Comic Info
Comic Name: Gideon Falls
Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Andrea Sorrentino
# of Issues: 6
Release Date: 2018
Gideon Falls #3 Variant
Reprints Gideon Falls #1-6 (March 2018-August 2018). Father Wilfred feels he has lost his way. When he is sent to the small town of Gideon Falls, he quickly discovers there is something strange in the small town. Murders begin occurring and the appearance of a strange black barn could hold keys to the murders and disappearances and deaths of the past. Meanwhile a psychiatric patient named Norton Sinclair finds clues in all the trash of the city he lives in. With his psychiatrist Dr. Angie Xu, Sinclair hopes to unravel the past and what is the meaning of the Black Barn which seems to haunt them both.
Written by Jeff Lemire, Gideon Falls Volume 1: The Black Barn is an Image Comics horror thriller comic book collection. Illustrated by Andrea Sorrentino, the series was released to positive reviews and won an Eisner Award for Best New Series. The series was also optioned for a TV series.
I like Jeff Lemire and feel he has an aspect of horror to most of his stories. Gideon Falls presents a very dark world that is laced with fear and darkness…and I love where the comic is headed.
The story is both supernatural and gothic, but it also takes a different twist near the end. Lemire admittedly borrows story aspects from Twin Peaks with the Black Barn a representation of horror and evil. It isn’t explained in this volume, but the Black Barn has a darkness to it and emanates this darkness to those around it. A reveal at the ending of story presents a similarity to Lemire’s Trillium which deals with shared time and space…and could really alter the comic’s path.
Lemire also is strong at writing flawed characters that you still like. The comic is split into the storylines of two leads. Father Fred is questioning his own faith, has broken vows in the past, and when he’s presented with something that could actually reaffirm what he used to believe, he’s faced with a dilemma in going all in. Norton is a fractured character who needs the Black Barn because it is the only thing that makes sense in his world (despite not making sense at all). Both Norton and Father Fred have a good supporting cast that show potential.
In general, I like Lemire’s style of art and wish Gideon Falls had been illustrated by him. However, the story might have been too dark for Lemire’s style, and Andrea Sorrentino’s illustrations combine nicely with the story.
Gideon Falls has a ton of potential that is just starting out. It has a lot of atmosphere, a lot of mystery, and hopefully some answers in coming volumes. Jeff Lemire is one of the better writers working today and I always am interested to see what he brings next. Gideon Falls 1: The Black Barn is followed by Gideon Falls 2: Original Sins.
Related Links:
Gideon Falls 3: Stations of the Cross
