Fire Chief Fry’s pleas went unheard in the last hours of Pearl, Iowa—but in the present, his sister, wingnut mayor Phair, is finally heeding his warning. As she desperately defends what’s left of her town and Fry’s daughter from the invading creatures, Phair wishes more than anything she had listened to her brother when she had the chance. But now…her brother is nowhere to be found. A Quiet Place: Storm Warning #2 is an interesting second issue jumping between two time periods and delivering action, tension, and tragedy.

Written by Phil Hester, A Quiet Place: Storm Warning is a spinoff from the popular film series but thankfully you need no knowledge of the movies to enjoy. Instead, Hester keeps things focused on a small town that could weather the storm and strange creatures but due to incompetence in its leadership, won’t. Hester gives us a sci-fi tragedy in that this is an alien invasion and we’re given a community built to withstand it but chooses not to. Hester’s jumping between times sees the tragedy unfold while also showing off the aftermath of poor decisions.

Hester also provides the layouts while Ryan Kelly handles the pencils and ink along with Lee Loughridge on color and lettering by Nathan Widick. The art does well to match the tone of the story with a gray overcast to it all, matching the tone of the rather sad and frustrating actions within. The action feels tense and the art helps also keeps things focused staying away from broad, grand, views, and instead of framing the action so that the art is right close to what’s going on. You also get a good sense of the emotion of the individuals involved as they celebrate their victories or show their fear.

A Quiet Place: Storm Warning #2 is a solid second issue continuing the story and keeping it accessible for new readers. It delivers a mix of tense action and frustrating tragedy as it an unfolds. It’s enough that it has me wanting to check out the films and see what I’ve missed.

Story: Phil Hester Layouts: Phil Hester Art: Ryan Kelly
Ink: Ryan Kelly Color: Lee Loughridge Letterer: Nathan Widick
Story: 8.0 Art: 7.75 Overall: 7.9 Recommendation: Read

IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle

The world ended in a hush. The creatures came for the cities first. But in Pearl, Iowa—a tiny island town on the Mississippi—the mayor and townsfolk believe that’s someone else’s problem. Cut off from the chaos of the coasts, they think they can ride out the storm. But fire chief Lonnie Fry knows better. The creatures that hunt by sound are coming west, and unless the people of Pearl take drastic action, silence won’t save them—it’ll bury them. A Quiet Place: Storm Warning #1 is based on the film franchise, but you don’t need to watch the films to enjoy the comics.

Written by Phil Hester, A Quiet Place: Storm Warning #1 is a nice start to the popular horror franchise that keeps things focused. I’ve never seen any of the films, but it’s a debut that is accessible by anyone and really relevant to today’s world.

Hester introduces us to a small town, rather isolated from the world. And with that isolation comes a disbelief about what they’re witnessing on television, in the news, and warnings from others. They don’t believe there’s creatures on their way, a denial of the clear evidence before them. Hester delivers an allegory from modern times of a conservatism that’s built on false beliefs and denial of reality. This is a town set up for success and survival and refuse to do what’s necessary because it means they’d need to sacrifice something or be inconvenienced. A Quiet Place: Storm Warning #1 is our modern politics in a nutshell.

Hester provides the page layout with Ryan Kelly‘s pencils and inks delivering an issue that focuses in on the small town quality of it all but also the storm to come. With color by Lee Loughridge and lettering by Nathan Widick, the comic delivers a solid story of what is primarily adults yelling at each other. It’s a debate that you know will end badly and the art has a sadness to it, you can hate those who are clearly wrong, but the art also adds in a chance to pity them.

A Quiet Place: Storm Warning #1 is a welcoming debut that those new to the franchise can dive in and enjoy. It can be enjoyed on the surface level or appreciated for its deeper examination of how a minority, who are so wrong, can be the death of us all.

Story: Phil Hester Art: Phil Hester, Ryan Kelly
Color: Lee Loughrdige Letterer: Nathan Widick
Story: 8.0 Art: 7.85 Overall: 7.95 Recommendation: Read

IDW Publishing provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – Kindle