Zombos Says: Very Good
A carefully structured balance between Cullen Bunn’s narrative and Jeremy Haun’s art keeps this first issue of Wolf Moon moving quickly, yet packed with enough groundwork explanation to set the storyline’s future progression.
Dillon, a scarred man both literally and figuratively, is haunted by the werewolf and its victims, and is consumed by his need to kill the monster. He tracks the killing sprees, looking for his chance to finally end its terror.
Unlike traditional werewolf lore’s bitten-and-be-cursed dilemma, Bunn hints at a different method of transmission, something that may be more random in its selection process for each person who hosts the transformation into the werewolf, and then is left with vivid memories of what has happened.
Making the monster especially dangerous is its joy for killing (and disemboweling, dismembering, and demolishing) every human being within reach; a graphic propensity that Haun has no trouble depicting. A notable panel shows the gooey impact as a fleeing victim’s face is suddenly mashed up against a car window by the monster’s large, hairy arm.
Why does Dillon hesitate, causing him to miss his one opportunity to finally nail the monster? Who is Mason, the other hunter, who, along with Dillon, wants to stop the werewolf from killing again? And what is causing these transformations into this killing machine at every full moon? And what the hell is going on with that cover? Let’s hope the next issues answer these questions to our satisfaction as well as this first issue sets them up.