The House of Montresor #1by Sheena McNeilReviews may contain information that could be considered 'spoilers'. Readers should proceed at their own risk. Publisher
Credits Grade: 7 The House of Montresor is a sequel to Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado". It opens with the murder of Lord Fortunato before shifting a couple decades to follow his granddaughter, Edana Fortunato. As the sole surviving heir of the Families of Fortunato and Montresor, she must stay in her family's estate for a month, while being observed by the lawyer, before she can get her inheritance. Will she suffer the same fate as her father and grandfather, or will she uncover and survive the secrets plaguing this family?I love Poe's works, so I was very curious to this title. I love how it opens with the end of "Amontillado", finishing out that scene for the villain and the wife. It also allowed for Enrica Jang to insert a lovely nod to another of Poe's works though Montresor's costume (a raven) and his saying "nevermore" as a reply. It's simple, clever, and well-done. The rest of this first issue introduces us to Edana and the lawyer (named Edgar, of course), who provides the rest of the backstory we need while making sure Edana understands why such a strange request was made of her. Edana's grandmother (the wife of the murdered Lord Fortunato) interacts with Edana in a creepy scene that leaves me quite curious. I really like how the flames and light of the fire frame the flashback scenes. It's organic and ethereal and provides a nice contrast to the dark, shadowy coloring of the rest of the comic without being too bright for horror. I also like the way the narration boxes are done in the flashbacks, matching coloring with yellow text in a dark red box with an orange boarder. The boxes' harsh corners set them apart in a nice contrast from the flowing flames as well. The art overall is nicely done with good details while also remaining a bit sketchy. It works well for the genre, though none of the characters are very memorable in their depictions. I see the obvious path for this story to go down, but it remains to be seen if it will go that way. I'm curious enough to want to read issue #2 and learn something more about Edana herself. There's not enough new story here for me to make a call on it yet, but this issue is a solid transition from Poe's story to this sequel. Written: February 5, 2016
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