In April of 2011, IGN Comics began allowing MyIGN users to submit articles for their weekly review roundup. Any that live up to IGN’s editorial standards are be published alongside IGN’s staff reviews. Any that I write, I’ll post here, whether they get published or not.
This review was published, and included in the April 27th IGN Comics review roundup.
Story by Cole Haddon
Art by M.S. Corley
Alternate literary history is a difficult genre to boil down for mass consumption. It’s creators must walk a fine line, conjuring stories that are both referential and understandable. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen comic books are an example of how to do this well, while the movie version shows us exactly the opposite. The Strange Case of Mr. Hyde, while solidly evocative of the former, never quite finds a firm grip on its appeal.
We open on the familiar story of Dr. Henry Jekyll and his infamous serum, introducing us to the origins of the titular character before skipping ahead five years. The book then takes on the story if its narrator, Scotland Yard Inspector Thomas Adye, as he attempts to unravel the the crimes of Jack The Ripper. Upon finding frightening evidence of a killer with superhuman abilities, Adye (an amalgam of several of the Ripper’s real-life inspectors) realizes he is overwhelmed and seeks the counsel of the secretly imprisoned Jekyll, thought long dead by an ignorant public.
Hyde never finds its pace, becoming bogged down in excessive (if modestly interesting) dialogue. It just plods along, hoping that hooks so obvious as to be laughable (whether intended to mislead or not) will keep readers interested. Although plenty of side references may make the literati chuckle, Haddon’s script never finds an entertaining balance. Unfortunately, Corley’s artwork is similarly flat and uninspired. The final action sequence entirely lacks motion, feeling like a series of poorly posed mannequins and failing to elicit any feelings of tension, even at its climax.
The Strange Case of Mr. Hyde is an interesting concept that’s full of almosts, but misses the mark in almost every way. Fans of this style of alternate literary fiction may find nuggets of interest, but overall it left me completely underwhelmed.
