Night of the Ghoul #4

Forrest and Orson close in on the mystery of the Ghoul in Night Of The Ghoul #4, by writer Scott Snyder, artist Francesco Francavilla, and letterer Andworld Design. This is one of the best horror books on the market, and this issue is yet another example of why.

The story moves back and forth between the past and the present. In the past, Eagle Squadron and the Professor go to the museum to get dead mummies to entice the Ghoul. They make a tincture and lace the bodies with to draw it out and set a trap at his home. In the present, Skeens reveals to Merrit that tonight's the night everything ends. Forrest comes out of the closet after Skeens leaves, and Merrit tells him where to find the lost reel of the movie, and they go to grab it. At the car, Orson talks to his mom on the phone when his father calls and tells him to call the cops and stay put. He doesn't and is chased by wolves into a hole. In the hole, he finds tunnels, follows it, and finds something terrible. Forrest and Merrit find the film, but Forrest hears his son calling through the vent.

As usual, Francavilla is the MVP of this book. Horror comes in a lot of different flavors, and this one is all about atmosphere. Francavilla understands, and his art invokes the best horror movies of the black and white era. Every page feels like it should have a spooky soundtrack to it. The pages in the past are definitely from that black and white horror movie era, but the way he uses so few colors in the presents captures the same kind of feel even if it's no longer in black and white. There are several fantastic splash pages in this, the best being Orson's discovery in the cave.

The last page reveal of the Ghoul in the past is impressive as well. Francavilla's the perfect artist for this book. He understands how to use color to make each scene work. His pencils capture the creepiness of everything so well. This is the kind of story that lives and dies by the artist, and it would be very different if anyone else was drawing it. Francavilla knows precisely what he's doing with every page.

Snyder's script is the guidance, of course, and it's terrific. Snyder is a writer with some classic tropes that extend even into his horror. He eschews all of that in this book; his usual style just wouldn't work very well with what he's trying to do with this story. This is classic horror, and it's a joy to read.

Night of the Ghoul #4 is stellar. Snyder and Francavilla present perfect old-school horror, and every issue is better than the last. Anyone who isn't reading this book is making a mistake because it's one of the best comics being published.

Grade: A+