GRIMM SPOTLIGHT: RED AGENT: BEAST OF BELGIUM – Review

In GRIMM SPOTLIGHT: RED AGENT: BEAST OF BELGIUM, available from Zenescope Entertainment on August 25th, 2021, Red Agent is sent to Paris to investigate series of brutal gangland killings committed by a monster.

Wait! Don’t Forget To Sign Up For The Comical Opinions Newsletter.

The Details

• Written By: Joe Brusha
• Art By: Jordi Tarragona
• Colors By: Ceci De La Cruz
• Letters By: Taylor Esposito
• Cover Art By: Igor Vitorino, Ivan Nunes
• Cover Price: $5.99
• Release Date: August 25, 2021

Was It Good?

It’s been a while since we’ve seen a Red Agent (aka Red Riding Hood) title come out, so I’m not ashamed to admit I needed a little refresher on the character. Red is a government-sanctioned Ops agent with expert fighting skills and a”wolfish” side that gives her an edge in a fight. With the refresher done, let’s get back to the review.

I enjoyed this story that felt like a standard Zenescope action plot with a dash of Return to Castle Wolfenstein thrown in for good measure. We’ll get to the details in the next section, so just know that there’s a bloodthirsty monster, plenty of folks getting ripped to shreds, and exciting fight scenes involving two kickass agents.

The plot is not anything unusual or ultra-unique. Two agents are sent to investigate mass murders that look like a gang war getting out of hand. When they get boots on the ground, they find out the killer is more than they suspected. What’s nice is the comic focuses mostly on the action with just enough talking and exposition to fill in the blanks. The action scenes are well done, the backstory of the main monster makes some sense, and to be fair, the resolution was unexpected.

The art from Tarragona ranges from good to very good. I especially liked the main monster’s creature design, and the (sometimes gory) mayhem during the multiple fights.

In short, this is a standard Zenescope creature-feature story with cool designs, lots of action, and a satisfying ending.

What’s It About?

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

We begin with a flashback to a battle scene in Belgium during WWI. Belgian soldiers are in a stalemate against the Germans in an area known as the “No Man’s Land,” however, the stalemate is briefly broken when a number of soldiers are brutally killed by a monster that looks like a cross between Frankenstein’s Monster and a werewolf. As quickly as the attacks started, the attacks suddenly stopped.

Back to the present. Britney Waters aka Red Agent and Agent Avril are called to Belgium to investigate an unusual escalation in a local gang war. The government recognizes there must be a balance between the gangs to prevent unnecessary violensce, but someone (or something) is threatening that balance. They are both assigned Agent Phoenix to act as the local liaison.

When Red and Avril investigate the scene of the most recent killing, the trail leads to a local crime boss and the grandson of the inventor who originally created the Beast of Belgium. The crime boss hired the grandson to bring the monster back to life as a weapon so that one gang can rule the country.

We conclude the issue with several fights to stay alive, the monster slipping his “leash”, and the birth of a new legend to scare children away from the woods.

Final Thoughts

GRIMM SPOTLIGHT: RED AGENT: BEAST OF BELGIUM is a fun little creature-feature comic with plenty of action, great monster designs, and an above-average ending. This is a solid recommendation.

Score: 8.5/10