Grim tells the tale of the dead — both the newly dead and the ones sent to collect them — in this enchanting first issue by writer Stephanie Phillips, artist Flaviano, colorist Rico Renzi, letterer Tom Napolitano and publisher BOOM Studios.
Death Collects
This is Jessica. See Jessica’s scythe? Jessica is dead. You are dead, too! Jessica collects the newly dead. Run, Jessica, run! Jessica has no time for your bullshit, so you should just get in the damn boat.
It can’t be easy chasing after the newly dead as they process that they’re not in their body anymore. Jessica Harrow certainly does it with the attitude of someone who’s seen it all. But she’s right, you can’t run from death. It comes for us all, despite how much our society tries to run from it.
So, lacking a bedside manner, Jessica still manages to convince Bryan Michael Andrews to get in the boat as she ferries him across the river of souls. It seems like the river Styx, but perhaps the one from Dante’s Inferno and not Greek mythology. I want to know more about how souls get stuck writhing in it, in this world.
I can’t blame Bryan for being creeped out. Aside from just having found out he’s dead, Jessica’s reds, from her scythe to her clothes, set off an eerie tone against the light blue snow. Rico Renzi sets us on edge with these scenes, from the chilly forests to the souls in the river that feel as if they were made out of molten lava ready to consume us.
Though we know Bryan died drunkenly hitting a tree after trying to win his ex back, sadly, not even Jessica knows how she died. Is this unique to her or a side effect of being a reaper?
Death Waits
Damn, we can’t even escape the corporate feeling of just being a number in the afterlife!
As we spiral into the waiting room for final death, it’s clear Jessica doesn’t shoulder the burden of being the grim reaper alone. I love the red-and-black uniforms they wear that are tailored with unique silhouettes.
Bryan’s panicked about being left alone in the waiting room for the dead and nearly tackles Jessica as she’s ready to move on to the next part of her day. It isn’t until she gets to the reaper’s staff lounge that she realizes her scythe is gone. From the stories we get from Jessica’s fellow reapers, Eddie and Marcel, it is strange that Jessica didn’t know who she was in life. They help her get back across the river to track down Bryan, who did indeed steal her scythe, hoping to see his ex-girlfriend again. Turns out it doesn’t work like that.
Death Makes a Mistake?
Being dead means the living can’t see you. They can’t interact with you. They aren’t a part of it at all. The trio find Bryan and confront him, but once again he takes off running, flying through the living as Jessica flies into a rage that shifts her face into a red-tinged skull. As she’s yelling at Bryan, a police officer grabs her. It appears that not only is it an exception that Jessica doesn’t remember her past life or her death, she also can now be touched, felt and seen by the living.
I’ve always been fascinated with death and the different ways people and cultures deal with it. I was eager to dive into this series as soon as I saw it, and I can’t say I’m disappointed. This first issue opens up a lot of questions, not just about how death (or Death) operates in this world, but also what’s going on with Jess’ past and future. This is definitely going to be a series that has me wishing the next month would hurry up and bring me the next issue. I highly recommend this one if you’re at all interested in eye-catching colors or the macabre.
Morbid Musings
- So the scythe serves as the tool that collects the dead and gets one across the river? Maybe since Jessica’s lost hers, that’s how she can be seen?
- Can’t tell if Miss Adira is our big bad or Jessica’s keeper, but Jess sure seems in trouble.
- All these reaper uniforms are giving me flashbacks to my high school Hot Topic days.
Cat Purcell is a Career Services Librarian, cosplayer, artist, and massive coffee consumer.
