Abe Sapien #12 Review

With all the comics arriving this week, do fans really need to keep buying this specific title? Read on to find out.

The official description from Dark Horse:

Abe’s journey takes a new turn as he meets a twisted couple in this rural horror story of a domestic relationship gone terribly awry.

To call this a powerful issue is an understatement, even though it is an accurate way to describe the proceedings within the confines of its pages. The creative team has seen fit to take our protagonist and put him in a situation that forces an intersection with madness. In real time the events are quick and simple, but with a heavy back story at play we begin to understand the rationale of two people put together in a world that’s gone insane.

Mike Mignola and Scott Allie do a wonderful job crafting this piece, and the most interesting aspect is that they’ve elected to bench Abe Sapien. He’s still in the book but voice of the piece is entirely narration with a minimal amount of character dialogue. Usually I’d complain about that kind of approach but not in this case. The honest reason why is because the authors found a perspective that humanizes some questionable players in a surely heightened situation. It’s a thick and somewhat hard script to go through but its never boring, especially as we reach a slightly predictable finale.

The art by Max Fiumara is one of the consistent positives for this franchise. The stellar talent does a wonderful realizing this damaged world with panels that evoke serious emotions in dire circumstances. I can’t stress enough how hard some of the images can be to view, but nonetheless the unique display somehow keeps it all engaging. Thanks to the dynamic colors by Dave Stewart the overall style and execution remains fresh with each passing page.

Abe Sapien #12 is an easy comic to grade, because the creative team has crafted something that’s not perfect but it stands tall as a singular reason to checkout this title. For that reason this release is a must own.