Moriarty #8
Publisher: Image
Writer: Daniel Corey
Artist: Anthony Diecidue
Professor Moriarty is in search of a tree…and some opium. Yeah, who isn’t these days, but in his case, he isn’t looking to get high. Believe it or not, his intentions are altruistic…well, sort of. The means that he will use to get the opium, and find this magical, mythical tree, are not so nice, though. This issue has everything in it – action, suspense, karate, and some TLC, as well. We also get an appearance by Watson, and you know how he feels about the good old professor! Overall, Moriarty is one step closer to finding the Lazarus Tree, and hopefully the answers (or so he thinks) to his future. He has been having delusions that Sherlock Holmes is back from the dead, or better yet, that he never died. This is quite unsettling to Moriarty, who is usually calm, cool, and collected. Is Holmes really dead? Or is Moriarty just getting too close with the opium and getting high? I can’t wait for the next issue to find out!
Alright, well, after the last issue, I was looking forward to getting back to the action, and this issue did. Corey really did a nice job of pacing this issue just right. There were moments when things were flying by, and others where the dialog slowed things down a bit. All were right on target, though, and helped this book get somewhere. I think you can pretty much figure out where this is heading, but I’m sure right when I think I’ve got it figured out, Corey will pull the rug out from under me.
Diecidue did a good job on the artwork. Initially, I didn’t really care for his style. I tend to gravitate more towards books that have artists with more of a polished style of artwork, but this guy’s artwork really is spot on. It’s more of an unfinished look, but not quite. He portrays Moriarty more rough and rugged than I would think a professor would look like and act, but in the end, somehow it works just fine. It’s a kind of trippy artwork, too, almost like you just had some of those special mushrooms, and you’re having a good time. I really want to see more of this series, for a myriad of reasons. The first is because I want to know if Holmes is really dead! Secondly, why does it seem like Moriarty is getting a little fuzzy on where the line is as far as reality? Rating 4/5
Billy Dunleavy
billy@comicattack.net
