Silent Hill: Sinner’s Reward

Silent Hill #4

by Tom Waltz, Steph Stamb (Illustrator)

When Hitman Jack "The Pup" Stanton runs away with his mob boss's wife, he thinks he's finally put his murderous past behind him. Instead, Jack and his lover take a wrong turn into Silent Hill and quickly learn that some sins are impossible to escape!

Genres: Horror, Comics, Graphic Novels, Fiction, Comic Book, Urban Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics

104 pages, Paperback

First published September 15, 2008

About the author

Tom Waltz is the Senior Staff Writer and Editor in IDW Publishing, better known as the writer of the new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles titles.

Reviews

[Blake · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible, just terrible. A dull story, disjointed artwork, and poor writing all around. Suffers from the same insane, creative cancer that plagues the rest of the Silent Hill franchise's comic adaptations.

[Spencer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lazy art and an underwhelming story make for a dull read

[Wavieff · Rating 4 out of 5]

bonkers abstract artwork with a off-kilter SH protagonist. quick and easy and wraps up real nice. if you like The Room (4, not Wiseau) you'll like this, and if you don't you're just a lame-o. (here's looking at you, top two reviews.)

[Sassenach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entre 3,75 et 4. Je suis une fan de Silent Hill et tous ses dérivés et donc, j'étais assez contente de voir arriver cet album, marqué tome 1 mais qui, en fait, est une histoire à part entière (chaque tome sera une histoire en elle-même, se déroulant toujours en rapport avec Silent Hill d'où la numérotation tome 1, tome 2 ...). Le graphisme se veut plus travaillé qu'un comics de superhéros, avec des dessins s'approchant de photos retravaillées en dessin (mais ce n'est pas le cas, il me semble). Pas de contour prononcé autour des choses, des tons assez foncés, avec beaucoup de marron, d'ocre, de gris, de vert. J'avoue que je ne suis pas une grande fan mais bon, je ne déteste pas non plus ! Quant à l'histoire, elle est prévisible et sans surprise mais elle reprend bien toutes les références de l'univers et reste dans le ton donc, dans l'ensemble, ce fut une lecture plutôt réussie sans être extraordinaire !

[Chris Greensmith · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Jack "The Pub" Stanton is a professional hit-man for the Irish mob. Jill Conway is his lover, not to mention his dangerous boss's wife. Together, they are on the run from their dark pasts, hoping for a brighter future. But, some sins you just cant outrun, no matter how desperately you try..."
OK, the art was a bit dark and the story bland, but the ending was very Silent Hill...2🌟

[Maggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I kept being distracted by the artist repeatedly tracing his 3D model into the panels rather than painting from a study of the model. His technique on the rendering is cool and I love the gritty feel, but the overuse and uncanny posing of models really killed the book for me and made it feel amateurish.

I enjoyed the story and the gritty tone, but there wasn't much surprise for me in the story. It ended as I expected and never really drew me in.

Only recommended for Silent Hill comic completionists. I don't hate it, but there's better stuff out there.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a pretty big fan of Silent Hill and have experienced most of the games. So I'm familiar with the concept and background of Silent Hill generally speaking. I started this comic with an idea of what happens when one enters Silent Hill, what the monsters and experiences symbolize, and the overall atmosphere.

For a fan of Silent Hill with that same knowledge, this comic may not meet the desired standard for a trip through Silent Hill. The story is skeletal, focusing mainly on the protagonist and not the actual town of Silent Hill or specific monsters or locations. There aren't actually many encounters with monsters at all. So for a person already interested and well-versed in the ways of Silent Hill, I can understand how this specific story may not be up to par.

Contrarily, for someone completely new to Silent Hill, this comic doesn't have the grab that the games would have. The creepiness isn't creepy enough to make the reader want more of Silent Hill. The monsters aren't showcased enough to completely pique our interest. The character isn't likeable enough for us to enjoy the comic based just on him. The plot isn't in depth enough to pull us in.

So what makes this comic good? Aside from the art being awesome, this example of Silent Hill helps the reader understand the essence of the town. What brings a person there? What do the monsters symbolize? Is everything a hallucination? Your imagination? Why is the town empty of everyone but very specific people? Sinner's Reward shows us how Silent Hill changes for each visitor, how the monsters and horrors represent our demons and the skeletons in our closets. This is something you could figure out from playing the games, but never before have the mechanics of Silent Hill been spelled out so clearly to me.

Maybe this comic serves best as a companion to new fans of the franchise rather than an introduction or a new experience for veterans. Either way, I still enjoyed reading Sinner's Reward.

[Wombo Combo · Rating 2 out of 5]

This biggest problem with this comic (and most of the games after the first four) is that no one seems to understand what made Silent Hill great in the first place.

The characters are all two dimensional and uninteresting. There are a few ideas ripped from the first couple games (like the idea that people see the monsters differently) that aren't utilized to their fullest potential, which is a shame. One character seems to exist solely to explain the plot and theme of the story, making it feel like dialogue was written for kindergarteners.

I liked the messy style of the art, but the artist drew everyone with super goofy expressions, which doesn't work when you're trying to make a psychological horror comic.

I didn't expect much from this since Silent Hill hasn't been great since the early 2000's, but I still found it disappointing anyway.

[Malone Silence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bon, je m'excuse d'avance : avec Silent Hill, je deviens très vite tatillon et chiant.^^

En vrai visuellement c'est assez chouette. Même l'image salie du jeu est reproduite, ce qui me plaît beaucoup. Rien qu'avec ça, tu es dans l'ambiance sans problème. Mais pour moi, la fin de l'histoire pose souci. Au niveau de la "morale", je veux dire - je ne sais pas si on peut parler de morale pour les fins de SH, mais je ne trouve pas d'autre mot, j'écris cette review à minuit.^^ Le message transmis, l'esprit de l'univers, la manière dont il fonctionne... Silent Hill ne fonctionne pas comme ça - la preuve avec Silent Hill 2, tiens, puisque visiblement il faut absolument reprendre le scénario du 2 pour faire un truc sur SH. Si la série a coulé, c'est aussi parce que vous cherchiez à reproduire le 2, partout, tout le temps, arrêtez avec ça ! Bref, pour en revenir à la fin : SH2 nous montre qu'on a le choix. Là, on n'en a aucun, malgré les mensonges répétés. Le personnage est littéralement harcelé et poussé au suicide. A moins que tout ne soit dans sa tête et qu'il ne soit pas assez fort pour supporter la culpabilité ? Peut-être ? Est-ce que c'est ça, que la toute dernière page veut nous dire ? En tout cas, ça ajouterait une raison à l'inévitable caméo de Pyramid Head ! Et puis la part d'interprétation, tout ça... Mais depuis le début, le suicide est montré comme la seule et unique solution, donc... Oui, ça pose souci, quand même.

[Michael Kikle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, where to start with this book?

I love the art, mainly towards the final issue, because it literally starts to have the look, style, and even (camera) angles of the original five games. That's a beautiful quality to represent the Silent Hill gaming history, and even though this book's storyline and execution doesn't come near the high quality of all five of the original games, it's still a solid read.

Enjoyable, but not super memorable, I'm sad to say.

Characters are very, VERY flat. Silent Hill hadn't really been known for great characters, but that's not really an excuse for this book not having good characters.

The mafioso twist to this tale is a little odd, and I'm not sure I like it all that much, but the finale makes this the three star score I gave it. If the finale weren't as well done as it was, this would have gotten a two, for sure.

Again: mostly solid. That's about it.

[Nick McDermott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story: 3.5/5
Art: 5/5

I think that the art is a beautiful reimagining of the style of the old PS2 Silent Hill games. I think that for this it worked really well, and gave the comic an uncanniness that served the mysterious ambience of the town of Silent Hill very well. The story is guilt and greed explored at a fairly surface level, but I think it plays into the atmosphere well enough that the whole thing packaged together was quite effective.

[Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

There we go. I knew there had to be some good silent hill comics pit there.

This one read fast. Art work was good. Paneling was easy to follow. Not too busy.

Only two folks go in, so it has that isolated, eerie atmosphere of the games.

Ending was alright.

Overall a good, quick book for halloween.

[Viewtiful_Dante · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entretenido. Tiene sus momentos y mejora hacia el final. No es una gran historia pero captura la esencia de Silent Hill mejor que otras adaptaciones al cómic. El diseño artístico recuerda a los videojuegos en los que se inspira, aunque a veces resulta un poco frío e impersonal.

[Eric Leeson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much of a plot, the violence and gore were tame for Silent Hill. I was curious and wish it was longer or lead up to something more interesting.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ending felt a bit rushed but the artwork was nice, suitably dark and grimy.

[Charlie Easterson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Art is good but the story is very short, very bland and feels a bit like every Silent Hill game blended and mashed into a mini short.

[Arturo Del Rosal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Play the games!
Skip this graphic novel.

[Dmitry Yakovenko · Rating 3 out of 5]

После прошлого комикса со словами "Silent Hill" в названии я бы хотел больше не прикасаться к творениям, созданным по этой вселенной, однако, на руках остался один томик, который все-таки решил прочитать, ведь раз уж он уже есть, то надо ознакомиться с ним и закрыть эту тему. И вот ведь номер, первую половину первого выпуска я действительно страдал, но дальше все перестало быть так плохо.

В первую очередь, страдал я из-за абсолютно омерзительного рисунка, который реально режет глаза. Каждую страницу хочется перевернуть как можно быстрее, поэтому проглатываешь целые слова, лишь бы побыстрее перескочить на следующий разворот. Не радует томик и довольно странными, глупыми и мало интересными героями, которые, в свою очередь, не несут ничего приятного в своих диалогах и монологах.

Зато, что главное, сюжет тут вышел довольно неплохим. Не блистательным, даже не отличным, довольно предсказуемым, но в нем есть много интересных поворотов, отличных сцен, да и финал у него абсолютно нормальный, не то что у комикса "Past Life", о котором лучше вообще не вспоминать. Рассказывает это произведение о человеке с непростой судьбой, которого кривая вывела в туманный городок. Джек Стентон с самого детства жил не самой веселой жизнью, ибо его больной на голову отец учил Джека убивать, поэтому, когда сын вырос, он стал киллером, убивающим людей за деньги. В один прекрасный момент, решив начать новую жизнь, тот сбегает с женой своего босса. И все было хорошо, пока он не потерял любимую, ради которой он и отправляется в Сайлент Хилл, ведь именно там она должна быть.

Этим "Sinner Reward" и радует, ведь он почти сразу дает понять, что это комикс по вселенной "Silent Hill". Знакомая стилистика, многие знаковые места, сирены, некоторые отсылки, медсестры, когда главный герой попадает в до боли знакомую больницу, он сетует на то, что практически все двери заперты, а еще тут присутствует, так скажем, маленькое камео одного культового персонажа тут. Главный герой же приезжает в Сайлент Хилл также как и Гарри Мейсон, ради поиска дорого человека, только Гарри искал дочь, а Джек пытается найти свою любимую.

Это не самый лучший комикс и не самое лучшее произведение по мотивам. Тут есть минусы, есть огромные недостатки, правда, есть тут и неплохая история, и множество узнаваемых фишек Сайлент Хилла, благодаря чему эту работу автора уже можно поставить за пару ступеней выше убогого комикса "Past Life".

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was much better then the other Silent Hill comics that came before it. A little too short, but I know that wasn't their fault.

The inclusion of Pyramid Head seemed a little tacked on, so did the nurse bit. But it's better then the last ones. I don't know what this series has against background though.

Read December 31 2012

[Ned Leffingwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was suspicious when the setup of this story involved a hitman heading to Silent Hill, but the writer made it work. The art was a perfect fit and the storyline added to the Silent Hill mythos. I enjoyed it.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I would usually read. Interesting.

[Miles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good if you like the games.