Hyde Street might have gotten off to a slow start with its first issue, but Image Comics and Ghost Machine’s latest line of horror comics is starting to pick up. First was the deliciously depraved Devour one-shot, which perfectly blended the perils of diet culture with a heaping helping of body horror. Now Hyde Street #2 puts its focus on another one of its residents: Pranky, the malevolent Boy Scout readers caught a glimpse of in #1.
I mentioned that Pranky was the standout of Hyde Street in my review of Hyde Street #1, but Hyde Street #2 only confirms it. Most of the issue is dedicated to showing what happened to Pranky prior to his arrival on Hyde Street: he was once Phillip “Pip” Peabody, a boy who sought belonging in the Scouts and affection from his father – and was denied both, leading to him pulling off a series of deadly acts.
This time around, Geoff Johns manages to find the balance between character work and world building. He makes Pranky a very complex character – you feel sorry for him due to his home life, but will also be horrified by the actions he takes, including starting a forest fire that nearly kills his fellow Scouts and stuffing his scoutmaster’s backpack full of fresh sausages, which attracts a bear. And this is before he became a serial killer-stalking hellspawn.
Image
That’s where the second half of the book picks up, and it’s once again where Ivan Reis and Danny Miki work their magic. When Pranky corners yet another one of his victims, his face starts morphing from a seemingly-innocent 11 year old to a demonic visage, including the dead black eyes of a predator and rotting yellow teeth. Even Rob Leigh gets in on the action, giving Pranky some hellish-red word balloons. It’s a sharp juxtaposition to the earlier pages, where Reis mostly shows Pranky in tears from the cruel taunts or the abuse his father sling his way; these images remind readers that he was once human.
But the standout moment belongs to the very last pages, which are depicted in mostly black and white (save for Pranky’s red Scout neckerchief, which looks like freshly spilled blood) courtesy of Brad Anderson. It’s here that another piece of the Hyde Street puzzle comes into focus: the mysterious Scorekeeper, who’s been keeping track of the victims on Hyde Street. Johns manages to keep this character shrouded in enough shadow, while hinting at the trouble to come due to Pranky’s antics.
Hyde Street #2 is a strong sophomore issue that sheds more light on one of the more interesting characters in its ensemble. It also finds the balance between standalone story and expanding upon the mythology it’s set in motion, which bodes well for future issues – especially next month’s, which looks to deliver a twisted Christmas tale.
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