It’s Halloween, the perfect night for tricks, treats, and a game of death played amongst the richest people in America and their favorite psychopaths. Your Major Spoiler review of Exquisite Corpses #1 awaits!

EXQUISITE CORPSES #1

Writer: James Tynion IV
Artist: Michael Walsh
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Becca Carey
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: May 14th, 2025

Previously in Exquisite Corpses: Every five years, the descendants of the original 13 richest families in America come together to determine who will hold the true power of the nation. They do this by picking an unsuspecting town and unleashing cold-blooded killers. The last killer standing is the winner.

WELCOME TO THE GAME

Exquisite Corpses #1 starts off in the town of Oak Valley. The local sheriff leaves a letter with the town’s resident conspiracy theorist before meeting up with a mysterious man on the outskirts of town. The two speak for a little while before the sheriff leaves town. Afterwards, a team starts to install infrastructure throughout the town. The rest of the issue is broken up into three sections that intertwine with each other. One section is all about introducing the thirteen families and their chosen killer, as well as the weapon that each participant is supposed to use during the game. Another section features head of one of the families trying to convince an ex-special forces soldier to be her killer, this section also reveals the rules and the history of the game. The third section centers around residents of Oak Valley, specifically a couple that’s tasked with babysitting a friend’s kid for the night and a pair of paramedics.

MEETING YOUR CONTESTANTS

For an issue that’s over 60 pages long and over half of it is dedicated to introducing characters, it might be shocking to hear that one of the qualities that Exquisite Corpses #1 has is efficiency. Throughout this whole issue, there isn’t a single panel that feels wasted. Even moments designed mostly as backstory or setup are grounded by a character, and the telling of the information is used to expand on the character. This leads to an issue packed to the gills with unique players, even if they’re only in it for a couple of moments. Speaking of characters, while there are certainly some recognizable archetypes, Tynion manages to avoid outright cliches. For example, the group of ultra-rich people running the show are all equally hateable, but some are hippies, and some are just awkward low-achievers, not the typical stuffy cold billionaire cliche you might expect. The story itself is unique in its details, but is basically a Battle Royale sort of setup. Where this comic sets itself apart, though, is in its tone. Imagine if you could take the hyper-violent, bombastic nature of the alternate universe presented in professional wrestling and dip a comic book into that. If there’s one area that feels not quite up to snuff, it’s that after so many pages devoted to hyping up the killers and their capacity for mayhem and death, the first instance of them crossing paths is kind of underwhelming.

STRIKING AND STYLISH

While the writing alone is enough to place this story firmly in the action movie-esque realm, the art of Exquisite Corpses #1 sets up a home there. Even in quieter moments, there’s a sense of kinetic energy in everything. But it’s when they start busting out the full-page stylized character cards that things get ramped up several notches. The colors are nice, once again, they shine with the character card stuff, but are solid throughout.

BOTTOM LINE: AN AMBITIOUS PROJECT WITH A STRONG FOUNDATION

After doing a little bit of research, it’s clear that they have some big plans for this title, and while it remains to be seen how much of those goals will be achieved, it’s safe to say that so far, the comic side of things is hitting. Exquisite Corpses #1 is a stylish comic book that finds a good balance between setting up all the groundwork for a story with a lot of moving parts, while also being entertaining in its own right. 4 out of 5 stars.

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