‘Red Room #2’ (review)

Written and Illustrated by Ed Piskor
Published by Fantagraphics

The first issue of Red Room was really something else.

It had something that was missing from comic books for a long time and it was reminiscent of the kinds of black and white comic books that I loved in the 1980s. This issue is a brand new story that I quite dug as well.

This issue was striking.

It is fictional for sure but man does it hit a nerve. The subject matter for this issue is webcam murders and it is a fairly brutal read that shows us the point of view from the victim’s perspective. We get to see how they end up being slaughtered and how they get to their final destination.

The whole thing is part of a process that Piskor shows us here.

We get to see how these people are chosen.

We get to see the grooming process.

We get to see how things start to turn for the victims and how they end up at their final fate.

We also get to see the cleanup process. Having someone disappear is also very intricate.

The processes Piskor puts forth in these pages are downright scary. They are so well thought out that you find yourself asking, “could this possibly be real?”

Piskor does a great job with his research and keeps things grounded. It is a strong book. The art is raw and dark. This is not a book that you can digest and forget about. It will stick with you for sure.

RATING: A