THE HEXILES #3, by Mad Cave Studios on 1/15/25, gathers the Kreel offspring together to learn the horrific actions their father committed to save himself from Hell.
Credits:
- Writer: Cullen Bunn
- Artist: Joe Bocardo
- Colorist: Manoli Martinez
- Letterer: El Torres
- Cover Artist: Joe Bocardo
- Publisher: Mad Cave Studios
- Release Date: January 15, 2025
- Comic Rating: Mature (language, gore)
- Cover Price: $4.99
- Page Count: 32
- Format: Single Issue
Covers:
Analysis of THE HEXILES #3:
Plot:
After the Kreel siblings survived individual attacks in The Hexiles #2, they decide to meet in a public place to share their horror stories. The demon bound to Britton uses the gathering time to recount the horrific things Jamison Kreel did in life and why he sold his children’s souls. The issue ends with an agreement to storm the castle.
Artwork and Presentation:
Joe Bocardo has one, over-arching purpose in the artwork – to present a series of demonic entities that will make you wet your pants. In large part, Bocardo is successful by presenting one body horror image after another with demons born of rancid viscera and the mutilated bodies they leave in their wake.
Art Samples:
Character Work:
Ensemble casts can be tricky because you run the risk of making every member of the group sound roughly the same or so wildly different that the individuals come off as cartoonish. Writer Cullen Bunn succeeds in giving each Kreel sibling a distinctive voice and personality, which adds variety to every group scene.
Structure:
Bunn’s plot and story structure fall flat, primarily through the disconnect between the last-minute agreement and any articulated stakes or consequences. Do the Kreel kids honestly believe they can take on the Hosts of Hell, and on the very off chance they destroy the Host, that will somehow break their father’s bargain for their souls? There’s a whole lot of assuming going on that comes out of nowhere.
Strongest Point(s):
The highlight of The Hexiles #3 is Joe Bocardo’s bloody, disturbing body horror art, which succeeds in upsetting the characters and the readers. If you want unsafe horror, this issue gets you close.
Weakest Point(s):
By far, the weak point is the tepid pacing for most of the issue, made up for in the end with a last-minute call to action. Bunn spends the majority of the issue focusing on Jamison Kreel to demonstrate how terrible he was in life, but that information doesn’t serve the plot in any usable way.
Final Thoughts:
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THE HEXILES #3 leans heavily on the gore but light on the plot and pacing to show the Kreel children what a jerk their late father turned out to be. Cullen Bunn’s latest entry in the six-parter sets the right tone and atmosphere for a horror comic, owing to Joe Bocardo’s body horror art, but the issue is more shock than substance.
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