“Fixation #1” Review – Screaming in the Twilight

If you have a proclivity towards the horror genre, then you’ve no doubt seen something like this before. Fans win a trip to stay in the house that served as set dressing for a major horror franchise. However, someone connected to said franchise begins picking people off one by one in a whodunit horror murder mystery. So, whodunit in Amy Chase’s “Fixation #1”? Why would Shawn & I tell you?

Writing: Amy Chase
Art: Savanna Mayer
Colors: James Fenner
Letters: Sandy Tanaka

The Writing

Shawn: The crime label from IDW really is what drew me to this comic for review, and Amy Chase delivered. While the premise of the story might not be brand new, Chase takes key aspects of those familiar stories and tweaks them into something new and exciting. While there is still the parasocial fandom aspect of the story, there’s a psychological and horror twist to the story that makes it a total page-turner.

Amy Chase’s story draws you into this world. You feel the depth of the connection these characters have to the story within the story. If you’ve encountered various fandoms, you’ve undoubtedly encountered folks like the people in the story, or maybe you are one of those fans. That is perhaps the most tantalizing part is that Chase connects with the audience through people with personality traits of people they’ve probably already met.

Eda: Before going in, I had very little idea that this book was coming out. As a result, I went in completely blind, and yet, as a big “Scream” fan, this story felt very familiar and easy to get into. Writer Amy Chase crafted something that feels familiar yet modernized for the intense fandom age.

Throughout, she manages to set up a decent slow-burn murder mystery plot. I already have a couple of ideas about who it could be, but with how this genre tends to go, they could also be red herrings. Regardless, I’m tentatively waiting to see where this story goes.

The Art

Shawn: I really like the variation that Savanna Mayer gives us throughout this issue. There’s a backbone that the art is built upon, but Mayer takes the time to provide some variety from page to page in how it looks. There’s an intentionality in the line work that makes it stand out. One of the difficulties of setting a story in a real-life local is that you will need to bring that local to life, and Mayer does a great job of that. It feels like Vail is alive and breathing within the pages.

James Fenner does a remarkable job with coloring. The colors really capture the mood and setting from panel to panel, page to page. I really love the work Fenner does with lighting and shading in the issue. It adds to the story and combines well with Chase’s story to draw you into the world. The colors combine with the line work to draw you into a story you feel like you’ve been a part of or experienced before in life. Sandy Tanaka does a beautiful job with lettering, helping the story flow easily. From the coloring on the word bubbles to the faded lettering to indicate internal thoughts, Tanaka really helps you understand how the story is progressing.

Eda: While the art style from illustrator Savanna Mayer isn’t exactly my personal taste, I still have a deep appreciation for the level of detail and worldbuilding in terms of the look and feel. The location of the story feels like a character in itself as we see the shops, background characters, and all of the locations you can think of when you think about small-town life. Being able to capture something like that isn’t easy to do and, for that, I have to give massive props.

On the other hand, I loved the coloring style of James Fenner! I’m unsure how he did it, but he managed to capture the feels of both modern-day and the eighties. The colors are almost this dull, neon-like style, evoking both the heyday of slasher films and the likes of “Twilight”, which isn’t inherently a bad thing. As for the lettering, Sandy Tanaka kept things very easy to follow while doing some rather unique-looking text boxes during flashbacks and internal monologues.

Final Thoughts

Shawn: I thought Fixation #1 did a really good job of drawing you into the story. It gives you just enough to make it feel familiar while also adding enough new twists, writing, art, and nuance to realize it’s part of the genre, not just a rehashing of the same old tales. I can’t wait to see where the story goes from here.

Eda: Overall, Amy Chase’s “Fixation #1” is solid and sticks the initial landing while leaving room for more. While the art admittedly holds it back a tiny bit for me, it’s something I was still able to easily sink my teeth into as a slasher fiend. While not perfect, I’m still very interested to see where this goes!

Shawn’s Grade: 8/10
Eda’s Grade: 8/10
Overall Grade: 8/10

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Comments

Are you a fan of Amy Chase or anyone else on the team? Are you looking to pick up “Fixation #1”? Let’s discuss in the comments below!