ZOMBIE DATE NIGHT #1, from Steve Urena on Kickstarter, follows Jack on his first post-Pandemic Lockdown date when the citizens recovering from the virus suddenly turn into flesh-eating zombies.
The Details
- Written By: Steve Urena
- Art By: Sergi Doménech
- Colors By: Joshua Jensen
- Letters By: Anthony Rella
- Cover Art By: Sergi Doménech
- Cover Price: $3 (digital pdf)
- Release Date: October 2021 (estimated)
Wait! Don’t Forget To Sign Up For The Comical Opinions Newsletter.
It’s 100% FREE. Sign up NOW!
Was It Good?
ZOMBIE DATE NIGHT #1 is light, airy, zombie mayhem fun in the same vein as Zombieland and Shaun of the Dead. If you’re a fan of those types of films, this comic will be right up your alley.
Right off, you can tell this is a horror/comedy that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Boy meets a girl online for a date after the world loosens up restrictions from a global pandemic. The awkward boy is a terrible date, and as soon as the girl gets ready to ditch him, anyone who recovered from the virus via a vaccine suddenly turns into a ravenous flesh-eater. As the two fight their way through a mall, picking up friends along the way, the boy and girl learn to see each other in a new light.
The violence and language place this comic in the PG-13 realm of horror with a little more edge. There’s plenty of cartoonish gore. The character designs are unique (more on that in a minute), and Urena adds a little Latin flavor to the conflict through the relationship between Jack and his grandmother. Since this is comedic horror, the scares are not meant to be taken seriously and the humor comes by way of mostly sarcastic clapbacks between the characters. Do the jokes always land? No, but they fit the personalities of the characters.
The down point of this issue, which is more of a preference, is that none of the characters are particularly likable. All the interactions between the characters are dripping with either sarcasm or bickering, and none of the characters acts with any heart. It’s difficult to get behind Jack or any of the supporting characters because they never display endearing qualities that ingratiate them with the reader.
Regarding the art, it’s fantastic. Doménech and Jensen put together a pristine work of comic mastery with this issue. The character designs are instantly memorable, and the coloring is exquisite. truly, this is impressive art for an indie comic.
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]
We begin with a scene in a multi-level mall. Jack has arrived to meet up with ginger for a first date. Jack is nervous as this is the first time he’s felt safe going out after a pandemic, and his dating skills are lacking. Ginger arrives and the date begins, but Jack’s lack of dating skills quickly causes Ginger to consider ditching.
When ginger excuses herself to use the restroom, Jack tries to watch the movie in silence. However, wet munching noises grow throughout the theater, and he quickly realizes that people are eating each other. Jack runs for the exit and bumps into Ginger. Together, they look for friends and relatives to gear up and head out looking for a strong radio signal and help.
Keep scrolling for a closer look at preview images of the internal pages, or Click Here to jump right to the score.
Final Thoughts
ZOMBIE DATE NIGHT #1 is a fun and airy horror/comedy that fits perfectly into the zombie sub-genre of horror. The art is stunning, the setup is familiar without being too cliché, but the characters are sometimes too abrasive to root for, making it difficult to care if they live or die.
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.
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