Basketful of Heads – 2019-2020 (DC Comics – Black Label) – Horror, Mystery
Author: Joe Hill
Art: Leomacs; Riccardo La Bella
Series Contents: Basketful of Heads #1-7
A short romp of terror and excitement, Basketful of Heads delivers on its titular promise, in strange and interesting ways. Come for the premise, and stay for the tension and thrills.
Story:
It is September, 1983, in a small community on Brody Island, Maine. Smalltown summertime vibes are in the air with groovy tunes flowing and warm breezes treating the inhabitants well. A girl, June Branch, sits on the bridge across the river, peering into the waters below. A modified Brody Island Police vehicle, a Volkswagen Beetle turned into a dune buggy, pulls up and the cop inside hops out to question the girl. This is Liam Ellsworth, a rookie cop hired by the department for the summer.
Thankfully for June, Liam is just there in boyfriend capacity, and not to harass her for her dangerous bridge sitting. The pair drive off and discuss Liam’s lack of cash despite having worked all summer, as well as local crime events. All seems normal for the duo, who are young and in love.
As the day progresses, things get a bit hectic. Four prisoners working on building a rock wall have escaped custody, and the dangerous men are likely somewhere on the island. An incoming windy rainstorm has cut off the main access road out of the small Brody Island community, leaving few options of escape for prisoner or townsfolk alike. A classic setup has emerged, as the police are busy with the escaped men, while Liam and June hold up at Police Chief Wade Clausen’s home (where Liam lives out back on a small boat).
As danger comes calling, June must rely on her wits, as well as potentially Chief Clausen’s collection of ancient artifacts and weaponry that he displays in his home. Maybe a special axe with an etching of the tree of Yggdrasil will prove to be more than it appears to be. Story goes that the axe swung into the wood of Yggdrasil, the tree which all life springs… What may happen when June winds up using it to defend herself? And what will she do with her collection of… parts?
As the series involves more and more characters, multiple mysteries and dangers are present. How will June and Liam make it through their night, and will their love survive the ordeal?
There is a follow up series called “Refrigerator Full of Heads” which will be covered later.
Art:
The art perfectly captures the past-80s setting, giving off a classic vibe of simple small-town life, while amping up the effects and action for violent storms, and bloody action. At times it is more simple and cartoony than one may expect to match the dark story material, but that is not a bad thing and does not take one away from the tense underlying plot. There is sufficient detail on the characters, backgrounds and in the gory bits.
Reasons to Read:
Basketful of Heads is a short tale that whips right along. It has a nice balance of fun and tension, while giving its characters some time to breathe. It is rounded out with flashbacks to reveal additional details or motivations, and feels like a classic murder mystery type tale, with some supernatural themes mixed in.
Similar Titles:
Severed; Nailbiter; Locke & Key; Something is Killing the Children; Harrow County; The Department of Truth