There is a reason why everyone who has watched any of Alfred Hitchcock’s films calls him the master of suspense. As his deft use of tension and silence allowed the one thing viewers usually hope for, relief. As you unconsciously hope the good guys win and the evil incarnate perishes. This is where Hitchcock both excels and cruelly tricks the viewer, as this si where he usually twists the knife.

As the terror that usually we spend the whole film waiting, for is equally unanticipated and worse than what the viewer expected.  Take, for example, Psycho, where we find out who is the villain in the film, as they are both tragic and inexorably malevolent. As the materialization of said sinister force, makes the payoff, that much more rewarding.  In the final issue of Hotell, the Pierrot Courts finally have their reckoning.

We are taken back for the last time, to the Pierre Courts Hotel, where the front desk clerk, as our narrator, feels the agitation and knows we are asking to leave, from the frights that lie within. We meet David, a man traveling with a priest, Father Villalobos, who just kidnapped his son, Cody, believing he was been possessed by a dark spirit, prompting David to commit an exorcism. Before long, the spirit overtakes him, destroying the hotel and a long-dead secret which leads the spirit to the hotel in the first place, leaving the place overtaken by the fire. By the story’s end, every occupant gets their comeuppance, in the most unsettling ways.

Overall, a more than satisfying conclusion to a collection of stories that has redefined nightmare fuel. The story by John Lees is shocking. The art by the creative team is spectacular. Altogether, a story that more than induces fear, it remixes it for the modern era.

Story: John Lees Art: Dalibor Talajic, Lee Loughridge, and Karen Andrews
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

AWA Studios provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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