LOCUST #2 – Review

In LOCUST #2, available from Scout Comics on July 7th, 2021, Max recalls the first days of the Great Transformation and his desperate attempt to get his mother out of the city. Meanwhile, a radical cult attempts to end the plague with human sacrifices.

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The Details

• Written By: Massimo Rosi
• Art By: Alex Nieto
• Colors By: Alex Nieto
• Letters By: Mattia Gentili
• Cover Art By: Alex Nieto
• Cover Price: $3.99
• Release Date: July 7, 2021

Was It Good?

This is an enjoyable horror comic. It’s not the best art and the dialog isn’t perfect, but the minor flaws in the comic’s construction are more than made up for by an astounding amount of atmosphere and dread.

Starting with the art, the lines and composition are intentionally lacking in detail so the reader is forced to fill in the blanks of the horror that you can’t see in the shadows. It’s an effective tactic, but there are a few panels where the lack of detail leans dangerously close to cartoonish.

Thankfully, where the line detail lacks, the colors and shadows expertly pick up the slack. The entire world Nieto has rendered feels gloomy, depressing, and hopeless. That’s a perfect atmosphere for an apocalypse-level event such as this where a plague is turning random people into mindless monsters. The randomness of the events makes the situation worse, and by compounding that uncertainty with colors and shadows in striking balance, the art compounds the oppressive feeling of hopelessness and dread even more.

On the writing, the story is simple enough. It’s difficult not to immediately compare the story structure and the vibe to The Walking Dead, but some of the parallels are unmistakable. An event throws the world into chaos, turning people into monsters. In the beginning, one man struggles to save what’s left of his family and flee the city but 2 years on, he’s reduced to a hard-edged survivor fighting monsters and humans alike.

The structure of the story is sound, but some of the panel transitions are not quite clear, and a few bits of dialog are a bit clunky. It’s a solid story overall, but the comic could benefit from a few more editorial passes.

What’s It About?

[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]

The comic is broken up into two timeframes — the onset of the Great Transformation (a mysterious plague turning people into giant locust monsters) and a period 2 years later.

In the beginning, Max fights the melee and chaos of his city as he tries to get his mother to the docks so they can escape on a boat. They don’t make it when their car is attacked by locusts, but before they get eaten, they’re rescued by the mysterious figure known only as Ford.

Ford and his followers have formed a makeshift base inside an abandoned police station, and it’s clear from his side comments that Ford sees this event as an “opportunity.”

2 years later, Max is on the hunt to save a little girl from a backwoods cult determined to sacrifice people as an offering to end the plague. Not only is Max looking for the girl but he’s determined to find Ford, presumable to kill him.

We conclude the issue with the two timelines converging towards eventually revealing why Max wants to find (and presumably kill) Ford.

Final Thoughts

LOCUST #2 achieves an oppressive atmosphere of hopelessness in the face of a world gone mad. What the story lacks in art detail and perfect dialog, it more than makes up for in mood and emotion.

Score: *****/10

[STARS]