It seems that every time I write about a Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files book, I have to compare the comics to Butcher’s series of novels on which they are based. That’s true again this time, but as always there is (I like to think) a good reason. Here’s the official description of Ghoul Goblin #3 from Dynamite:

Harry’s traveled from his home turf of Chicago to investigate a series of inexplicable murders in a small Missouri town. He’s already managed to turn half the burg against him, with the other half’s motives even murkier. And that’s not even taking the Ghoul and Goblin who’ve both separately nearly killed him. Unfortunately, they may have succeeded in murdering the eldest of the cursed family he’s trying to protect—a man who harbors his own dark secrets. It’s time for Harry to seek the help of a higher authority…

Even though GG is an original comic series, Jim Butcher and Mark Power‘s writing still bears the obvious touch of a prose writer. In prose, long periods with no action are perfectly normal. Visually, with prose, a page of dialogue is just as exciting as a page of action (perhaps more so. Dialogue has lots of gut-wrenching indents.) In this way prose levels the playing field between the various types of scenes.

But in comics, entire issues with virtually no action are fairly rare, and when they do appear, the writer generally takes steps to make the conversations or imagery more exciting, to compensate. Unfortunately, Butcher and Powers don’t do that. GG #2 is dominated by generally unexciting conversations, including one with a cat (which I didn’t think was possible).

Joseph Cooper‘s art is serviceable. While he does a decent job of varying his layouts throughout those interminable conversations, he never breaks loose enough to really wow us. Even Harry’s talk with the cat is boring, as the feline doesn’t actually emote. (A major missed opportunity, possibly on the writers’ part) The book’s final page, however, is really striking, and promises a cool start to the next issue.

Ghoul Goblin should improve  quite a bit once it’s collected in trade, where a single uneventful issue doesn’t mean two months of no fun or excitement. With only one issue remaining, I’m interested to see if Butcher and Powers can wrap things up nicely without cutting short some part of their story.

3/5

Zac Boone could go for one of the Renaissance Fair turkey legs right about now. Follow him on twitter @gingitsune23.