J. Young, Brian Buccellato, Matias Bergara ‘Cannibal #1’ Review

Between Image, Dark Horse and IDW, we’ve been bowled over by tremendous story after tremendous story. Image gets to add another successful notch on the proverbial belt, as Cannibal is creepy, graphic and insanely entertaining.

The first issue opens at a family run barbeque joint. Things seem as normal as ever, until an errand boy exits the rear of the diner and is attacked by a stranger who apparently craves flesh and blood. What we learn moments later is further disconcerting: savage attacks aren’t new to the area.

Before we know it we’ve got a lynch mob formed and prepared to hunt down the monster that prefers man meat over cow. But this little mission isn’t much of a success, and the book doesn’t mind down on the most uplifting of notes.

I like that.

J. Young and Brian Buccellato’s script is strong, and the backwater county vibe is brilliantly portrayed by Matias Bergara. There’s plenty of intrigue in the story’s earliest wrinkles, and that bodes well for the book, as we’re not likely to run into much down time.

Cannibal, at this point, is a fairly straight-shooting book. That means more than a single safe trope is exploited, but the story doesn’t feel cheap, which is a blessing. In fact, this is a stealthy enough read that I won’t be squeezing another read in before moving on to the second issue.

Check this one out, you just might dig it!

Rating: 4/5