Fraternity h/c back

Whilst the world waits patiently for the concluding volumes six and seven of BLACKSAD (which were meant to be out in French already though there is absolutely no sign of them, so goodness knows how long us Anglophones will have to wait...) at least we have... the forthcoming BLACKSAD UNDER THE SKIN animated movie...

Sorry, got a bit excited there! Doesn't that trailer look glorious?! Not as remotely fabulous as Juanjo Guarnido's artwork in the comics, I have to say, but then I don't believe that would be possible. Anyway, what I meant to say is at least we have this... Here is the rallying call to arms of the publisher to tell us more...

"Fraternity is a haunting horror story written by Juan Diaz Canales the co-creator of the popular BLACKSAD series and illustrated by the talented Jose-Luis Munuera. During the [American] Civil War, the inhabitants of a small frontier town discover a mysterious beast is prowling the forest around them, a beast that may have a connection to a feral child found several years earlier. Fraternity is perfect for fans of the monster genre and people who have a love for the classics universal monster movies as this tale feels like it would have been right at home amount them."

What that little nugget doesn't tell you is anything about the small town of New Fraternity, Indiana, where this story takes place. It was founded as a social utopia by a well-meaning idealist where everyone would share in the collective bounty of the community, but the fragile experiment now finds itself on the verge of collapse as food begins to run scarce and those of a more capitalistic mindset start to decide that perhaps a less egalitarian approach is what's required. To benefit themselves at least... Throw in some hardcore communists, a few American Civil War deserters and of course that mysterious beast and feral child and it's probably no great surprise when the proverbial powder keg finally ignites.

This is certainly no BLACKSAD, but it is still a well-written western horror mash-up that is far more to do with the malaises afflicting society and the population at large than a lurking monster, who in fact seems to have a far larger heart than pretty much any of the townsfolk.

Art-wise, it's a nice clean, crisp Euro-ligne combined with a very subdued palette of primarily light brown and pale blue. It's actually probably more one for those who enjoyed the likes of THE LIGHTS OF THE AMALOU by Christophe Gibelin & Claire Wendling.