Dark Spaces: Dungeon has been one of the most absorbing serial killer series in some time. Scott Snyder and Hayden Sherman are doing innovative things with the story visually and through character development. I take an advance spoiler-free look at the fifth and final issue, out April 10th. Given the slow-boil mystery, can Dark Spaces: Dungeon #5 wrap things up satisfactorily?
Picking up where we left off with Dark Spaces: Dungeon #4, this issue is intense, with a few surprises along the way. Although this series has had torture horror and some visually upsetting things, deep down, it’s a psychological horror, which is evident in this final chapter.
Detective Madoc Bohdi was a captive, and the trauma still runs deep, as we’ve seen in previous issues, but you won’t know how deep it is till you read this issue. Meanwhile, Tyler, the father of the most recent kidnapped child, has already rushed in headlong to save his son. Both are loose cannons, which creates direct conflict in this issue with a few twists and turns.
Credit: IDW
At its center is a continued search for Tyler’s son, and the serial killer’s lair is well crafted. Sherman uses shadow to create a haunted house effect with evil seemingly lurking. There are good choices as far as angles, too, which helps create unease and tension. Color artist Patricio Delpeche also uses sickly greens to add to the strange unease.
The intensity is palpable at times, which leads to quite a conclusion. No spoilers here, but expect pieces to be put in place, a shock or two, and at the very least, confidence in knowing this is one of the darkest stories you’ll read in some time. It’s also a solid detective story that gives readers a sense of how we got here with a new context.
Dark Spaces: Dungeon #5 is an intense ending that wraps up a story of evil in a thrilling way. This series will go down as one of the darkest thrillers in comics, with plenty of horrifying twists and turns.
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