The end is near.
Creative Staff:
Story: Daniel Kraus
Art: Chris Shehan
Colors: Jason Wordie
Letterer: Jim Campbell
What They Say:
The Autumnal Society has found its sapling. As Kat and Sybil are led into the town’s darkest, hungriest belly, gruesome truths are revealed that upend everything we knew about Comfort Notch.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The Autumnal continues to be a thoroughly engaging book that moved at a slow speed that flipped the switch into overdrive for its final three installments. Daniel Kraus has set the pace so that the reveals feel natural in how they come out and that makes it so that everything flows in a way that allows it all to sink in really well. As we’ve said before, Chris Shehan’s artwork is really strong here as the design and look of it, especially as Wordie really nails the color design for it, a pretty haunting title. With the colors giving this a look of almost being on fire at times with the leaves, it’s intense in a really neat way.
Kat and Sybil have had quite the journey so far and their attempt at getting out of town went down horribly the last time around. Picking up with them here where they’re now at the place where all the adults are in the woods has them definitely scared, but they’re so quickly picked up by the others here that they don’t get time to really panic. What’s interesting with this is that we get them bringing Sybil aside for a few minutes to get her changed and otherwise spend the bulk of the time focusing on Kat. That everyone she’s met or known here has been involved in this in some way makes it clear to her just how present this was in the town and that she probably should have really embraced her distrustful nature in general and left a lot earlier.
But now, here with all of these people, they’re wearing her down. Maybe it’s something in the air, something with the woods themselves, but the conversational tone they all have and how friendly they are in soothing her, they get closer and closer to convincing her that Sybil as the offering is the right thing for the town itself and for her. When the relate the tale of old through the rest of the “lost” verses, we see what happened centuries ago and why there is such reverence for what’s beyond and how it has protected and flourished here, bringing a richness to this town unlike any other. It’s still mystical enough that we don’t get a full-on infodump of information but rather more of storytelling by the town as Sybil is taken away for her fate. Something that Kat can only allow to go on for so long…
In Summary:
The Autumnal is set to wrap up in the next installment and it’s hard to tell if this is going to be a good end or a dark end. Both could legitimately work but I’m hopeful that if they do go the dark way that they embrace it and go all-in on it. Kraus’ work here definitely hits a sweet spot with the way we get the reveals and conversational tone for everything and the way Shehan and Wordie are able to deliver the whole thing with such an eerie nature makes me really appreciate the medium all the more. It’s hauntingly beautiful.
Grade: A-
Age Rating: 15+
Released By: Vault Comics | Amazon | ComiXology
Release Date: May 10th, 2021
MSRP: $3.99
