Kill Your Darlings instantly leapt to the top of my favorite comics of 2023. Each issue delivered shocks galore, while introducing us to a rainbow-colored fantasy world that was slowly being covered in darkness. Now that “Act One” (or rather, the first four issues) is complete, “Act Two” kicks off with Kill Your Darlings #5 – and it might be the most shocking issue to date.
A large part of that is the fact that creators Ethan S. Parker, Griffin Sheridan, Bob Quinn and John J. Hill choose to shift the focus away from series protagonist Rose. Instead, Kill Your Darlings #5 puts its focus on her mother and the stress she went through raising a child. Parker and Sheridan introduce a growing sense of dread throughout their script, starting with the opening and building to the very last page.
If you go back and read previous issues of Kill Your Darlings, a lot will start to make sense after this issue. The duo also makes you feel for Rose’s mom throughout. I’m not a parent, but I’ve seen accounts of how terrifying it is to raise a child at a young age. That same feeling of desperation, of anger, permeates the page and is a great reminder of why Kill Your Darlings stands out above the pack.
Another thing that makes Kill Your Darlings #5 a standout? Quinn’s art. Especially the first two pages…it starts out with a car streaking through the rain. Then the impact of a car sends glass flying and literally jarring the panels out of place. Close-ups of the body the car hit will test even the strongest of wills; blood slowly leaks out and pools near the victim’s body, while other panels close in on the wounds he’s recieved. What makes it even worse is Hill’s lettering. It’s not the big, bombastic stuff you’d expect from a comic. It’s the slow, surefire confirmation that a man is dying before the readers’ very eyes. And it will stay with you long after you’ve closed the book.
Kill Your Darlings #5 kickstarts the second act of the book, unveiling revelations fast and furious while also building a sense of dread. This has been one roller coaster of a comic, and we haven’t stopped plummeting into the depths of the darkness the creators have cooked up. I’m equal parts exhilarated and terrified to find out what’s coming up next.
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