A detective with no memory, no identity and no manners. A femme fatale seeking escape from a powerful crime lord. A voodoo queen with a penchant for mixtapes and hi-tops. A goat-eating TV… Welcome to Dedande City, where good people check under their beds at night and reality is never quite what it seems.

The first issue of Limbo was an interesting read. It felt, as was intended, like a story steeped in a video cassette feel mixed with a very pulp era detective story sensibility. There’s a simple vibrancy to the colouring of this issue that at times almost masks the details in the line work and at other exacerbates the panels with the simpler images. 

Limbo #1 has an almost ethereal quality to it because of Caspar Wikngaard‘s artwork that’s in great juxtaposition to the hard boiled noir stylings of Dan Watters‘ story. The protagonist, an amnesiac named Clay, is  an interesting character who feels like a small grain of sanity in the subtle shades of crazy throughout the comic.

As an opening to a new series, the first issue was …interesting. There’s just enough here to make me want to come back for the next issue, I’m not sure why but this comic just has something about it. There’s nothing about this comic that I loved, just as there’s nothing that I didn’t, but there is something lurking just beneath the surface that’s drawing me back, tickling my fancy as it were.

Limbo #1 has a great feel to it, and it’s that feel that struck a cord with me more than anything else. The more you immerse yourself into the pages, the more you’ll get out of it. This is a comic that has, for lack of better term, a soul to it. Limbo will be a series to keep an eye on.

 

Story: Dan Watters Art: Caspar Wijngaard
Story: 7 Art: 7.5 Overall: 8.25 Recommendation: Read

Image provided Graphic Policy a FREE copy for review

A detective with no memory, no identity and no manners. A femme fatale seeking escape from a powerful crime lord. A voodoo queen with a penchant for mixtapes and hi-tops. A goat-eating TV… Welcome to Dedande City, where good people check under their beds at night and reality is never quite what it seems.

With a title like Limbo, I read the first issue expecting some twist that everyone is dead and this is the afterlife. That still might be the case, but the first issue is more focused on the basics of a noir story including a femme fatale and crime boss.

Written by Dan Watters, surreal is the best word to describe the comic, as the first issue feels a bit like a dream throughout, hence my uncertainty if everyone is dead or not.

The story itself is a pretty basic detective story that also has a pulp sensibility about it, with a supernatural twist. But, what makes it stand out is the characters Watters has populated his story with. Each in their own way are interesting and unique. They, along with some entertaining dialogue, are what drew me in and kept me entertained. Those characters are also what has me really interested in coming back for me.

Caspar Wijngaard‘s art is a solid fit for a detective noir story. The only other work I’m familiar with of Wijngaard’s is Twisted Dark, a comic whose vibe is very similar to Limbo #1. There’s a nice “dirty” look to it that not only fits the seedy underbelly of a crime ridden world, but also the dreamlike feel I had throughout the issue.

Overall, Limbo #1 is a good comic. For fans of detective stories, this is one you’ll want to check out. There’s definitely a lot of questions left out there, and I may be right in my initial thoughts this is the afterlife, but the set up is good and characters more than interesting enough for me to want to check out the second issue.

Story: Dan Watters Art By: Caspar Wijngaard
Story: 7 Art: 7 Overall: 7 Recommendation: Read

Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review