From Winter City Productions, Patrick Purcell, Carl Purcell, Pablo Verdugo Munoz, David Aravena Riquelme.

One of the benefits in running this site for the last few years is the opportunity to familiarize myself with certain creators.  Writers and artists from around the world have sent their comics to me for review and some have done this for years with multiple series.  Its not only a fun way to see the growth in the creators, but in the characters as well.  Winter City has become one of those joys over the last year.

From the beginning the art reminded me of other popular pencilers who have come before.  At around issue #4 Winter City turned the corner and evolved into its own art style.  Sure there are influences, but no more so than every rock band is influenced at some level by the Beatles.  With issue #7 the writing has evolved in much the same way.  There are some familiar elements but overall this is something brand new and I could be nothing but thrilled with the results.

Many comics have similar set ups but the climaxes are where they differ.  Others make the ending obvious, but the journey to see how everyone got there is the story.  This issue of Winter City has be thrown for a loop.  Its the Bigfoot of comics.  I cant relate this tale to anything else because I haven’t seen anything else like it.

The story of Sam Winters takes an engrossing new spin when religion is brought to the forefront within this issue.  I think I know what will happen with Sam and I think I know where this religion will take him.  But honestly, I probably don’t know a damn thing.  I know that this Grim Reaper character has been hurt immensely and now tries to play the protector but I don’t know for sure how that life’s mission involves Sam.

Worst of all is the feeling in my gut at the end of the issue.  My chest felt tight, I checked the remaining page count of the comic, and I panicked.  Something awful is afoot and the tension before the storm felt as if I was trapped and being crushed.  Revisiting these pages while typing is producing the same shortness of breath.  If any part of this book was truly familiar then I would be breathing easily, because the outcome of the story would not be in doubt.  Happy endings, with bows.  Alas, everything within me points towards heartbreak in issue 8, causing this mixture of fear and creative jealousy that is rising within me right now.

In case you cant tell, all of this adds up to a very enthusiastic recommendation.