Vigilantes are strange creatures. They walk a path paved by violence that shares more with horror than we like to think it does. Put under a harsh light, they can be viewed as a special kind of serial killer. The thing with their own brand of killing, though, is that theirs is guided by a moral compass that keeps them from being categorically identified as evil. Vigilantes, as is often the case, are wronged people that decide to take justice into their own hands once they’ve seen the legal system fail miserably at catching those responsible of extreme wrongdoing.

This is what Amanda Deibert and Cat Staggs have decided to put the spotlight on for their graphic novel Death Mask, a vigilante story with an unrelenting view on justice and whether something else should take up the mantle when the law falls short. The book is the first in Storm King Comics’ new line “Dark & Twisted,” a series of comics that will be focusing on human horror. No ghosts or ancient gods here. Only the most dangerous monster known to humanity: Us.

Death Mask follows Detective Maza, a hard woman that still believes in playing things by the book despite the dire conditions of the system she’s a part of as a series of murders seem to initially point towards a new serial killer. Problem is, the victim pool is all deserving of the very gory ends they meet. They are part of a cartel with a vicious history of violence, and their deaths are actually welcomed by some in the police. But not for Maza. Therein lies the debate at the heart of the story: does every victim deserve to be served justice equally, or is there room for prejudice depending on the victim’s rap sheet?

Deibert’s writing navigates these complex waters well. A lot of character work is afforded to the story’s players to really fish out the tensions between the killer’s methods and the investigators’ view on how energy should be expended on solving the killing of criminals. Maza, for instance, deals with troubles at home as her wife struggles with the all-consuming nature of her partner’s work. It places her professional convictions as a legitimate stressor on her home life.

What’s interesting is that Deibert manages to portray Maza’s stubborn fealty to the letter of the law as a potential character flaw that’s bled over to her marriage. It’s a clever bit of characterization that makes Maza stand out as not just another detective character in a vigilante story, and it keeps the story feeling fresh throughout. The same goes for the killer, but going more into that would spoil the amazing work the creative team put behind the story.

Staggs approaches these themes with a rawness that frames the vigilante’s violence squarely in horror territory. Every single killing is gory, gruesome, and unsettling. The very first one involves a decapitation via golf club. Golf clubs aren’t sharp metal objects. They’re blunt instruments. You do the math.

While there’s a fair bit of fun had with the violence, it does point to the severity behind the vengeance the vigilante seeks. In a way, it builds up the character in surprising ways that makes the reveal of their identity hit with a well-earned sense of shock. It speaks volumes to the quality of the storytelling on display.

Nothing comes across as gratuitous. It’s all trained on adding layers to the question of vigilantism and to the characters entrenched in this very bloody situation. In fact, Staggs invites an interrogation of the violence to consider whether it fits the crimes the vigilante has deemed them worthy of. It’s why its explicitness works. Readers are supposed to engage with it.

Janice Chiang does an excellent job with the lettering, expertly weaving conversations, screams, and sound effects in between all the character work that graces most every panel. Characters are allowed breathing room with text placement that admirably affects the pace of the story. The SFX, in particular, accentuates the gorier elements without turning them into caricature, giving the art an extra push in its capacity for horror.

One point of note here. Death Mask uses horror in subtle and nuanced ways and it’s important not to take that for granted. Vigilante stories deal in the cruelty humanity is capable of, especially when it comes to violent crime. Deibert and Staggs are well aware of this, especially as it pertains to the need not to shy away from darkness to get at deeper meanings and explorations. The gore is reminiscent of slasher horror in parts, and it will satisfy readers that enjoy splatter, but the creative team here has managed to indulge that style while making sure it fulfills other narrative purposes. It achieves in doing what horror does best: confronting people with necessary darkness.

Death Mask is a great addition to the vigilante tradition. Deibert and Staggs have come up with a story that puts morality and justice under the unforgiving gaze of consequence to cast doubt on whether there is a right or a wrong way of making bad people pay for their bad behavior. It’s smart, urgent, and confrontational, and it uses the language of horror well to make its ideas land with brutal force. Death Mask has set the tone for future “Dark & Twisted” stories at Storm King. You can’t ask for a better start.

Story: Amanda Deibert Art: Cat Staggs Letters: Janice Chiang
Release date: September 19, 2023
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy, and never underestimate the power of a golf club.

Storm King Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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