As a fan of horror movies, it can be difficult to find a film that is both good narrative-wise and in relation to entertainment value. The movies that usually stay with you re the ones that are completely plausible. Take, for instance, the plot of The Purge. A film series and television show which answers a very real question concerning overpopulation. Then there’s Hostel, a story based on actual acts that take place in Thailand.

Then there’s entertainment that “feels real,” but is less so because it deals with the supernatural.  Take, for instance, the 2004 movie Sightings-Heartland Ghost starring Nia Long and Beau Bridges. The film crew on the show Sightings filmed a demon possession. It was an event that would forever change the film crew and the family that was being haunted. The debut issue of The Watcher features a story much like that film unspools and is one of the best “jump scares” I have ever read.

We open on a young woman who’s seemingly asleep having nightmares. The dream becomes too much, as every night it feels even more real. We’re taken to Saint Michael’s High School, in East Point, Massachusetts, where we find our protagonist, Erica, beginning at her fifth school in so many years. Her acclimation to her new surroundings has its own bumps in the roads. Finding friends is easy but someone she can trust is more difficult. The series spirals into the introduction of a brutal killer whose targets seem more than coincidental.

Overall, The Watcher #1 is a story that mixes coming of age tropes with supernatural and horror elements. That changes the paradigm on the genre. The story by Ralph Tedesco and Victoria Rau is horrifying, smart, and exciting. The art by the creative team is stunning. Altogether, a story that looks to make the reader jumps out of their socks and does it exceedingly well.

Story: Ralph Tedesco and Victoria Rau
Art: Carlos M. Mangual, Julius Abrera, Fran Gamboa, and J.C.Ruiz
Story: 10 Art: 9.0 Overall: 9.4 Recommendation: Buy