Acclaimed director of The Conjuring movies Michael Chaves tries his hand at comics with new series Corpse Knight, but is it any good?
Published by Skybound, Corpse Knight is an all-new gothic horror limited-series from a top-tier creative team that’s not just renowned for comics, but some hugely acclaimed film and TV projects. The full team consists of writer/co-creator Michael Chaves (The Conjuring franchise), artist/co-creator Matthew Roberts (Universal Monsters: Creature from The Black Lagoon Lives!), colorist Rico Renzi (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse) and letterer Pat Brosseau (Birthright).
Corpse Knight takes place in war-ravaged France in 1429 — during the midst of the Hundred Years’ War — where a young girl named Foy lives in relative peace with her father. However, after tragedy strikes and she loses her father, the one person by her side, she’s granted a miracle. Her father returns from the dead to protect her as the corpse knight.
The first thing that struck me about the opening issue is the cinematic nature, which is no doubt testament to such an experienced creative team. Chaves is a renowned director, and his visionary skills have translated seamlessly into comics. The artwork from Matthew Roberts is gorgeously macabre, full of grit and gore, but he also captures some really beautiful scenery, too.
As a fantasy period piece, Chaves and Roberts certainly transport you into the era. It’s a time of uncertainty and harshness — both of which are well depicted. In terms of story, issue #1 reads extremely fast-paced and throws its punches early. It would’ve been nice to have a little more build-up. It quickly establishes a father-daughter relationship, but plays out its twists early, so soon that the emotional beats don’t land as heavily as they should. The action is breathtaking and brutal, which is just what you want from a story like this.
Given that this is a limited series, it would’ve been nicer to have a little more exposition to begin with; there’s much showing and not enough exposition. Hopefully that comes in later issues. With this debut, Corpse Knight has set a very solid foundation to build on. I’m excited to continue reading Foy and the Corpse Knight’s quest — but I’m not too emotionally invested as of now.
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