Killer Influences #1
Creative Team
writer: JOEY ESPOSITO
artist: VALERIA BURZO
colorist: IÑAKI AZPIAZU
letterer: ALEX RAY
publisher: IDW PUBLISHING
Serial killing is a hard business to stand out in, it’s time consuming, the PR isn’t great, and it’s creatively demanding. So how do you get ahead? Well, hiring a social media manager isn’t a bad start in Killer Influences from IDW Publishing.
“Can I change them?” You may, during an ill-advised relationship, have asked yourself such a question before. Kylie Hart is on a mission to prove that this question is not as fruitless as the group chat makes it out to be, she’s going to turn slacker slasher Melvin Duffy into a bloody superstar.
We're talking hour-long video essays, we’re talking TikTok edits to Sabrina Carpenter tracks, we’re talking serial killer tier lists whatever it takes damn it! She isn’t going to rest until the “Caddyshack Killer” gets his own Netflix special and that's a promise.
With Killer Influences, writer Joey Esposito (Batman: Urban Legends, Power Rangers Unlimited) poses a clever idea here, why wouldn’t you team up with the serial killer you’re investigating to raise their profile and make some cash? It feels like the natural end point of the true crime craze, neo-macabre maybe. It's crazy enough to be unreal but not so crazy that you can’t see it happening.
You find yourself accepting the premise of the book remarkably fast, in fact the team-up makes so much sense it’s almost worrying! Both of our main characters are nicely fleshed out, with clear and sick motivations and the first issue gives you a nice little rug pull at the end that’s hard to see coming.
The artwork here is reminiscent of old school LA thrasher magazines, or Neversoft Tony Hawk covers. Especially when you get to the nice and gory bits which are critical to this comic's story.
Valeria Burzo’s (Hunt for the Skinwalker) art here may not to be everyone‘s taste but she has free rein here to be creative with the grisly details and certainly makes the most of it, with a touch of creative panelling as well, using the medium to its fullest with some parallel story-telling.
Iñaki Azpiazu’s (The Hive) colours also do a lot of favours for the book, especially when it comes to making the aforementioned grizzly bits feel nice and visceral.
Final Verdict:
There’s a lot to like in Killer Influences, it’s fresh, it’s fast, and it’s fun. It might not be everyone's cup of tea but for those who love a good crime story this will be right up their alley. You just have to hope that Melvin isn’t waiting there as well.
| Criteria | Score |
|---|---|
| Writing | 8 |
| Story/Plot | 9 |
| Art/Line Work | 7 |
| Colors | 7 |
| Final Score | 7.9/10 |
