Review: Rachel Rising #5

I’ve talked about how much I enjoy this book on the podcastbefore and also in my review for the first issue. It’s continued to get betterand better with each issue as the mystery is somewhat revealed in this issue.By “somewhat” I mean we have one answer that has inspired more questions. That’sreally the only way this story could go and it works so well for it. TerryMoore has done some phenomenal creator owned work in the past, but this is myfavorite thus far. The plot, the intrigue, the characters and the violenceremind me of nothing else in comics. It's a one of a kind book for sure.

The opening page shows Rachel lying in bed. There is a greatpanel with flies and maggots bouncing off of her bedroom window which may showthe level of decay that she’s at. She checks her reflection and sure enough,her eyes are still jacked up and so is her neck much to her disappointment. Shecomes out of her room to find her Aunt Johnny bringing the dog in. The dog isvery excited to see Rachel, but after sniffing her she runs away scared. Anotherterrible omen it seems. Aunt Johnny explains that Rachel has been out for 36hours and that she couldn’t be woken. They exchange dialog about Rachel’scurrent status as living or deceased and come to the conclusion that she’s notin Heaven or Hell, but rather the kitchen.

Rachel takes a breather and heads outside. Her best friendJet comes by and they share a heart to heart after Jet reminds her of theirchildhood pinky swear. Rachel tells her that she remembers waking upunderground and being completely confused. She had no bearing of up or downuntil she pushed herself up off of another dead body. It’s a great exchange asthey have a serious conversation and yet their dialog is very real. Jet cracksjokes, but Rachel continues talking as if that was the only way she expectedher to respond. They then sit down for dinner with their guest Dr. Sieman whois very anxious to see Rachel.

This book is top notch all around. The story and pacing areperfect and the second half of the book is thrilling. Like I said we have someanswers in this issue which is good. It keeps people from being strung aroundby the story for too long. Moore’s writing on this series is very strong. He hasa mixture of the supernatural, comedy and really strong character moments. It’srefreshing to read his work as it rejuvenates your interest in comics. I onlywish that he would release a book called, “How to Write Women” as a companionfor his How to Draw Women series of books.

The only thing more striking than his story is of course hisart. Moore always has a strong balance of detail and lack of detail. The lackof detail for panels allows your mind to fill it in for you. I particularlylike his black and white panels because I can still see all of the colors onthe page in my head, without losing the details of the penciling. Moore is at the top ofhis game and I hope that Rachel Risingis around for a long time, or at least until the story comes to its naturalconclusion.

If you’re not reading this book then you are really missingout. I jump for joy when this series releases and before I pick up anythingelse at the comic shop I have this in my hand. I buy a lot of $2.99, $3.50 and$3.99 books and a lot of the time I feel ripped off on the price. This book isworth every penny and is jammed packed with pages. Do yourself a favor and buythis book.

Score: 4/5

Story and Art: Terry Moore

Publisher: Abstract Studio

Price: $3.99

Release Date: 2/1/2012