IT HAPPENED ON HYDE STREET: DEVOUR #1, by Image Comics on 10/30/24, delivers a body-horror tale of terror when three generations of women resort to an unusual weight loss remedy.
Credits:
- Writer: Maytal Zchut
- Artist: Leila Leiz
- Colorist: Alex Sinclair
- Letterer: Rob Leigh
- Cover Artist: Ivan Reis, Danny Miki, Brad Anderson
- Publisher: Image Comics
- Release Date: October 30, 2024
- Comic Rating: Teen
- Cover Price: $5.99
- Page Count: 60
- Format: Double-Sized Issue
Covers:
Analysis of IT HAPPENED ON HYDE STREET: DEVOUR #1:
First Impressions:
It Happened On Hyde Street: Devour marks the first comic from the Ghost Machine group that isn’t written by Geoff Johns or drawn by his cadre of A-list artists, so we had no idea what to expect. Without hesitation, we can honestly say this one-shot by writer Maytal Zchut is perfectly average but nowhere near the level of quality as the other Ghost Machine titles, such as Geiger and Rook: Exodus. If you’re in the mood for a slow-paced, sedate time waster, this issue is perfectly fine, but the unnecessary length and higher cover price may be a turnoff for future Ghost Machine “experiments.”
Plot Analysis:
It Happened On Hyde Street: Devour begins with an introduction to a woman who has struggled with weight loss all her life. Despite an endless array of diets, fad programs, exercise tricks, and more, she can’t get the weight off. One day in 1983, the woman (who remains nameless until page 30) enters a new shop called Fat Free, run by the enigmatic Miss Goodbody. The proprietor of this particular shop has just what the woman needs to feel thin and beautiful – a container of Devour.
Without a lick of thought, you can already see where this story is going. The assorted denizens of Hyde Street, whose names we saw posted on the Keeper’s leaderboard at the end of Hyde Street #1, will each get a story to showcase their method of “delivering” souls. Unfortunately, the opening scene trips you up on a couple of points. First, the woman seeking weight loss isn’t named until halfway through the sixty-page issue, which quickly becomes a point of frustration. Second, there’s nothing to indicate that this story takes place on Hyde Street, so the cohesion with the larger narrative is lacking. A prominently placed street sign or an obvious atmospheric transition would have been helpful.
Years later, the woman who enjoys life as a rail-thin grandmother accompanies her rail-thin daughter Patricia to a wedding dress fitting for her not-thin granddaughter, Lily. Throughout the fitting, Patricia and her mother encourage Lily to lose weight so she can fit into her wedding dress and look the part of a perfect bride in a few months. Lily, burdened with the disapproval of her mother and grandmother and wrestling with her own self-esteem issues, begins a strict diet and exercise routine to prepare for the big day.
Zchut does a perfectly fine job of creating the pressure and anxiety that comes from generational judgment. Nobody can speak the words that hurt the most than those who love you the best. Unfortunately, Lily’s trials and travails to lose weight take up a hefty (no pun intended) portion of the book, dragging the engagement factor to a crawl with not much to show for it. Lily’s struggles and frustration with weight loss could have been summed up just as effectively in half the pages and a third of the inner monologue narration.
As the big day approaches, Lily’s anxiety ramps up when her weight loss efforts don’t pay off fast enough. Her grandmother, who we now know is named Bernice, brings Lily to see Miss Goodbody for one serving of Devour to answer all of Lily’s troubles.
What’s the horrific twist? We won’t spoil it outright, but you’ll be able to guess what it is as soon as you see the grandmother after her transformation.
Overall, It Happened On Hyde Street: Devour is a perfectly serviceable horror tale in the same genre as the Twilight Zone and Tales From The Crypt. Unfortunately, Maytal Zchut’s dialog- and narration-heavy script is short on scares and slow enough to risk boredom. Plus, the twist reveal was guessable from a mile away. The story concept works well enough to match the Hyde Street concept, but this one-shot would have been better served with a lot of trimming and a lower cover price.
Artwork and Presentation:
Likewise, Leila Leiz’s artwork is perfectly okay. Due to the bloat in the script, Leiz isn’t given many scenes of whimsy or imagination to work with, but the lack of visual interest is made up for with Leiz’s outstanding panel layouts, framing, and detail. It’s a pretty tall order from any artist to match the likes of Jason Fabok and Gary Frank, but Leiz holds her own.
Art Samples:
The Bigger Picture:
Series Continuity:
Miss Goodbody’s method of “delivering” souls appeals to a very specific demographic of lost individuals, but according to the leaderboard in Hyde Street #1, we can look forward to the appearance of at least thirteen other collectors beyond Pranky and Mr. X-Ray.
Final Thoughts:
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IT HAPPENED ON HYDE STREET: DEVOUR #1 is a perfectly average horror comic that uses the pressures of body image to give one of Hyde Street’s collectors a vehicle to acquire souls. Maytal Zchut’s tale of woe gets the job done, even if it suffers from poor pacing and a lack of surprise, and Leila Leiz’s artwork is the highlight of the issue.
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