Title: Animal Man #2
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Travel Foreman
Colorist: Lovern Kindzierski
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewed by Johnny Destructo

Ok, ok. So Animal Man #1 got a ton of buzz and was pretty awesome. But was it a fluke? Just a good start that fizzles in the second issue? Oh, HELLS no. Animal Man is a bonafide, bone-chilling triumph. This is quickly leaping to the top of my monthly stack, especially as I prepare for my favorite holiday. Scary movies, ghost stories, I love all things horror, but haven’t had the best of luck finding a horror-themed comic that actually creeps me out. Thank you Jeff Lemire for hookin’ a brother up. This is a perfect story for Halloween and my best complaint is that it doesn’t come out weekly.

From the cover alone, which features gnarled animal bits mixed with tumors, you know what you’re in for, and it delivers. Bleeding eyes, chicken-handed fellas, gross Hippo-bits: in other words, this isn’t a series to hand to your children. Our man Bernhard Baker, as we all know, has access to what he calls The Life Web, or the Morphogenetic Field, which I imagine is much like The Flash’s Speed Force. Buddy can tap into this web and access any animal’s abilities while still maintaining his human form. It’s slightly cooler than it sounds. Can’t sleep? Tap into a kitten’s ability to nap. Wanna sneak in without waking up your family? Tap into the weightlessness of an insect. Lemire comes up with some interestingly applicable uses for this power, not just punching someone with elephant strength or flying like a bird. It’s these little touches that add a layer of awesome to this tale.

I don’t want to give away too much of the issue’s content, as that would negate some of the suspense, but DAMN Buddy’s kid is creepsville! More aware than she lets on and more powerful than she should be, more powerful than even Buddy himself? She not only talks to, but resurrects dead animals, and then tries to FEED their corpses! This could lead to some very interesting stuff. Though I do love her lil’ Animal-Gal costume on the cover. Adorable!

One thing I would like to see adjusted though, would be maybe adding an inker to the works. Travel Foreman does a fine job with his pencils, but would benefit from some ink. Scanning in the pencils and upping the contrast in Photoshop does NOT an inker make. Other than that though, the book has a gross and creepy style that suits the themes of the story.

If you missed Animal Man #1, go grab it and then pick up this issue as well, before you miss out!