Behemoth #3 is written by Ryan Engle and Grant Sputore and published by Dark Horse Comics. Artwork and colours by Jay Martin and letters by Frank Cvetkovic.
Behemoth #3 is available now, in print and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold. Grab your digital copy from Amazon Comixology UK right here.
Synopsis
Things have taken a turn for the worse inside the Behemoth. With the bus destroyed, the passengers seek refuge on a French fishing vessel, but their new safe haven may not be as safe as it seems…
Review
After the pivotal events of the second issue, this new instalment has a lot riding on it. It needs to carry forward the character dynamics within the group of survivors whilst finding new ways to amp up the suspense and for the most part, it delivers.
Picking up right in the middle of the action from last time, the survivors find refuge in the French fishing vessel that was last seen in the cold open of issue one. For every new step in their journey comes another hurdle which, as it may seem, isn’t always immediately apparent. Engle and Sputore continually finds new ways to put the group on edge and keep the audience second guessing everything that happens.
Things start to look promising when the group are saved by the ship’s only survivor, Etienne, who has been stuck there for 79 days. At first, Etienne seems like a saving grace for the group as they seek shelter within the confines of the boat. However, things take a dark turn once it is revealed just how Etienne has survived for so long leading to a necessary but intense altercation between those who are left.
The bleakness of the situation is once again highlighted in Jay Martin’s stunning illustration and colour work. I’ve mentioned this in the previous reviews for issues 1 and 2, but the striking use of singular colours for entire pages is a selective choice that is simple but adds so much personality and atmosphere in a concise manner. Martin plays heavy on contrast and shadows, really squeezing out the tension and horror from every page.
This approach to the artwork brilliantly reinforces what Engle and Sputore are trying to achieve with their writing. The expressions of the characters and the lighting of the environments heighten the drama, making every shift of direction for the story hit just a bit harder.
The closing pages of issue 3 throw a bit of a curveball at the reader. After Sara declares the group’s next moves we are then presented with two pages that appear to be ripped straight out of a manga, showing a samurai in ancient Japan jumping sword first into the monster’s mouth. This drastic change in style and setting is jarring, to say the least, but must be setting up something for future issues to explore, it just feels very strange when seeing it right at a pivotal moment in the story.
I can only begin to imagine what this means for the story going forward, but the previous issues have shown a knack for handling set-ups and payoffs in fairly satisfying ways. What doesn’t make sense here will surely come to fruition by the end.
Engle and Sputore have once again delivered another riveting entry to this monstrous story of survival. Playing around with new styles, genres and dynamics with every issue keeps this short series feeling fresh with every instalment and allows the narrative to take the leaps it needs to stay engaging without coming across as outlandish.
Verdict
Raising the stakes yet again, issue 3 adds a decent amount of drama and horror to the proceedings. Behemoth gets more gripping with every instalment.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
