Basketful of Heads #2 Review

Written by: Joe Hill

Illustrated by: Leomacs

Colored by: Dave Stewart

Lettered by: Deron Bennett

Published by: DC Black Label (Hill House Comics)

I am what you may call a new fan of horror in recent years and have come to know Joe Hill mainly through the first volume of Locke & Key and AMC’s N054A2. But you know what? Basketful of Heads is fast making me a big fan of his and makes me want to go out and pick up more of his stuff. 

After a scene-setting first issue, Hill, Leomacs, Stewart and Bennett get into the meat of the story in issue two as June, having eluded the felons / home invaders finally gets a hold of the first weapon she finds, the viking axe from the artefacts mentioned in the first issue (and has been alluded to in the solicits) all while trying to still stay away from criminals. As you can expect, that doesn’t last too long. 

What makes this issue so good, is the almost perfect synchronicity between Hill’s script and Leomacs art. Comic books are a visual medium and sometimes, we don’t want to be told what is happening, we want to see it happen. I’ve bemoaned other comics over the years for being quick reads, and even though issue 2 is a pretty quick read if you concentrate solely on the words being said, the visual storytelling will keep you entranced. There are no less than three instances in this issue that Leomacs art is the driving force moving the story along. Hill helps set the scene, but I can only believe it’s Leomacs’ choices that creates the forward momentum. 

In addition to the amazing pencils/inks from Leomacs, the colors from Stewart are equally as amazing throughout the issue. Though the setting is nighttime, Stewart  chooses to go with a more grey/blue color palette that allows the art on the page to be front and center and not drowned out by an oppressive color selection. This, coupled with an amazing full-page spread three-quarters of the way through the issue, are among the highlights of the issue. 

Basketful of Heads continues to impress and marks another worthy entry into Joe Hill’s burgeoning Hill House imprint at DC. I am really hoping to see a lot more of this imprint going forward.