Into the Unbeing Part Two #1 was my first 10/10 review of the year, and for good reason. Zac Thompson and Hayden Sherman introduced us to a new angle on the body horror narrative. Now, with the second issue out, the weirdness and the gross monster design increase in an absorbing chapter that’s like a fever dream mixed with cerebral meditation.
Into the Unbeing Part Two #2 opens with a rude sketch of a torso that is, more or less, a map our characters are using to escape a giant body. Led by a strange creature that was once a man, they embark on an ocean that seems impossibly large, given that they’re inside something.
So begins a trek not unlike Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. Not only does this issue go into the effects of extreme heat on our characters, but what they perceive is questioned. At one point, they think they see a sun, but that can’t be right since they’re inside something, right? The explanation is a clever one, further showing that Zac Thompson has thought of everything the characters will encounter in an extreme biome.
Along the way, the two characters seem to bond over their extreme circumstances, while another loses herself in the creature. The latter sees a new form of the creature, which is at once beautiful and frightening. Sherman has outdone themselves with this creature, which is angelic but also horrific. The teeth behind a skeletal face covering are the icing on the cake for weird and haunting.
Look at the symmetry!
Credit: Dark Horsek Horse
Sherman also continues to do beautiful things with symmetry in the layouts. On one page, the panels make up body parts, which you might overlook initially. Hands, arms, and a torso are there as the creature infects one of the adventurer’s minds.
The mystery of a find is also an intriguing development, further showing the insides of this giant have had other dwellers. Given a well-written notebook page and the reveal of another creature, one can see the stakes have risen as the very humanity of our main characters may be challenged at one point. Heck, we’re already seeing it with Sherman’s subtle growth and development of one character.
Every page is a work of art, and every development is one that dives into horror and psychological madness. My only gripe is the cliffhanger, which isn’t the most exciting and more of a low point. Sure, it’s great to see a creature felled, but it also leaves you wondering where the story goes from here, however interested I am. It’s a small gripe, to be fair.
Into the Unbeing Part Two #2 is another triumph for Zac Thompson and Hayden Sherman, pushing the boundaries of horror storytelling with mesmerizing visuals and an unsettling, fever-dream narrative. While the cliffhanger may not hit as hard as the rest of the issue, the eerie atmosphere, intricate design work, and deepening psychological horror make this an essential read.
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