BOOM! Studios has a long history of publishing some of the industry’s best modern horror, their new series Curse takes them back to their roots with a werewolf story unlike any you’ve ever seen. A horror thriller, the comic has the talented creative team of writers Michael Moreci and Tim Daniel and artists Colin Lorimer and Riley Rossmo. That combination of talent gives us a smart, haunting, and  realistic first issue. Or at least as realistic as a story can be about werewolves.

Laney Griffin is a man who will do anything to save his son from leukemia, but the cost of treatment has broken him financially. When he pursues an elusive murderer in the wilderness of his small, rural community, in the hopes of securing a substantial bounty, Laney is confronted with something he never could have expected: a werewolf. The captive lycan, in human form, turns Laney’s life upside-down, forcing him to confront his haunted past and race against the clock—because the wolf will return, and Laney’s son’s condition continues to worsen. Curse is a story of a family’s survival at all costs.

And that centering on family is what makes this first issue stand out. Horror is best when the group involved is tight, so that there’s emotional stake when a member is either killed or imperiled. That’s what Moreci and Daniel sets up, real stakes. Laney’s a man desperate to do right for his son. With the very looming, and real, threat of losing him not just to disease, but to family who think they can do a better job of caring for him. The interesting implications, and statement, of that particular scene aside, this creates tension, and a mission he can’t fail. This creates a down to Earth horror series that’s easily relateable.

On top of Moreci and Daniel’s writing is Lorimer and Rossmo’s art. Rossmo’s style is made for horror, and the two together give us a dark and gritty artistic look that fits the setting and genre.

We’re early into 2014 and hopefully Curse is a sign of what we can expect from comics this year. It’s a great debut and a series everyone should check out.

Story: Michael Moreci , Tim Daniel Art: Colin Lorimer, Riley Rossmo
Story: 8.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy

BOOM! Studios provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review