Jess may be in prison, but Adira still is barely keeping a grip on her position as the meaning of the afterlife starts to crumble. What do these changes mean for the world and for Jess? Find out in Grim #11 from BOOM! Studios.
GRIM #11
Writer: Stephanie Phillips
Artist: Flaviano
Colorist: Rico Renzi
Letterer: Tom Napolitano
Editor: Eric Harburn
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: July 5, 2023
Previously in Grim: Marcel throws himself into the void leading to Hell. Kelly flings Jess, Eddie, and Annabel out and back to Vegas. Jess confesses to Annabel that the Fates told her she should oversee death, but she admits she does not know how. Annabel reminds her that we do not know everything, and sometimes we need to learn. But Jess still does not have her scythe. Lilah meets Harold at an airport, and he brings her on board a plane with a blond man – the personification of Life. He wants the amulet that Lilah wears. Annabel hands Jess a scythe and takes her and Eddie through a secret back door to the old call center in the afterlife.
HELL IS NOT WHAT IT USED TO BE
Grim #11 opens with the Fates musing on Hell. Back in the day, the tortures there were inventive and creative, the things we read of in literature. Now it has been overtaken by bureaucracy and politics. It seems mundane and rote. Except that right now, at this moment, with no Death on the throne, mortals unable to die, and Jess caught between the living and the dead, things are in a precarious balance.
Annabel faces Adira in her office. They made a deal, Annabel reminds her, of a soul for a soul. She delivered Jessica and Eddie, besides getting Marcel into Hell. Now she wants the soul of her choice. Adira balks. Annabel insists she cannot change the terms now. Kelly is there – he is happy to have Marcel where he belongs, and he thinks a deal is a deal. The deal is not what Adira had expected, but she reluctantly accedes.
Eddie and Jess are imprisoned again. This time they are in a cell under the river Styx, surrounded by the screaming souls who are trapped there. Eddie is also cross. Not only is Marcel not there, but he is also upset with Jess for not doing anything to get them out. Jess is more fatalistic. Adira won and they are in prison. Besides, she is not the reason Annabel got involved.
Life has taken Lilah to a place of his creation, Rad Island, a place of unsurpassed beauty. Despite his claims that she will love it here, Lilah is less than impressed. He hands her a glass of champagne. She pours it out and asks if he has beer. Life asks Harold to get a beer for her, but Harold is a messenger, not Life’s personal errand boy. Life also claims he created this as a place where people can reevaluate their lives and gain a new perspective. He says he promised to give her what she wanted, and he takes her to a house and has her look inside. Death, with a tiny Jess in his arms, welcomes her home. Lilah flees, insisting this is not what she wants.
Back in their cell, Eddie scrapes a line on the floor. He has his side and Jess has hers. A hooded figure enters. It is Adira. Eddie is ready to fight her, but she temporarily immobilizes him. She wants to talk to Jess. She tells her about Annabel’s plan – and asks for her help.
STRANGE ALLIANCES
Grim #11 brings a new color scheme into the afterlife. Adira’s new office is green and full of plants, and the backlighting behind them is a golden glow. It is tonally the opposite of what we have come to expect, and it echoes the color scheme of Life, which is interesting. Has the lack of Death in the world had such an impact that the echoes reach out to the Afterlife? I like the sleek, modern style which fits Adira’s personality so well. The unruly potted plants seem even more out of place.
In stark contrast to Adira’s office, Jess and Eddie’s prison is firmly back in the style of Hell and the Afterlife. I like the way we are brought into it. From a distance, it looks like they are caught up in an area of burned cinders and rivers of magma. As the panels zoom in, the red magma seems to have more structure to it until finally, we see that rather than magma, the red glow is created by the outlines of the human souls massed together in torment. We are told that they are screaming, but sound effects are not used so the images stand chillingly on their own.
BOTTOM LINE: WHAT DOES ANYONE REALLY WANT?
It is a time of making deals in Grim #11. Everyone is out to get something, and everyone has a price. The trick is to make a bargain that is better for you than for anyone else. The mystery is figuring out who really has the best deal.
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Grim #11
Imprisoned again, Jess feels the futility of her life more than ever.
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Writing8
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Art9
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Coloring8
By day, she’s a mild-mannered bureaucrat and Ms. Know-It-All. By night, she’s a dance teacher and RPG player (although admittedly not on the same nights). On the weekends, she may be found judging Magic, playing Guild Wars 2 (badly), or following other creative pursuits. Holy Lack of Copious Free Time, Batman! While she’s always wished she had teleportation as her superpower, she suspects that super-speed would be much more practical because then she’d have time to finish up those steampunk costumes she’s also working on.