What would you get if you bred the television show Sons of Anarchy with the movie John Carpenter’s Vampires? You would get the latest release from Storm King Comics, Night Terrors: 13 Horsemen. Packed with more demon slaying than you can shake a stick at thanks to a monster hunting band of outlaw bikers, this book calls for blood on every level.
Night Terrors: 13 Horsemen wastes no time jumping right into the action and introducing us to the core group of slayers lead by the grizzled vet in the game, James. His introduction into this world came years ago when he was forced to watch his wife’s murder at the hands of the demons from hell and it was then that he made revenge not only his goal but his purpose in life. Following a priest that everyone calls Father, the group are constantly on the lookout for who they believe is the main threat called Corbin. There is of course a prophecy that seems to be coming true and if they can’t stop it, it will mean the end of days.
This book moves fast from one blood and gore soaked scene to the next. From one rescue to another, always with the end goal in mind, to find Corbin and stop the prophecy. There isn’t a lot of downtime and never a chance to breath, the action is swift and intense because the 13 Horsemen can’t allow anything slow them down. The fate of the entire world is at stake after all.
From The 9th Circle
Night Terrors: 13 Horsemen is the brainchild of Nat Jones. He had double duty on this one, not only doing the amazing art (every page in this book is just as beautiful as any he has done in his many collaborations with Steve Niles) but he also conceived and wrote the story. So, let’s talk about the writing first.
This story is a very interesting take on the hunting genre of horror, whether that be monsters or vampires or in this case, demons. The element of the biker gang added a lot of flavor to a trope that we’ve seen a lot over the years, opening up the world to where there are no weak characters. Everyone is very capable of handling their business and that’s especially important here, with each turn of the page the problems literally become bigger and bigger.
The art, well, what can I say about the art of Nat Jones that hasn’t already been said over the years. He has a very unique style that is often imitated but never duplicated. The man is in a world of his own when it comes to how he renders a page. Everything is always in motion, I dare not ask the question “is he’s capable of doing a still life,” because he would probably draw a vase of flowers but place it in the bed of a speeding truck, or in this case, on the back of a motorcycle. But seriously, the art is once again amazing and there are many pages I would love to have as a poster in my office.
The other contributor to the book was the always amazing lettering of the one and only Janice Chiang. She was once again able to match the tone and feel of the artist and still find room for her own voice among the chaos. Dare I say, she never misses?
Final Thoughts
Night Terrors: 13 Horsemen was a thrill ride of a read. I consumed it in one sitting because putting it down just simply couldn’t be done. It made me want to grab my leathers and my crew and head out to battle the demons of the night until I remembered that I didn’t have any leathers nor a crew and as far as I’m aware the only demons of the night are my children when it’s time for bed.
I’m slowly starting to think that Storm King Comics doesn’t believe in publishing subpar stories because everything I get my hands on is top notch. Imagine that, a publishing house that puts out original stories and creator owned work, surrounding themselves with the best of the best. Night Terrors: 13 Horsemen just solidifies my hypothesis, it’s a fantastic addition to any graphic novel collection. Jones and Chiang knocked it out of the park.
Wonderfully Weird & Horrifying 