In the snowy depths of Upper Michigan, a pair set out to fetch a Christmas tree, and maybe a little bit of healing. Your Major Spoilers review of The Quarry #1, awaits!
THE QUARRY #1
Writer: Mike Salisbury
Artist: Marvin Luna
Editor: Andrea Lorenzo Molinari
Publisher: Scout Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: June 28th, 2023
Previously in The Quarry: After a recent family tragedy, a boy sets out to purchase a Christmas tree with the help of his deceased big brother’s girlfriend, Katie. Trying to ease his father’s mourning and hold together what’s left of the family.
ON A QUEST
The Quarry #1 opens up with a young couple trying to sneak out of a house without waking anyone up. The two manage to get out even with his younger brother beginning to stir in his bed. The couple is then shown at a beach. Things then shift to winter time, with a dog playing with the body of a dead bird. A young boy is getting ready inside when a car arrives and he goes out to meet them. The same dog from before grabs hold of his jacket and swings him around a bit before he can escape to the safety of the car. The two then head out, looking for a tree. They aren’t able to find anything of quality in their town so they decide to head to a bigger city. Along the way, they begin to talk about the condition of the area and the struggles that have been affecting the people, both emotionally and economically.
NOT ENOUGH HERE
It’s not uncommon these days to read a comic and realize that the creator is thinking more about the collected edition or trade paperback rather than the individual issue. But, even in those cases, the individual issue at least feels like a complete product in itself, or at least acts as a sort of identifiable chapter of the bigger story. The Quarry #1 is literally the first few pages ripped out of a graphic novel and put out there for sale. The issue just abruptly ends without any of the themes or characters getting introduced, in fact, there’s not even a hint that there’s anything wrong going on here. Based on the pages of this comic all we know as readers is that a couple decided to go swimming. Then months later two people decided to go buy a Christmas tree. The only hint that there is any sort of drama or story here is the solicitations that basically reveal any sort of big reveal that these pages seem to be trying to hide. There is one thing that this issue does quite well is setting the scene. The snowy world of Upper Michigan is nicely imagined and there’s just enough dialog to drive home that this isn’t a prosperous place and there’s plenty of troubles to go around. Which makes the lack of anything else so much more apparent.
A WHIMSICAL STORYBOOK
The art in The Quarry #1 is an interesting thing to say the least. It takes on the look of a made for TV cartoon that comes on every Christmas, which is probably the intent given the reference to The Snowman that shows up midway through. All the lights have a warm halo, and the snow is used in a way that makes the world seem soft and dreamy. The whole issue looks as if it’s been colored by oil pastels which only help to make it feel as if it’s supposed to be reminiscent of old children’s books and television shows. There are some issues with panel layout though. Trying to read this as a normal comic makes some sequences come off as awkward or incomplete.
BOTTOM LINE: FAILED BY MARKETING
The Quarry #1 has the same feel as a lot of Free Comic Book Day offerings. It’s short, incomplete, and is designed to create interest in the larger story. The problem though is that this was released as a first issue, for a price. It ends in an awkward place and fails to introduce any element that could possibly generate any more interest than what the solicitations do. It does look nice though, even with some awkwardness in the way the actions play out. 2 out of 5 stars
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The Quarry #1
The Quarry #1 takes a promising, slice-of-life story, chops off the first 30 pages without regard for story beats or content and tries to pass itself off as a chapter. The result is a boring comic that doesn’t do near enough to garner interest in the larger graphic novel.
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Writing2
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Art5
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Coloring6
