horrific visions of reality is why we continue to see genre mashups with his mythos even today. Such as with today's subject: Casefile: ARKHAM: Nightmare on the Canvas by Josh Finney and Patrick McEvoy.
Casefile: Arkham is a comic brought to us by the same team who created World War Kaiju, a graphic novel about a Cold War fought with weaponized Kaiju, which I found to be a fun parody of mid-20th century sci-fi. "Nightmare on the Canvas" is the first book in a series about Hank Flynn, a WWII veteran who fought in the Pacific and now works as a private eye in Arkham, Massachusetts. The second book, "Her Blood Runs Cold", was recently funded on Kickstarter, so congrats to 01 Publishing for a successful crowdfunding campaign.
Anywho, "Nightmare on the Canvas" follows Hank as he is hired by a wealthy socialite to find her missing artist/boy toy named Pickman. We soon learn that the artist is known for creating weird and gory art that is heavily inspired by "ghouls", the corpse eating monsters of Arabic legend which are the direct inspiration for the flesh eating zombies of Night of the Living Dead. As Hank tries to track down the whereabouts of Pickman he will run into a friendly buxom witch, a mysterious fortune teller, the Innsmouth mafia and a seemingly unstoppable serial killer.
In all honesty, I enjoyed Casefile: Arkham. It was a clever combination of noir and Lovecraftian fiction with tons of references to both genres, although it appeared to rely more on the tropes of noir fiction (such as the hard-boiled investigator working in the dirty, crime-ridden big city) while filling itself with references to characters, locations and objects from Lovecraftian fiction. I don't remember any specific mention of Cthulhu, but we did see a small statute of him once and they certainly love cephalopod imagery in Arkham city. Hank Flynn also made for an intriguing anti-hero who isn't afraid of bending the rules or using violence to solve a mystery, but still wrestles with whether he is a good person or is just as bad as the thugs he confronts.
I am a little iffy about how they portrayed Arkham in this Casefile: ARKHAM. I always assumed Arkham was just a quiet New England college town with a dark history. Arkham in this book is essentially New York City with monsters in the sewers instead of alligators. Its not necessarily a bad reimagining, but its a tad unnecessary. I can think of one Lovecraft story set in New York City ("He") and I'm pretty sure there are other stories that at least mention the metropolis, so having the location just be the big apple isn't that much of a stretch.
The art, meanwhile, was good, even though I have a poor eye for it. McEvoy used black and white, which worked given the noir feel Casefile: ARKHAM was going for. That said, I sort of wished he used colors with the paintings, given how important art was to the entire plot. I think having only the paintings colorized would also go with the theme of the book and other Lovecraftian works: that reality is more than what it appears to be. The paintings would thus contrast the horrifying truth of the universe with the black and white world the characters think they are living in.
But what do I know, I'm not artistically inclined like that. All things considered, the art was still pleasing to my eyes. It was realistic when it had to be and over-the-top grotesque when it needed to be. I did notice at least one typo in the text...which is regrettable considering how small the word count is in comic books like Casefile: Arkham. Granted I got this book as a review copy and thus it may not be the final copy that was released to the public, so it may have already been fixed.
In the end, Casefile: ARKHAM: Nightmare on the Canvas is an engaging mash-up of Lovecraftian and noir fiction. Although it has some flaws, it still manages to set eldritch cosmic horror in an urban jungle. I recommend you pick up a copy, but if you do, don't read it while riding the train on your morning commute. Some of the imagery isn't exactly something you want to share with your average train passenger.
O, HP Lovecraft. Is there no genre that can't be combined with your stories of cosmic horror? In fact, Lovecraft's ability to inspire horrific visions of reality is why we continue to see genre mashups with his mythos even today. Such as with today's subject: Casefile: ARKHAM: Nightmare on the Canvas by Josh Finney and Patrick McEvoy.
Casefile: Arkham is a comic brought to us by the same team who created World War Kaiju, a graphic novel about a Cold War fought with weaponized Kaiju, which I found to be a fun parody of mid-20th century sci-fi. "Nightmare on the Canvas" is the first book in a series about Hank Flynn, a WWII veteran who fought in the Pacific and now works as a private eye in Arkham, Massachusetts. The second book, "Her Blood Runs Cold", was recently funded on Kickstarter, so congrats to 01 Publishing for a successful crowdfunding campaign.
Anywho, "Nightmare on the Canvas" follows Hank as he is hired by a wealthy socialite to find her missing artist/boy toy named Pickman. We soon learn that the artist is known for creating weird and gory art that is heavily inspired by "ghouls", the corpse eating monsters of Arabic legend which are the direct inspiration for the flesh eating zombies of Night of the Living Dead. As Hank tries to track down the whereabouts of Pickman he will run into a friendly buxom witch, a mysterious fortune teller, the Innsmouth mafia and a seemingly unstoppable serial killer.
In all honesty, I enjoyed Casefile: Arkham. It was a clever combination of noir and Lovecraftian fiction with tons of references to both genres, although it appeared to rely more on the tropes of noir fiction (such as the hard-boiled investigator working in the dirty, crime-ridden big city) while filling itself with references to characters, locations and objects from Lovecraftian fiction. I don't remember any specific mention of Cthulhu, but we did see a small statute of him once and they certainly love cephalopod imagery in Arkham city. Hank Flynn also made for an intriguing anti-hero who isn't afraid of bending the rules or using violence to solve a mystery, but still wrestles with whether he is a good person or is just as bad as the thugs he confronts.
I am a little iffy about how they portrayed Arkham in this Casefile: ARKHAM. I always assumed Arkham was just a quiet New England college town with a dark history. Arkham in this book is essentially New York City with monsters in the sewers instead of alligators. Its not necessarily a bad reimagining, but its a tad unnecessary. I can think of one Lovecraft story set in New York City ("He") and I'm pretty sure there are other stories that at least mention the metropolis, so having the location just be the big apple isn't that much of a stretch.
The art, meanwhile, was good, even though I have a poor eye for it. McEvoy used black and white, which worked given the noir feel Casefile: ARKHAM was going for. That said, I sort of wished he used colors with the paintings, given how important art was to the entire plot. I think having only the paintings colorized would also go with the theme of the book and other Lovecraftian works: that reality is more than what it appears to be. The paintings would thus contrast the horrifying truth of the universe with the black and white world the characters think they are living in.
But what do I know, I'm not artistically inclined like that. All things considered, the art was still pleasing to my eyes. It was realistic when it had to be and over-the-top grotesque when it needed to be. I did notice at least one typo in the text...which is regrettable considering how small the word count is in comic books like Casefile: Arkham. Granted I got this book as a review copy and thus it may not be the final copy that was released to the public, so it may have already been fixed.
In the end, Casefile: ARKHAM: Nightmare on the Canvas is an engaging mash-up of Lovecraftian and noir fiction. Although it has some flaws, it still manages to set eldritch cosmic horror in an urban jungle. I recommend you pick up a copy, but if you do, don't read it while riding the train on your morning commute. Some of the imagery isn't exactly something you want to share with your average train passenger.
November 22, 2015
It was the mid 1940’s and things weren’t going well for Private eye Hank Flynn. He just got out of the war and moved to the mean streets of Arkham. Or out of the frying pan and into the fryer. Hank has seen terror in the war but that doesn’t compare to what he sees when he is hired by a wealthy socialite to find an artist named Pickman. Hank’s search leads him into a world of witches, ghouls, black magic and straight into the hands of the Innsmouth mafia. Hank is up against an evil that he has never experienced and he is the only one that can stop the darkness that threatens Arkham.
Casefile: Arkham is written by Josh Finney and Illustrated by Patrick McEvoy and is an original take on the works of H.P. Lovecraft with a nod to Raymond Chandler. While reading this I felt like I was watching an old 1940’s mystery movie. The dialogue, the way the characters acted and the fact that everyone smoked and wore a hat, made this book feel like an old movie.
Josh Finney’s writing style is excellent, and Patrick McEvoy’s art adds to the creepiness factor. When this book begins there is a sense of dread, The city of Arkham is a dark place and Hank’s knows this but he is hoping for a new start. Right there the reader is invested in the story because you instantly like Hank but wonder in a place where monsters dwell (and we see in the beginning that there are real monsters here)how can you find something to be happy about?
I love the character of Hank Flynn. There is a scene where his client sends him to a fortune-teller and we hear a commentary of him questioning god. Hank is a catholic but after fighting in the war he is angry with god. He questions religion but he still wants to believe. Before seeing the fortune-teller he has a great speech where he mentions whether it’s a crystal ball or a bible, the name of the game is to get rubes to part with their hard-earned cash. I love how Hank feels, he is a man looking for answers for his clients and for himself. Later we meet a woman named Glynda, a Wiccan who runs a book store and is one of the few people who Hank seems to trust. I loved how Hank has feelings for her but because he is Catholic he feels that being with her would be blasphemy. Hank is a man at conflict with himself and Arkham is a place where evil dwels. I found myself rooting for him to get a happy ending despite the world being against him
I can’t say enough good things about this book. The story is good, the characters are deep and realistic and the art is beautiful. Casefile: Arkham is a work of art and a good example of how art and great storytelling can be combined to make the perfect graphic novel. You could tell this book was a labor of love. I hope this book gets enough support where 01 Publishing can turn it into a series because it made me want to seek out more horror comics to read.
Casefile: Arkham is written by Josh Finney and Illustrated by Patrick McEvoy and is an original take on the works of H.P. Lovecraft with a nod to Raymond Chandler. While reading this I felt like I was watching an old 1940’s mystery movie. The dialogue, the way the characters acted and the fact that everyone smoked and wore a hat, made this book feel like an old movie.
Josh Finney’s writing style is excellent, and Patrick McEvoy’s art adds to the creepiness factor. When this book begins there is a sense of dread, The city of Arkham is a dark place and Hank’s knows this but he is hoping for a new start. Right there the reader is invested in the story because you instantly like Hank but wonder in a place where monsters dwell (and we see in the beginning that there are real monsters here)how can you find something to be happy about?
I love the character of Hank Flynn. There is a scene where his client sends him to a fortune-teller and we hear a commentary of him questioning god. Hank is a catholic but after fighting in the war he is angry with god. He questions religion but he still wants to believe. Before seeing the fortune-teller he has a great speech where he mentions whether it’s a crystal ball or a bible, the name of the game is to get rubes to part with their hard-earned cash. I love how Hank feels, he is a man looking for answers for his clients and for himself. Later we meet a woman named Glynda, a Wiccan who runs a book store and is one of the few people who Hank seems to trust. I loved how Hank has feelings for her but because he is Catholic he feels that being with her would be blasphemy. Hank is a man at conflict with himself and Arkham is a place where evil dwels. I found myself rooting for him to get a happy ending despite the world being against him
I can’t say enough good things about this book. The story is good, the characters are deep and realistic and the art is beautiful. Casefile: Arkham is a work of art and a good example of how art and great storytelling can be combined to make the perfect graphic novel. You could tell this book was a labor of love. I hope this book gets enough support where 01 Publishing can turn it into a series because it made me want to seek out more horror comics to read.
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