Page 45 Review by Jonathan
"You're taking this in stride. That didn't freak you out?"
"Detective. I live in Oakwood. I see crime shit all the time."
"Fair enough. Here's what bugs me, Ms. Durante... Someone walked in the door, beat the living hell out of Mr. Tulder, and then dragged his presumably unconscious body away without anyone in the office noticing."
"You think he was kidnapped?"
"Kidnapped, killed... Whatever happened, he's not here. So, unless you know how to hide a three-hundred-pound loudmouth executive in fifteen minutes or less. I'm at a bit of a loss."
"Hmmm..."
Well, Miss Durante ate him, obviously... Which isn't remotely a spoiler as it happens right at the very beginning! No, consider it more a statement of intent...
Despite the stomach-churning, gory opening, I did think this was going to be a slow-burning, creeping horror that would span several volumes as the suspense regarding Miss Durante and her... friend... built up. In fact, it rather feels like the third act begins with the final issue of this collection, and given the dramatic conclusion goes out live on television, I can't imagine how they can put the monster back in the proverbial hat, or person, and go much further with this.
Miss Farrah Durrante is an actress, darling. In Hollywood, no less - albeit a washed-up, over-the-hill one. And actually she only ever really had one moderately significant extended bit-part in a long-running science fiction TV show. A low rent Star Trek rip-off, basically. Scrabbling around for roles, always getting passed over for younger, more fresh-faced versions of herself, she's struggling to make ends meet and provide for her young son. When a meeting with her asshole of an agent starts to go somewhat pear-shaped, she loses the plot and strange tentacles fly out of her mouth, stab him through the brain, and well, you know the rest.
She's rather disturbed about it, as you might expect, and embarks upon the go-to Hollywood panacea for all such situations: therapy! With a deliciously dark sense of humour to complement the fright-filled chunks, plus reasonable enough art from Djibril Morissette-Phan, I reckon fans of Alex De Campi's crackpot GRINDHOUSE series will really enjoy this.
