Review: Frank at Home on the Farm #1-3 (Jordan Thomas)
With the World in Lockdown and Diamond closing its doors, temporarily ceasing distribution of comics to shops, the source for new titles (besides Comixology) now falls to the indie campaigns on platforms like Kickstarter. With the fourth instalment of their series currently undergoing its own campaign, we take a look at the first three issues of Jordan Thomas and Clark Bint’s supernatural horror series, Frank at Home on the Farm.
Publisher: Jordan Thomas
Writer: Jordan Thomas
Artist: Clark Bint (Art/Cover Art), Lettersquids (Letters), Daniel Gruitt (Graphics)
Price: Currently funding on Kickstarter
Frank at Home on the Farm tells the story of the titular Frank Cross, a surviving veteran and of the Great War whose return to his home of the eponymous farm is shrouded in mystery rather than excitement when he discovers his family are missing. With no clues to their whereabouts and a local village full of people who have no knowledge of their existence, Frank makes the best of his new situation as he continues the day to day of farm life. However, as Frank struggles with dreams from his time at war, he finds himself unnerved by the solitude of the farm and a feeling that the animals in the yard are watching him. However, is all of this in his head, or is there a far more terrifying answer behind it all?
Jordan Thomas has created an immensely creepy but captivating story with Frank at Home on the Farm. Thomas has taken a very simple premise of a man living alone on a farm and injected a very unsettling atmosphere to proceedings, giving it a very subtle horror vibe. In fact, coupled with the backdrop of a World War 1 survivor, Thomas makes the atmosphere unnerving and understated enough that it makes the reader wonder whether the events taking place are real or simply a creation of Frank’s imagination as he battles his obvious PTSD. In fact, the questions continue to be asked throughout the first three issues, from where is Frank’s family to deeper questions such as who is Frank (and is this even his farm?), both before and after the major twist.
On the art side, Clark Bint implements a chilling series of visuals which more than match Thomas’s suspense-filled plot. In fact, Bint’s style works really well to depict this series, with his depiction bearing a resemblance to the art found at Top Cow for series like Think Tank and Postal, but mixed with a hint of Jae Lee. Every panel that Bint produces, from the nightmarish to the ordinary, is given a sinister twist (particularly with those farmyard animals), which helps to build the suspense the story is instilling.
Frank at Home on the Farm, is a seriously enthralling and tremendously well-crafted series which is a must read for any fans of the Horror genre. Thomas, Bint and Co. have done a terrific job taking such a simple, almost unassuming, concept and twisted it into something so addictive with great writing and gorgeous art. These first three issues are a tremendous read, which will leave you thirsting for that final instalment.