AMBER LOVE 23-OCT-2012 If you read my recap of New York Comic Con, you’ll know there wasn’t much I liked; but among what I did like was visiting the 215ink Comics booth. This is a rising star publishing house of creator-owned comics. I picked up some new titles that I was sure wouldn’t disappoint me. The crew at 215ink has gotten to know me and my tastes so when I get to see them, they know exactly what titles will be up my alley (basically weird supernatural mysteries that aren’t gross).

The first one I picked up was IGOR, OCCULT DETECTIVE #001, marked at $2.99 but they always have a good discount for conventions. Something else I’ve mentioned before is the 215ink digital collection. They have a successful digital platform and even sell Android® tablets with their full collection for a ridiculous bargain. Topping off my pile, I also grabbed THE KITCHEN WITCH #001 and the trade paperback for EXTINCT.

IGOR, OCCULT DETECTIVE #001
WRITER: Kyle J. Kaczmarczyk
ART: H. Crawford
LETTERS: Crawford & Kaczmarczyk
SCRIPT EDITOR: Lori Lume
PUBLISHER: Andrew Delquandro / 215ink

Igor and Mr. Frank, as in Frankenstein’s Monster, operate an occult detective agency in Brooklyn, New York in 1923. The premise first reminded me of two other favorites of mine: CEMETERY BLUES by Thomas Boatwright and NIGHT OWLS by the Timony brothers. I’m sure other readers would rather find immediate comparisons to B.P.R.D. but it’s the zaniness of the buddy-cop partnership and the artwork set in America’s roaring age that brought those other titles to mind for me.

The panels are illustrated in a beautiful sketchy style with dark rough lines. The nighttime stormy New York setting is ambient in hues of blue and green to perfectly convey the eeriness of a thrilling sci-fi story with strong electrical messages. The art is not defaulted to art deco and instead pulls style, tone and texture from the genre itself. Something else I also loved was the clear lettering. The font was easily readable and the sound effects worked nicely without being obnoxious at any time.

Not to give away anything too spoilery, there are Lovecraftian themes. I’d say it works easily for a PG-13 crowd with some minor strong language. Readers learn a bit more about Mr. Frank than Igor in this issue. Both characters clearly have room to be explored more in depth to answer questions about why they are together in this Kaczmarczyk universe (maybe we’ll just say Kyleverse for short) and how they ended up in New York City.

Founder and Editor-in-Chief of AmberUnmasked.com and Vodka O'Clock Podcast. Author of The Farrah Wethers Mysteries, comic book short stories, prose, and non-fiction. Cosplayer and figure model.