Wow. Because most of my entertainment, from TV to movies to comics, is so surrounded by hype, it's always a pleasure when something comes out of nowhere and just broadsides me, and that's exactly what Angelfire did. The names on this graphic novel are somewhat familiar, although hardly names I've seen a lot of work from, but it's quite clear in reading Angelfire that this is the work of creators with a full command of the potential of the comics medium. Angelfire is a personal story about a man who loses everything and tries to regain some semblance of a life, but it's also a creepy ghost story, a cautionary tale about the excesses of hard drugs and harder business practices and a shocker right up there with the work of Alfred Hitchcock or M. Night Shyamalan. One of the strongest graphic novels I've read this year.
Angelfire is the tale of John Dury, a businessman without a conscience whose flirtation with a designer drug leads him to lose everything: His wife, his job, his self-respect, and almost his life. To cope with that, he takes off for a new life, but what he finds waiting for him isn't peace of mind but a growing sense of terror and horror mixed with a touch of conspiracy, as he realizes that something, maybe more than one thing, is haunting (and hunting) him. The revelations about what that is, and how it all came to be, are so shocking that I don't even want to hint at it lest I give away a terrific twist, but suffice it to say that Angelfire has surprises and revelations a-plenty up its sleeve.
It's rare that a comic can really creep me out, but Angelfire is the type of graphic novel that will have me looking over my shoulder in the quiet hours of the morning. Blythe and Parkhouse do an amazing job of conveying the nature of spirits in the story, both those that are friendly and comforting and those that are less so. The feeling of being alone in an unfamiliar place has never been so effectively captured in comics as it is in the last chapter of Angelfire, and the haunting flashbacks to the Novice that begin each chapter of the graphic novel are equally creepy and moving.
Angelfire has more than just a creep factor going for it, though. The center of the book is John Dury, who is about as real a protagonist as you could ask for. His pain as a result of what his life has become is palpable, and despite the more egregious acts he undertakes early in the book, it's hard not to sympathize with the guy. It helps that Blythe writes a really authentic feeling friendship between John and his buddy Zee, with fun banter and heartfelt connection that makes the eventual... well, that would be telling. At any rate, the way this relationship develops throughout the book makes for very compelling reading.
Then there's the artwork. I've had the good fortune of seeing both the black and white pages and the colored pages, and let me tell you, Angelfire has some of the finest art you'll find in comics this year. The black and white pages are gorgeous, detailed and evocative, reminiscent of guys like Sean Phillips and Charlie Adlard, and Steve Parkhouse's work here just blows his impressive work on The Milkman Murders out of the water. The realism and expressive nature to be found in the designs of these characters calls to mind the great character actors of Hollywood, and the haunting tone of the book is due in no small part to Parkhouse's beautiful visuals of Scotland and of the hallucinatory realms to which John Dury visits. When the black and white work is that solid, I often find that color just distracts from the finished product, but the moody coloring suits the work perfectly and heightens the detail and mood to be found in the work.
Angelfire is one of the best surprises I've had this year, and certainly one of the best horror/suspense comics I've ever read. If you're a fan of suspense films, of the comic Hellblazer, or really just of excellent usage of the comics medium, this is well worth seeking out. The only downside is that Angelfire is not currently available through regular outlets, but will only be available for purchase at the Shattered Frames website. With any luck, Angelfire will eventually see a release through more mainstream outlets, but in the meantime, it's worth the extra hassle to get a copy. 10/10
