Death abounds with the start of this new series.
Creative Staff:
Story: Tim Daniel. Michael Moreci
Art: Joshua Hixson
Colors: Jordan Boyd
What They Say:
When Chase Blaine’s estranged brother and sister-in-law are murdered, he becomes guardian to McKenzie and Zach, the niece and nephew he hardly knows. Seeking stability for the children, Chase moves his newly formed family to his ancestral home in Cape Augusta—which overlooks a deep, black bogland teeming with family secrets. Mixing the chilling atmosphere of The Haunting of Hill House with the gripping terror of The Conjuring, THE PLOT is your next horror addiction.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
While I haven’t had a chance to read too many books out of Vault Comics I’ve definitely found some interesting works so far. The latest book comes from Tim Daniel, Michael Moreci, and Joshua Hixson where it has all the right elements of a Stephen King novel but with more activity to it in the early pages. Anytime any kind of horror book kicks off with events in Maine it’s going to feel this way. There are a lot of interesting moments here but it’s the kind of shortened way of getting us to where we need to be to move forward by showing it rather than telling it, which I think might have been a better approach than what we get here.
The end result is that we have two kids, a teenager and a tween, named McKenzie and Zach who end up being sent to live with the kind of a loser uncle chase after the death of their parents. This has them all moving to the old family house, the Blaine house, where Chase’s parents were part of a line of wealthy type who met bad ends so there’s no love for them all coming here. With Chase inheriting the kids and having only a studio apartment, heading to Cape Augusta to update and bring to life the house while figuring out what to do makes sense. The problem is that Chase is wholly unaware, just like the kids, what kinds of bad things are lurking for them that began way out in California going after the now-dead relatives. That makes an appearance in Blaine house toward the end and certainly ramps things up quick.
While not out of order, what we see in the past with the kids’ parents is how Charles and his wife had really taken to heart the advice of his father years ago in that you have to give before you receive. With some revolutionary medical care in the offing to help deal with mental illness, the two are positioned for something big. All while we see how his brother Chase is just trying to figure out how to muddle through his days. The problem is that we see there are issues that Charles is facing but that’s just a tangent as a husk of a humanoid creature has been stalking them and has now brutally killed both in their home. That sets everything else into motion that brings the kids here and they’re not exactly thrilled considering the stories they’ve heard about their uncle. Of course, being caught up in the twisted supernatural elements they find quickly upon entering the house isn’t going to help.
In Summary:
While horror generally isn’t my thing I’m certainly not going to look away from what might be an intriguing series. The Plot has a lot of familiar staples here and some awkward setup for the first issue but it also has a sense of purpose and style about it that I like. Hixson’s artwork is a big selling point for me in creating something that feels appropriately off-putting but intriguing at the same time, especially with the brief bit of the creature that we get to see. It has a lot of heavy lifting to do to get through the setup phase of it, which I think could have been handled in a better fashion and allowing for more exploration of Blaine House and the kids, but depending on what follows next it could allay those concerns. And I’m definitely going to check out more.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 15+
Released By: Vault Comics
Release Date: September 25th, 2019
MSRP: $3.99
