One kick-ass ride filled with action, gore, and theological fiction.

BEAUTIFULLY HORRIFIC!

Note: The following review goes into MINOR detail about the comic. SPOILER ALERT-ish!

Being someone who typically strays away from the horror genre whether it’s movies, books, or comics, I was initially hesitant to pick up and read the combined three volumes of The Four Horseman Of The Apocalypse written by Michael Mendheim (Bleedout) & co., and wonderfully illustrated by Simon Bisley aka “The Biz” and his respective team. With that being said, I was thoroughly surprised by how much I enjoyed this collection and the badassery that came with it.

The Four Horseman is an apocalyptic story that features the biblical characters that make up the quartet as they are released on earth in hopes that they will destroy every last thing on it after the collection the seven seals. Adam Cahill, a member of the Order of Solomon and a protector of said seals has something to say about that though. After a series of unfortunate events that includes losing his wife and committing suicide thanks to the encouragement of the lord, he is turned into the earth’s last hope as a helldiver. The purpose of this move is to be able to act as an infiltrator in hell, an inside man on the job tasked with recruiting three counterparts to the horseman to help him defeat them before they release hell on earth.

With the aforementioned storyline, there is never a dull moment in this narrative. When Adam and his newly recruited team aren’t going against evil forces of demons, or even the four horseman themselves, the pages are being filled with important plot points that consistently keep the story headed in the right direction, which is one of the features of this novel that Michael Mendheim and the rest of the writing team truly deserve credit for. There are very few moments throughout the book where the story slows down or forces the reader to disengage for even a moment, instead the dialogue heavy panels are packed with shocking, sometimes funny lines or important details that you can’t and don’t want to miss out on.

Of course the other major part of the book that entertains the reader is the artwork, and The Four Horseman certainly is not lacking in this department at all. With a story that depicts such evil, gruesome, and horrific figures paired with heavy amounts of violence, it’s amazing that Biz and the rest of his team were not only able to make every character and scene look badass but also just plain beautiful at times. This is largely in part because of the colorists team of Michael Drake and Chad Findler, who continuously complimented the narrative’s tone and already laid ground work of drawings/paintings with their color selection.

As a bonus to this special collection of the previously released three volumes, Titan has also included an additional 50 pages of bonus content to further entertain the reader after they finish the story. Within those additional 50 pages, you can find variant covers from the single issue run of the series, concept artwork, inside looks at the scripting process that went into specific scenes, as well as easter eggs from certain panels throughout the story being pointed out.

THE BREAKDOWN

For being someone who doesn’t really foray into the horror genre no matter which medium, this was a very enjoyable read thanks to the excellent writing, original storytelling, pacing, and artwork. Anyone who is looking to get into the horror genre or is just a plain old fan of the genre itself should definitely pick up this piece if they haven’t already. Once again, Titan has put out another great collection with their exclusive additional content that makes it worth picking up even if you have already read it.

Are you going to be picking up ‘The Four Horseman Of The Apocalypse?’ What are some of your favorite pieces from the horror-genre? Let us know in the comments below.

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*This review of The Four Horseman Of The Apocalypse is based on a physical copy of the graphic novel provided by Titan Comics.