Keenspot; $5.99 

The first issue of Mark Spears Monsters: The Monster and the Wolf followed the man afflicted with the werewolf curse as he searches for a cure. The second issue focuses on the Monster, telling a tragic story that begins with the murder of innocence, and when Victor Frankenstein is vulnerable, he strikes a deal that turns into a twisted tale of desecration.  

Like Mary Shelley’s original Frankenstein, there’s more than one monster in this story. Nearly all the characters do something horrible in the name of science, though revenge, morbid fascination, and something more sinister play into it as well.  

Mark Spears wrote and illustrated this issue, and he captured the gothic tone of Shelley’s work, while putting his own spin on it. This issue is a departure from the neon-infused Mark Spears Monsters book with entirely black, white, and gray art. Using that method not only harkens back to a classic monster movie, it also gives Spears’ highly detailed work the time to shine.  

–Amanda Sheriff