Zombicide: Day One #4 - Source Point Press

ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE No. 4, May 2023

Despite the survivors finally reaching the relative safety of Ned’s underground shelter at the very start of this twenty-four-page periodical, Luca Enoch and Stefano Vietti’s storyline still manages to contain plenty of exhilarating, flesh-chomping action. Indeed, the inclusion of a nearly unstoppable Abomination towards the comic’s end, genuinely ramps up the narrative’s already nail-biting intensity by several more notches, as well as provides fans of “Guillotine Games” collaborative board game with an appreciative nod; “There’s a big one coming from my side!”

Frustratingly however, the logic behind just why the handful of humans are still vulnerably out in the open to be brutally battered is a little lacking, especially when this mini-series’ readers look back at just how increasingly savvy the weapon-wielding quintet have become since first encountering the city-wide zombie menace. Many a bibliophile will doubtless accept the fact that the bunker’s armoured gate may well malfunction due to being bought second-hand. But, just why the heavily bearded vagrant decides to simply leave the jammed doorway wide open to any passing walking cadaver whilst he takes his comrades-in-arms on an extended tour of the facility is arguably anyone’s guess...?

Such a questionable quibble is reasonably easy to forgive though, considering that the pulse-pounding fight which resultants from so contrived an oversight once again shockingly reminds this book’s audience that none of the lead cast are actually safe from the ravages of the undead. Albeit rather disappointingly, Hobo’s bloody demise at the hands of “the Survivors’ worst nightmare” as a ravenous horde of ghouls lay siege to Ned’s rubbish dump, is blatantly telegraphed by this publication’s first few splash pages which are apparently dedicated to the character’s memory before his brutal death is even hinted at.

Illustrators Alessio Moroni and Marco Itri are also well worth a mention, in light of their prodigious pencilling throughout Issue Four of “Zomibicide: Day One”. Once the attack upon the ‘safe haven’ begins, the panels energetically flow thick and fast, with all the characters impressively contributing to their group’s last stand. Furthermore, the artists once again manage to tap directly into the murderous brain of the unliving by providing the audience with some insights into the upside-down world as seen from the viewpoint of an Abomination.

The regular cover art of "ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE" #4 by Alfio Buscaglia & Simon Tessuto

Zombicide: Day One #3 - Source Point Press

ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE No. 3, March 2023

For those readers utterly oblivious to Source Point Press’s spoiler-filled solicitation synopsis, Issue Three of “Zombicide: Day One” probably took them on a roller-coaster ride of emotions as “the group of survivors take a shortcut through the sewer on their way to save Ned’s friend” and end up losing one of their number in the most tragic manner possible. True, Luca Enoch and Stefano Vietti’s narrative seemingly starts out using its customary combination of ‘quiet before the storm’ wanderings and pulse-pounding flashbacks. But once one of the group gets a little too close to a fast-flowing underground stream full of floating undead, the entire tone of this thirty-two-page publication changes to something much more serious.

Furthermore, the writers adopt the quite novel approach of subsequently telling their tale of terror through the eyes of the now partially-chomped and sadly deceased protagonist as they unwillingly join the horde in its frenzied desire for living flesh. This perspective is both fascinating and a little depressing, especially when the constantly moving cadaver turns a corner, spies their former comrades-in-arms battling away in a zed-filled car park and hungrily assails them; “I’m glad you found us, my friend… This way I can give you a proper death and free you from the horror you’ve become.”

Also well worth noting is this comic’s aforementioned recollection of Keiko’s first encounter with the zombie infection and her tour party’s bloody massacre amongst the relics of the municipal’s museum. Intriguing in its ability to also depict the good-natured Hobo’s daily routine of helping locals in order to obtain the funds for food, this lengthy sequence quickly heats up once the Asian guide grabs an ancient double-handed blade from a display mannequin, and starts slicing apart any grisly ghoul unwise enough to view her as their next meal.

Likewise, the artists Alessio Moroni and Marco Itri are worthy of a standing ovation for all the well-pencilled gratuitous violence they manage to imbue each and every panel with. Indeed, even the most sedentary of scenes, such as Wanda reminiscing about serving her restaurant’s customers apple pie, are laced with palpable tension as the group slowly progress through a world where a rabid pack of teeth and claws is potentially waiting around every corner.

The regular cover art of "ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE" #3 by Fabio Babich & Tarek Moutran

Zombicide: Day One #2 - Source Point Press

ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE No. 2, February 2023

Somehow managing to capture all the utterly insane carnage of the zombie apocalypse within this oversized, thirty-two page periodical’s plot, Luca Enoch and Stefano Vietti’s storyline for Issue Two of “Zombicide: Day One” must have made many a reader feel as if they were watching the likes of Ned, Diana, Wanda and Julio actually playing through a scenario from the “the critically acclaimed board game.” In fact, the enthralling energy generated by events as the survivors desperately battle their way towards an underground safe house, and intriguingly ‘recruit’ two more slayers of the walking dead along the way, probably left many a bibliophile desperate to clear the kitchen table so as to settle down for a mission or two themselves; “The water’s a bit warm, but if you’re parched as I am, it’ll be heaven.”

Quite possibly foremost of these enticements is Julio Alvarez’s “tragic backstory”, which adds plenty of extra personality to the baseball player. Haunted by his teammates’ gratuitously grisly demise at the end of his bat during a blood-soaked training session, the semi-famous sportsman shows there is much more to him than just a decidedly deadly swing. Furthermore, the athlete must surely have raised a smile with those aficionados of “Guillotine Games” franchise when he almost nonchalantly mentions that some of zeds “are fast as lightning” when he first encounters the speedy Runners.

Similarly as stimulating though are the sense-shattering scenes introducing Hobo and Keiko, just as it appears as if this title’s cast have finally used up their last piece of good fortune “with a legion of the undead at their heels!” Both of these new characters are surrounded in mystery, especially once the entire band begin working their way towards an abandoned subway and their dreadlocked guide hints at intimately knowing the tunnels down there.

Adding tons of dynamism to this comic’s action-packed adventure are Alessio Moroni and Marco Itri, who genuinely seem able to pack every panel with spine-tingling terror and tension, as Ned leads his new friends through the momentarily all-too quiet city streets. In addition, colourist Paolo Francescutto deserves a major pat on the back for the freelancer's superbly ruby-red infected during Julio’s aforementioned black and white flashback sequence.

The regular cover art of "ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE" #2 by Francesco Rizzato & Giorgia Lanza

Zombicide: Day One #1 - Source Point Press

ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE No. 1, January 2023

Considering just how hard it must have been to convert a Ludo Award-winning collaborative board game into the medium of a comic book mini-series, Luca Enoch and Stefano Vietti’s narrative for Issue One of “Zombicide: Day One” can surely only be viewed as an enthralling triumph. Indeed, the oversized thirty-two-page periodical’s plot is arguably faultless in its pulse-pounding presentation of the dead’s sudden return “to life to devour the living” and all the madness which ensues as an ever-growing group of survivors wade their way through chaos-strewn streets and cadaver-packed public places so as to reach the relative safety of Luke’s Garage.

Admittedly, the publication’s script doesn’t dwell upon what precisely caused the “bacteria going around that makes you feel so sick that turn into a raving lunatic”. But its invigorating pace doesn’t allow for such word-heavy exposition as the audience are thrust right in the thick of things by a pair of brain-hungry corpses as they unexpectedly fling themselves through the glass window of Clancy’s diner and start chomping upon the throats of its customers. So adrenalin-charged a moment comes just as the storyline suggests this opening instalment is potentially going to focus upon people simply disbelieving Ned’s mad ravings about an imminent apocalypse rather than anything quite so dynamic, and resultantly may well catch many a perusing bibliophile off-guard with its savage suddenness.

Equally as intriguing is the writing team’s ability to find the time to flesh out a few of this comic’s quite considerable cast, most notably that of paramedic Diana, whose black and white coloured flashback sequence demonstrates just how swiftly the infection takes hold of her hospital despite its hapless staff’s best efforts to organise a quarantine ward. This grisly nightmare genuinely helps establish just why within hours Wanda and her friends are facing “a city full of zombies” and how, whilst desperately searching for ammunition and supplies, even the tiniest of noises could fatally attract an entire horde of sharp-teethed ghouls.

Working incredibly well alongside Enoch and Vietti are artists Alessio Moroni and Marco Itri, as well as colorist Paolo Francescutto. Together this creative team provide some quite stunning eye candy, most notably whenever the undead are either lurking about in the shadows or hurling themselves at the steadfast survivors with wild, blood-thirsty abandonment; “We’re out of choices… They’re closing in behind us and the only way out is through these.”

The regular cover art of "ZOMBICIDE: DAY ONE" #1 by Luca Bulgheroni & Giorgia Lanza