Comic Book Review: Monocyte #4
Image via talkingcomicbooks.com
I’m not going to lie to you, I haven’t understood everything I’ve read in these four issues of Monocyte out of IDW Publishing. I’ve stuck through the four issue mini-series that climbed out of the cracked and gooey craniums of Kasra Ghanbari and Menton3, and as impressive and awe-inspiring the tale has been, I’m not going to pretend everything made sense to me.
Throughout the entire series I’ve felt the way that I did when watching the film Ink. It’s a great story that I really liked, but just seems to have a level of brilliance beyond my grasp.
Having said that, I do not have a single criticism of Monocyte #4. The tale that introduced us to The One Eyed and the warring Antedeluvians and Olignostics comes to a satisfactory ending with beautiful artwork and writing that I feel has stretched my mind and sanity just a little bit.
I am truely greatful that this comic was brought to my attention. In an industry that sometimes tastes like stale water, I feel like the team behind Monocyte has really touched the potential of what comic books can do and be. I have learned that I can trust the names behind Monocyte and I won’t be afraid to try anything from them in the future.
And I’m a sucker for bonus content. Comics are cool. Comics with bonus shit are awesome. And that’s exactly what you get with Monocyte #4. Not only the closing chapter of the main story by Menton3 & Kasra Ghanbari, but also interior art by Chris Newman and Ben Templesmith and a beautifully grotesque piece of prose by a personal favorite of mine, Steve Niles.
I simply can’t praise this comic highly enough.
Now I also understand that jumping in on a final chapter can be intimidating. But fear not, the Monocyte Collected Edition is on it’s way.
The Monocyte collected edition is going to be a massive 224-page hardcover. It’s going to hit in July, so you should be able to order it now. And the aforementioned bonus shit? Oh hell yes! Over 60 pages of new content! Series prequel, all 4 issues, all 8 side stories and all 12 covers. Let me run off the list of comic book gods found inside the pages of the Monocyte Collected Edition: Ashley Wood, Bill Sienkiewicz, George Pratt, Phil Hale, Barron Storey, Ben Templesmith, Riley Rossmo, Christopher Mitten, David Stoupakis, and Chris Newman. Good god man! What more could you want? Well that’s only about half the contributors.
I’m always trying to encourage you to pick up something fresh and new. Well, Monocyte isn’t one of these books you should pick up. It’s a comic you need in your collection. If you’ve ever bitched about the bad quality of comics today, Monocyte touches on the brilliance the industry can produce. So if you don’t pick up Monocyte in either its single issues or the Collected Edition in July, don’t complain to me about the state of comics.
You need Monocyte.
This is the best series I have seen in comics in years. It is simply mesmerizing. If you want super heroes chasing bad guys, avoid this one. If you want to have your beliefs and mental acuity tested, buy all 4 issues immediately.I didn’t realize comics would ever see over their old horizon, but Monocyte has obliterated the horizon. It is wide open from here.