I'll be honest, I hadn't intended to write another blog post this year, certainly not a specific comic book/series post, after last week's had me jotting down my thoughts on Boba Fett is Dead. However, what i read next turned out to a vastly more absorbing read than I had ever expected.
A few weeks ago, amongst my many birthday gifts, I received a hardcover copy of the Gideon Falls Deluxe Edition Vol. 1. Having read the first issue for free on Comixology some time ago, as well as hearing an absolute slew of reviews and trusted opinions pretty much praising every single page of, I added it to my incredibly large wishlist before pushing it higher up the list and requesting a print copy (specifically this one) after reading Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino's Green Arrow run.
Gideon Falls (specifically this first omnibus containing the first three trades) tells the story of Wilfred Buckle, a priest struggling with events from his own past who is sent to the small town of Gideon Falls when his predecessor in the role dies under mysterious circumstances. However, Wilfred's (or Fred for short) view on this sleepy little town soon takes a turn when he is drawn by a mysterious voice and strange visions to a field in the middle of nowhere ... and a terrifyingly unusual black barn. Now, joining forces with the cynical sheriff and a zealous doctor, Father Fred attempts to learn the truth about this barn. Meanwhile, in a city a long way away, Dr Angie Xu finds herself drawn into the world of her patient, Norton Sinclair, a man with little past who continues to delve into the city's trash as he attempts to rebuild a structure he sees in his dreams ... the very same black barn.
I feel that maybe I went a little over the top in explaining the series concept but the truth is, I don't think even this amount was even enough to accurately describe and explain this comic and do it justice. This is because I found Gideon Falls to be an unusual story (to put it mildly) as it had such outlandish and bizarre scenes, set pieces and plot points that it left with with an every increasing number of questions than answers to those questions.
However, this ... 'strangeness' didn't change the fact that, despite it being ever mysterious, Gideon Falls was absolutely engrossing to me. I felt that Lemire's story was a real slow burn but pretty much from the get go I was completely captivated and I found myself drawn in deeper and deeper the further I progressed. Everything about this world/s (due to the fact it took place in more than one setting) had such an incredible atmosphere, making me think of the Alan Wake video game (which I guess means Twin Peaks too as the latter influenced the former), with characters which seemed a little exaggerated but just enough to actually make me more curious about what is going on (such as the mysterious 'Bishop').
As I said, this series left me with more questions than answers, but these are the type of questions which are still with me a couple of days after I finished reading. Unfortunately, I don't want to share those questions here as I don't want to spoil the series for anyone who stumbles across this who has yet to read it. However, thanks to the question of what the villain of the book really is as well as the connections between locations and why the travel between the two causes such unusual problems, As a result I really do wonder if, while the title seemed like an outright horror to begin with, is Gideon Falls more a comic that walks a fine line between horror and something more sci-fi?
As for the art ..., well, I don't what I can say that tops my love of Andrea Sorrentino's artwork after Green Arrow, his 80th Anniversary anthology and the recent Batman: the Imposter. Once again, I love Sorrentino's style in this book, as it is absolutely gorgeous in a gritty, very human kind of way and worked really well with Lemire's writing in drawing me in. In fact, the art style in the real world actually made me think of Michael Lark's style in Lazarus as it just seemed so grim and dirty in places, as if you could actually feel the dust kicked up when Father Fred first arrives. However, Sorrentino's work doesn't stop there as his artwork when the Black Barn takes prominence in the story is so trippy and is very LSD inducing as you move through it. That said, that art is still equally addictive, keeping me enthralled in the book even while I found the panels weird as they flipped and inverted from the norm, their angles were rather breathtaking that way. Then there were Dave Stewart's colours which, while very natural in the the Town and a lot of greys in the city, I was struck by all of the deep reds connecting to the black barn, which I found to be very eye popping as well as made me wonder if the villainous Smiling Man is really the Devil?
By the end though, of both the book and this post, I think it is fair to say that I'm not sure the length turned out to be long enough. I could probably have rambled on about this comic series far more than I already have as I delved into every nook and cranny the story offered up to me. The same could be said for this omnibus, where 16 issues was no where near enough, leaving me eager for the next deluxe edition (because I need something that'll match this one). I often wonder when the world in general praise a comic/book/film/etc, is it really going to live up to the hype? It's a flaw in my thinking that I really need to work on. With Gideon Falls, however, I can totally see what everyone is talking about when they cheer its name. This series so far was a phenomenal read and my only concern going forward is that I won't be able to get the second deluxe edition when it is released.
So, hopefully that'll be around Christmas time next year.
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