COVER OF DARKNESS: FEMME FATALES, from Source Point Press on May 24, 2023, delivers four tales of terror to appeal to your feminine nature. An arranged marriage goes awry, a phantom’s obsession ends in death, an angel is anything but, and a cursed bride won’t take her curse lying down.
The Details
- Written by: George Michail, Chris Cam
- Art by: Vinz El Tabanas, Ty Peterson, Colin Turnbull
- Colors by: Hailey Renee Brown
- Letters by: Nikki Powers
- Cover art by: Nat Jones
- Comic Rating: Mature
- Cover price: $4.99
- Release date: May 24, 2023
Is It Good?
COVER OF DARKNESS: FEMME FATALES is the latest anthology from the Cover of Darkness series, with four short tales to tickle your horror bone. This time, each short was a woman-centric twist with fresh takes on classic horror stories and urban legends.
Typically, anthology comics are a mixed bag of hits and misses. Either the writing falls short in one area, or the art is sub-par in another. Here, COVER OF DARKNESS: FEMME FATALES sets a surprisingly high bar with shorts that vary in art and writing styles while maintaining good quality storytelling. Each short is a clever twist on stories you may already know, and almost all of them end on a cliffhanger that will leave you wanting more.
We’ve kept up with Source Point’s Cover of Darkness series since the beginning, and this is the best entry in the series so far.
Keep scrolling for a closer look at the covers, or Click Here to jump right to the story description with some spoilers.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
As with all our anthology reviews, we’ll describe each short separately and highlight what did or didn’t work.
Bloody Mary
A young woman, Mary, is offered up to a cruel warlord as a peace offering to end the feud between two African tribes. When Mary’s married life turns out to be a painful existence of oppression and abuse, she sends her newborn daughter away to freedom in exchange for her own painful death. Now, the men who denied her water in the last moments of her life see her reflection in the rivers before their death.
This short is a clever and more interesting twist on the urban legend about Bloody Mary. The art is excellent, the story is well-paced, and the only real down point is that it leaves you wanting more.
Phantom Forever
Erik, the legendary Phantom of the Opera, tries to warn his true love and Prima Donna of the Opera, Carlotta, that her understudy is out to get her and take the lead role for herself. When Carlotta rebuffs Erik’s help due to his mangled face, she soon learns Fate has a way of keeping the Phantom alive, even after death.
This short is a fascinating role-reversal twist on the classic Phantom of the Opera story. Michail manages to swap multiple roles from the classic tale while still giving each player a proper motivation that makes the narrative work. The art here is weaker than the first short, and the short ends too abruptly, but it’s solid overall.
Madame Mystérieux
Young Ange-elle was rotten to the core since she was born. As she grew from child to woman, her desire for black hatred and inflicting pain on others grew too wild for her family to tolerate. When a demon from Hell answers the call of Ange-elle’s black soul, she becomes a bride fit for the fiery pit.
This short sets up an interesting origin story about a woman who embraces the evil and darkness within her. The art is excellent, and the scene progressions flow smoothly. Madame Mystérieux is a character ripe with potential as a demon bride.
The Bride
Asha learns on her wedding day that any man she marries will die in horrific, bloody ways. Every man she loves and marries falls victim to the deadly curse. When Asha seeks out a witch for help, Asha learns her curse was created by another out of greed and selfishness. Now, Asha will avenge her curse on the one who cursed her and the Devil himself for striking the bargain.
Intriguing. What starts as a horrific tragedy finishes at the start of a horror-themed revenge quest, unlike anything you’ve seen before. The art, particularly in the various grooms’ deaths, is the goriest set of visuals in the entire anthology, and the ending is a solid hook for more.
Keep scrolling for a closer look at preview images of the internal pages, or Click Here to jump right to the score.
Final Thoughts
(Click this link 👇 to order this comic)
COVER OF DARKNESS: FEMME FATALES is the latest anthology in the Cover of Darkness series, and it’s possibly the best offering to date. The four shorts vary in writing and art style, but all have a clever twist on classic stories, and the overall quality is excellent.
We hope you found this article interesting. Come back for more reviews, previews, and opinions on comics, and don’t forget to follow us on social media:
If you’re interested in this creator’s works, remember to let your Local Comic Shop know to find more of their work for you. They would appreciate the call, and so would we.
Click here to find your Local Comic Shop: www.ComicShopLocator.com
As an Amazon Associate, we earn revenue from qualifying purchases to help fund this site. Links to Blu-Rays, DVDs, Books, Movies, and more contained in this article are affiliate links. Please consider purchasing if you find something interesting, and thank you for your support.