Basketful of Heads #2: Getting Ahead in Life

As a fan of the first issue of Basketful of Heads, I was delighted to see that the caliber of art and storytelling had not dropped in quality on the second issue. Hill knows how to weave a tale, as well as block out a scene for an artist. Leomacs works overtime to make sure that this art-driven issue remains just as compelling and well-rendered as the premier. The colors remain apropos of a dark and stormy horror story, and even the lettering lends itself to the storytelling this issue.

Hill has a special aptitude for the creepy, and the home invader/escaped convict that June faces in this issue is no exception to the trend. He had an unctuous quality to him that practically oozes from the page. By the time he’s unzipping his jumpsuit to retrieve a gun, your horror at the implication has grown beyond the reality of the panels. When the man is losing his head on the craggy beach, you’re ready to cheer.

Then, horror dawns once again, as the decapitated head begins to speak in full and complete sentences. His pleas for salvation are grotesque given any context, but the writing of Hill is so compelling we don’t even at first ask the obvious questions. Not once while reading it did it occur to me that a severed head has no means by which to drown; that is how invested I was.

As the story begins to set itself up to meet the flash-forward to present in the first issue, we begin to understand the journey June must go on in order to…find Liam? Get revenge? We aren’t quite sure of that yet, as readers. Yet one thing I am sure of is this: Basketful of Heads is still a wildly entertaining ride.