ScreamTV

’68 #1 (of 4)
Writer: Mark Kidwell
Artist: Nat Jones
Colorist: Jay Fotos

In 2006 Image Comics released ’68, a one-shot zombie comic set during the Vietnam War. Now, the original creative team from that one-shot return to Vietnam with a brand new mini-series, detailing a worldwide zombie outbreak during one of the most tumultuous years of the latter-half of the 20th century. In this first issue we meet the soldiers of Firebase Aries, already on edge because of the Tet Offensive, as they discover a new enemy in the jungle… the living dead!

Stories about zombies have been, if you’ll pardon the pun, done to death. And this is coming from a fan of the horror sub-genre! So when I come across a zombie tale that actually feels original it’s not only surprising, it’s entirely welcome. ’68 is definitely original, mostly because of the time and place it is set, but also because it’s a rare thing to read a zombie comic, or any horror comic for that matter, that actually delivers the chills. From the first introduction of the zombie menace through the scope of a sniper-rifle to the terrifying tunnel sequence, this comic manages quite effectively to freak you the hell out.

Is it Kidwell’s well researched Vietnam setting that sucks you in and makes the horror feel more real? Maybe it’s Nat Jones art, gritty and immediate, coupled with Jay Fotos’ subtle coloring that sells the images of terror so well. It’s probably a combination of all three that makes this first issue so effective, a creative team that works well together to deliver a refreshingly original take on the horrors of war against the undead! It’s not perfect but it’s damn good and highly recommended for horror fans or those who just like to read a good, solid comic.
-Paul Milligan