Never By Night: Disturbing Passages Into The Unknown #2 - SnowyWorks [Part Four]

NEVER BY NIGHT: DISTURBING PASSAGES INTO THE UNKNOWN No. 2, October 2025

Quite possibly saving this horror anthology’s best story for last, Jonathan Chance’s “Collect Them All” is also this comic book collection’s most straightforward zombie-fest thriller – at least at the beginning when it seems that the author is simply corralling as many hapless innocents as he can muster into Pirate Pete’s Pizza House before unleashing a flesh-hungry cadaver amongst them. Enjoyably however, things don’t actually pan out that way at all, with the writer cleverly shifting the focus away from the adorable little Missy and her doting grandfather on to the staff working behind the counter at the fast-food diner.

This switch is remarkably well done, and definitely helps stop the narrative from flagging during its middle as the likes of David and Josh desperately attempt to leave the restaurant despite police marksmen cold-bloodedly gunning down any one reckless enough to escape their containment zone. In addition, the tale provides an intriguing cause behind the sudden and undoubtedly deadly outbreak, which will no doubt appeal to any within the audience who enjoy countrywide administration conspiracy theories; “But if you wanted to be the first to break the story… on the bio-hazard disaster at the Techizo Corporation and what the U.S. Government did to cover up a major outbreak occurring here.”

By far this yarn’s biggest hook though has to be the author’s ability to mix heart-warming emotion with sense-shattering action. The kind, loving relationship between the aforementioned little girl and her granddad is genuinely moving, especially once the child falls to the merciless infection and her elderly carer refuses to give her up to her ungodly craving for human brains. Nonetheless, such sentimentality is also quickly pushed from out of the readers’ minds, as the few remaining survivors terrifyingly find themselves fighting for their lives against both their former friends, as well as the people they originally thought must be coming to their rescue.

Ably adding plenty of gore and buckets of physical mutilation is penciller Rodel Noora, who alongside colourist Alzir Alves, does a fantastic job of ramping up the publication’s pace once the deaths start occurring. Indeed, the slow speed of this tale’s opening appears to neatly match that of the somewhat doddering old man spending time with his wholly innocent granddaughter, and then dramatically increases once the much younger and energetic protagonists take centre stage.

Written by: Jonathan Chance, Illustrated by: Rodel Noora, and Colored by: Alzir Alves

Absolute Batman #10 - DC Comics

ABSOLUTE BATMAN No. 10, September 2025

Chock-full of body mutilation and some truly terrific examples of just how ingenious Bruce Wayne can be when the circumstances warrant it, Scott Snyder’s narrative for Issue Ten of “Absolute Batman” probably kept its audience repeatedly guessing as to whether the Dark Knight was ever going to escape “the horrors of Ark M.” In fact, one of the few concerns some bibliophiles might have with this particular twenty-page periodical’s plot is just how the upcoming crimefighter is ever going to recover from removing many of his own teeth, and undergoing a number of near fatal surgeries – including a painful sounding “craniotomy and subsequent brain-stem insertion.”

Also somewhat disconcerting is the fact that no-one seems to actually care just who Subject Twenty Seven is, with the institution’s hierarchy seemingly doing no research whatsoever into the six foot nine inch tall vigilante’s secret identity. True, this inactivity could simply demonstrate a complete disinterest in just where the experimental facility gets its hapless stooges from. But considering just how much attention is subsequently paid to the titular character as he repeatedly attempts to break out from his cell, this lack of interest into someone who has previously defeated the Black Mask could strike some readers as being a little too convenient – especially when his mother Martha is so desperately trying to track him down on the outside.

Quite possibly this comic’s only other quibble is that Bane apparently always knows that Wayne is going to escape, as well as where to locate him within the massive maze-like complex. The American author does a good job of using Bruce’s various exploratory exploits to drop-in all manner of Batman’s (alternative) Rogues Gallery, such as Clayface and Poison Ivy. However, due to it soon becoming clear that the super-strong villain is apparently always one step ahead of his increasingly brutalised prisoner, any sense of suspense as to the possibility of the young man's escape is quickly diminished.

Definitely assisting in making this book as successful as it is has to be Nick Dragotta, whose ability to pencil the increasing physical toll being placed upon the (now) Capeless Crusader’s frame should genuinely disturb many within this publication’s audience. In addition, the sheer creativity employed to depict the other Ark M inmates is incredibly well done, with Waylon Jone’s Killer Croc persona probably being the best of the bunch.

The regular cover art of "ABSOLUTE BATMAN" #10 by Nick Dragotta & Frank Martin

Red Hulk #9 - Marvel Comics

RED HULK No. 9, December 2025

It is probably quite hard to find a comic book containing two quite so distinct halves as Issue Nine of “Red Hulk”. For whilst this twenty-page periodical’s opening part firmly focuses upon Thunderbolt Ross’ tenuous political sway inside his country’s government, and any favours he can pull when he needs help “to launch a mission to Latveria”. The publication’s later stages depict a no holds barred punch-up between the titular character and his cybernetically enhanced allies against a trainload of Doctor Doom’s nefarious automatons; “You have committed treason against Latveria. You are enemies of Doom. You will be executed.”

Happily however, both of these plot threads are enthrallingly well-penned by Benjamin Percy, and rather neatly flow into one another courtesy of an extremely bemusing “tickets please” scene. Indeed, in some ways it’s a pity that the General’s covert meeting with a sympathetic Senator doesn’t continue for a bit longer as the American author makes it clear that not all the politicians within the United States Capitol building are willing to bend the knee to the Fantastic Four’s foremost adversary.

Having said that though, there is an awful lot for readers to enjoy once the likes of Deathlok, Machine Man and First Sergeant Bowden begin mercilessly battering any Doombot foolish enough to identify itself aboard a cross-country express in modern-day Hungary. This lengthy action sequence, made all the more dynamic once the Red Hulk himself makes a welcome appearance, rattles along at a ferocious pace, and demonstrates just why the despicable despot of Latveria was so eager to ensure Ross went without any source of radiation when the aging war veteran was his prisoner in the past.

Quite possibly this comic’s sole quibble therefore might arise from those bibliophiles who struggle with Gabriel Guzman’s pencilling, and some of Bryan Valenza’s colour choices. There should be absolutely no doubt that the creative pair bring an absolute ton of raw energy to the proceedings, most notably in the form of a double-splash showing the claustrophobic close combat taking place within the passenger carriages. But some within this book’s audience may well find the odd panel too busy to perceive precisely what is going on with its heavily detailed lines and disconcertingly dark shadows.

The regular cover art of "RED HULK" #9 by Geoff Shaw & Marte Gracia

Never By Night: Disturbing Passages Into The Unknown #2 - SnowyWorks [Part Three]

NEVER BY NIGHT: DISTURBING PASSAGES INTO THE UNKNOWN No. 2, October 2025

It’s probably a safe bet that few, if any readers of “Now All Is Silver Blue” expected Jonathan Chance to pen so heart wrenching a story as he has, with desperate Eddie so tragically torn between the survival of his family and his sense of responsibility for the rest of a frost-bitten bunker’s inhabitants. True, much of this fourteen-page tale’s horror comes from the cold-hearted cannibalistic nature of the bandits who snatch the man’s adolescent son, rather than any supernatural ghoul or grisly walking cadaver. But that doesn’t detract from the sheer horror most bibliophiles will probably feel when they realise the child’s chances of enduring being eaten alive are increasingly slim.

Similarly as likely to make an emotional impact upon the audience though, has to be the treacherous nature of the other people who this plot’s central protagonist appears sworn to protect. Ultimately, the seemingly stubborn, almost forlorn sentry is proved right in his concerns that his party could still be attacked by the sharp-toothed killers who scour the frozen tundra looking for human meat. And so when the rest of the shelter’s inhabitants cowardly depart behind his back with all the remaining supplies, it really does appear that fate has tragically truly deserted one of the few virtuous people left alive on the desolate planet.

Perhaps this narrative’s most haunting moment however comes at its conclusion, when the father is forced to lie to his potentially dying offspring that everything will be okay once the boy wakes up. This scene is incredibly well-written, and packed with a tremendous amount of emotion. Indeed, it is possibly even more impactive because it leaves so many questions unanswered as to the supply-strapped couple’s ultimate fate, and resultantly relies upon the onlooker’s imagination to fill in the gaps – something which is almost naturally going to lean towards a disconcertingly dark and undoubtedly grim demise for the pair; “Okay Daddy. Love you.”

Undeniably adding plenty of pathos to Chance’s harsh world of biting winds and knee-deep snow are Emilio Utrera’s pencils. The illustrator is super successful in establishing just how violent Eddie’s life has become, and just how ‘hands-on’ the man is willing to be so as to save his loved ones from the cruelty surrounding them. Yet, it is also the artist’s ability to depict the character’s touching tenderness for little Louie which makes this agonizing adventure so genuinely enthralling.

Written by: Jonathan Chance, and Illustrated/Lettered by Emilio Utrera

The Thing [2025] #5 - Marvel Comics

THE THING No. 5, November 2025

For those fans looking forward to the much-anticipated “Ben Grimm verses Wilson Fisk” fist-fight promised by this comic’s New York City-based publisher’s solicitation, Issue Five of “The Thing” was probably a major disappointment. In fact, the notorious Kingpin doesn’t even make an appearance in this twenty page periodical until its very end, when an enraged founding member of the Fantastic Four unceremoniously deposits a trussed up Marty Flynn inside the super-villain’s personal office; “Heard you wuz lookin’ fer me. Do I get the $10 million bounty fer bringin’ myself in?”

Instead, Tony Fleecs attempts to pen a pulse-pounding finale between this mini-series’ titular character and a somewhat suped-up Hammerhead – which largely falls flat on its face when its revealed that throughout the adventure Aunt Petunia's favourite nephew has been holding back his super-strength, but won’t be during this particular confrontation. To make matters even worse though, the so-called punch-up doesn’t even last half a dozen panels, and unsurprisingly concludes with the Maggia crime boss flat out on the street.

Debatably this book’s best moment therefore comes when it is revealed that the man who “used to beat up a little kid twenty years ago” was actually behind poor Sara’s abduction in the first place, and only contacted Grimm for help when it became clear he realised he wasn’t going to be an important player in Fisk’s scheme to “scrape people’s powers and use it to make other guys stronger.” This revelation makes Flynn all the more loathsome, and assists the Thing later on in showing his fiery ward just how utterly pathetic bullies are compared to those who genuinely know when it’s “Clobberin’ Time!!!”

Lastly, Justin Mason’s layouts do a fairly sound job of supporting Fleecs with his storytelling – albeit the artist’s somewhat cartoony, ofttimes irregularly angled figures can be a little too jarring for so serious a theme as child kidnapping. In addition, whether intentional or not, the illustrator appears to pencil Ben as being as wide-eyed and circular as possible. Such a style may well suit someone smooth-skinned like the Blob or Volstagg the Voluminous. However, this technique debatably doesn’t work when applied to a meta-human who is supposed to be covered in rock-like armour plates as the lead protagonist is.

The regular cover art of "THE THING" #5 by Nick Bradshaw & Rachelel Rosenberg

Never By Night: Disturbing Passages Into The Unknown #2 - SnowyWorks [Part Two]

NEVER BY NIGHT: DISTURBING PASSAGES INTO THE UNKNOWN No. 2, October 2025

There’s an almost palpable sense of familiarity to the opening of “Video Van Man”, which may well bring back many a nostalgic memory to those readers old enough to remember regularly renting home movies for their videocassette recorder from their local supplier. In fact, for the first few pages of Jonathan Chance’s narrative the central character appears to be a pretty laid back individual who appears to be happy simply bringing joy to children with the latest adult-rated horror flick; “There’s always that eight-year-old kid who gets the 18 Certificate because his dad’s pretty cool.”

However, events soon take on a much darker turn once the seemingly unflappable rental man’s ire is raised, even when it’s something as innocuous as one of his tapes accidentally breaking and having to be cello-taped back together. This transition is remarkably well-penned, as Bob slowly shows his true, malicious nature whenever he is crossed by either a customer ill-advisedly visiting his home, or a nosey neighbour who calls the authorities to report his unlicenced business.

Ultimately though, this eleven-page yarn doesn’t really step into the realm of a truly horrific tale until its finale, when the ‘narrator’ decides to tell the audience what really ticks him off the most. Having somewhat lulled any bibliophiles into a false sense of security with his low-level beatings, thrown citrus fruits and marriage break-ups, the maniac suddenly ramps up the violence ten-fold by merrily hacking to pieces any patrons foolish enough to stop hiring videos from his vehicle. So savage an escalation really will catch many an onlooker by complete surprise, especially when the build-up to the actual act is penned so nonchalantly by Chance.

Proficiently pencilling this descent into cold-blooded murder and chopped up body parts is Mike Bogdanovic. The artist appears particularly adept at making the inside of the van appear both extremely exciting with all the different film titles lined up along its interior walls, and inviting – at least during the yarn’s beginning. In addition, the perpetual sereness on Bob's face should send chills down some spines, particularly when he’s casually cutting his way through a helpless human being with a carving knife just because they've most unwisely chosen not to use his cut-price services any more.

Written by: Jonathan Chance, Illustrated by: Mike Bogdanovic, and Colored by: Theresa Chiechi

Absolute Batman #9 - DC Comics

ABSOLUTE BATMAN No. 9, August 2025

Despite its twenty-page plot being rather devoid of pulse-pounding pugilism until its very end, Issue Nine of “Absolute Batman” still should have kept its audience hooked with the increasing mystery it shrouds the “all new Ark (M)” with. Indeed, the titular character’s carefully planned infiltration of Gotham City’s “fully operational institution” is absolutely packed full of foreboding atmosphere – whether it be simply a tense meeting of minds to discover a suitable entry point, or the deep-sea swim into one of the Nineteenth Century Hospital’s original water pipelines; “Private records show they’ve been working on the site ever since.”

Furthermore, Scott Snyder’s introduction of his ‘reinvented’ Bane is superbly well-penned, with the supervillain causing bloody chaos the moment he appears in the neutral territory of Alegab, Bialya. Massively muscled, it is clear that the masked monster has lost absolutely none of the formidable strength and political savvy which his co-creator Chuck Dixon first imbued him with, and this makes his highly anticipated confrontation with a much less experienced Bruce Wayne all the more foreboding for the cowled crime-fighter.

Lastly, the American author finally appears comfortable to firmly establish Batman’s family for these ‘Elseworlds’ adventures by assembling all of the protagonist’s friends in one room alongside the covert operative Alfred Pennyworth. In addition, it quickly becomes clear that the Caped Crusader has the ear (and loyalty) of former Mayor Jim Gordon’s daughter for the time being, with the street cop seemingly willing to provide the costumed vigilante with all sorts of information from her Police Department’s records.

Also well worth a mention are Nick Dragotta’s layouts, which do a terrific job in holding the readers’ attention. Of particular note has to be the way the artist emphasises Bane’s tremendous size when the deadly combatant first appears at Omar’s peace party, and then how truly talented at martial arts the huge bulk of a human being is when he methodically disables the Dark Knight using a series of simple strikes to the hero’s limb joints. These meticulously precise finger jabs upon Wayne’s pressure points truly smack of a surgeon carefully cutting away at some patient’s disease, and comes before the ferocious felon has even juiced himself up on Venom…

The regular cover art of "ABSOLUTE BATMAN" #9 by Nick Dragotta & Frank Martin

Never By Night: Disturbing Passages Into The Unknown #2 - SnowyWorks [Part One]

NEVER BY NIGHT: DISTURBING PASSAGES INTO THE UNKNOWN No. 2, October 2025

Throwing one and all head-first into the high-pressure world of hosting a popular American chat show, Jonathan Chance’s storyline for this horror anthology's opening trip into terror will surely utterly engross its readers. Indeed, whether it be Dick Halloway’s dream job in television simply being too good to be true, or a sinister extra-terrestrial serpent suddenly screeching down to Earth in a torpedo-shaped spacecraft, it quickly becomes clear that despite all the upcoming celebrity’s aspirations for super-stardom, the young man will instead soon be facing some truly gruesome fate.

Impressively however, rather than simply play this twenty-six page plot out as a straightforward alien possession yarn akin to Jack Finney’s novel “The Body Snatchers”, the author instead rather cleverly taps into his audience’s sentimentality by having the central protagonist’s dying father reach out to his son one last time before succumbing to old age. This dream sequence, poignantly penned by the author, makes it surprisingly clear that Holloway is already doomed. But then still keeps everyone hooked by having his Dad also whisper something in his ear which could yet lead to the unwilling host potentially defeating the ultimate goal of the monster writhing around in his head.

Furthermore, for those fans eager to witness some grotesque-looking physical mutilation and buckets of blood-splattered gore, “Late Night Host” shouldn’t disappoint either. In fact, the longer poor Dick mentally battles the malign entity fighting for control of his body, the more painful and unpleasant his metamorphoses become – with the final confrontation resulting in him savagely tearing himself free of his own skin in a last gasp effort to rid himself of the sinister influence from outer space; "I want my life back!”

Just as successful as this tale’s scary script are Joao Azeitona Vieira’s layouts, which alongside the colours of Ren Spiller, do a fantastic job of illustrating Halloway’s descent into a blank-eyed catatonic state. Of particular note though has to be the way the illustrator manages to pencil the sheer desperation and agony suffered by Ben Conrad’s ultimately unfortunate replacement. The look on Dick’s face during his last rational moments are wonderfully intense, and contrast so well with almost peaceful look he has seconds later when he realises his father was proud of him for fighting off the alien for as long as he could.

Written by: Jonathan Chance, Illustrated by: Joao Azeitona Vieira, and Colored by: Ren Spiller