Veil #1

By Greg Rucka & Toni Fejzula

When first hearing Greg Rucka was doing a mini-series for Dark Horse called Veil, many fans were intrigued to find out more about this series. It’s no secret that Dark Horse is the front runners in the suspense/horror genre so the thought of Rucka delivering a horror tale was an interesting concept. With the first issue being released this week, we get to finally see what kind of story Veil would be.

The debut issue of Veil does show a different side of Rucka by showing a different style of storytelling. A lot of the plot is still somewhat shrouded in mystery after finishing the first issue but it’s still incredibly easy to follow along. The basic concept is a mystifying woman wakes up naked in the New York subway system and she doesn’t seem to be a regular person at all and carries some sort of strange power. She only seems to speak small words and then rhymes them with other similar sounding words. She wanders nude through New York until she is taken in by an actual kind man who thinks she may have been traumatized or is mentally ill. This was a really well put together start that flowed flawlessly from page to page without bogging the reader down with heaps of text to read. Because of that, Rucka perfectly executes the whole “show, don’t tell” style of writing that is harder for most writers to pull off. There is plenty of substance in this first issue to make for an engrossing read but still leave you wanting to read and know more about the mysterious girl named Veil.

There are many artists who have their own unique style that makes them stand out from the pack, Toni Fejzula is unquestionably one of those artists. When you have a particular artistic style it usually garners a love it or hate it reaction from most readers. Personally, I found Fejzula’s art to have an overall rather refreshing and original feel to it that made Veil even more pleasing to read. Fejzula style of art might be best described as a mix of cel shading and watercolors which look incredibly beautiful combined together in Veil. The real stand out impression you get from Fejzula’s art, beside his distinctive style of colors is how well he makes expressive eyes. There are so many panels where just the characters eyes alone tell you so much that you don’t need text blocks to express their feelings.

Veil was a real pleasant surprise to read. A familiar writer stepping outside his box and an unfamiliar artist making a huge impression, together they bring a fascinating horror/suspense story. Veil is off to a really good start, this first issue read smoothly and even though it was a satisfying read it still makes you, as a reader, very invested to want to read more.