For all the pathos and dark twists and turns, for all the loneliness and sadness at the heart of Jeff Lemire’s Black Hammer, there is also a sincere sense of joy for comic books and what they represent and the worlds they can create. Lemire is able to explore the complex emotions and psychologies of a group of superheroes trapped on a mysterious farm, unable to reveal who they really are, while at the same time revealing their pasts through Golden Age-style comic book tropes. This book is complex, emotionally satisfying, and entertaining. Is issue #9, we step into a horror vault-style comic book in which weird magic and dark turns occur, and then we get to see how that echoes into the modern age of comics environment.

Dean Ormston and Dave Stewart’s art and colors are magnificent, leaping back and forth to capturing the authentic look and feel of those Golden Age books to a more modern look.

This book is one of the most wonderful things on the shelf. Buy it.