‘The Gravediggers Union, Vol. 1’ TPB (review)

The Gravediggers Union, Vol. 1 TPB
Written by Wes Craig
Illustrated by Toby Cypress
Published by Image Comics
Released 5/2/18 / $16.99

Wes Craig is a force of nature. The guy is the artist on the hit series Deadly Class and he is also the writer (and sometimes artist) on this book. He loves creating comics and there’s a lot to like here. Still, he seems to be at his best when he’s interpreting other writer’s scripts.

This book features gravediggers. And they have a union. And they have to find a way to stop the upcoming apocalypse!

And that’s pretty much the premise of the book overall.

Oh sure, there are a lot of character moments.

But they feel so rushed to me and happen so fast it took me a while to catch up. Things happen at a breakneck pace and it’s so fast, I felt I had whiplash at a certain point.

The opening sequence reminded me of 2001: A Space Odyssey.  We see evil in an era with primates. I get the point and it was only five pages. But man, it was hard to get through.

And then, the next twelve pages is all set up. I had to reread it twice just to make sure I got everything.

Once the story gets going, it starts becoming a hell of a lot of fun.

That’s about the second chapter of this book. Our main characters Cole, Ortiz, and Haley, have some great interplay. You don’t really care all that much about them, or their personal lives(there’s a scene with one of the gravediggers and his daughter that’s a snooze)

But the progression of the story is fun. There’s a lot of surface elements, but it’s enjoyable enough to continue reading. Craig ends the trade on a high note. It’s enough to make you want to continue.

I love the art of Toby Cypress. Some don’t. I think he’s a creative visionary and he is incredibly under appreciated. Along with Craig, he creates one hell of a visual look for the book.

This is an offbeat comic which passes the grade enough to have me keep reading it. I don’t know where else it could go, but Craig seems to have an idea. I’ll just close my eyes and trust in him.

RATING: B+