If you’ve been following along, you know the occult sleuth Joe Golem ended up in some pretty hot water last issue (When isn’t he?) while hunting down an artifact that could have dire consequences if it falls into the wrong hands. Well, in issue five, Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden start a major turn of events for Joe and everyone surrounding him.

The wrong hands previously referred to are the hands of Dr. Cocteau, an evil scientist who has kidnapped a medium that has a strong connection to a place called The Outer Dark/ The item is the Pentajulum. Joe has been sent to find the Pentajulum with the help of a girl, Molly, who knows the medium in question. Molly is hardly a frail thing that needs saving either, but the two of them are currently up to their necks in trouble, literally and figuratively.

If you have been reading, then you know Joe’s secret, one that even he doesn’t know, because his boss, Mr. Church, has been keeping it from him. It’s a really intriguing and complex layer of relationships happening here, and everything is about to come crashing around him.

This fifth issue completes the Drowning City arc, and now we gear up and wait to see how things go down. Hopefully, we won’t have to wait too long!

The mashup of detective tropes and Lovecraftian elements has always created for me a really fun ride. Mignola and Golden handle it with sophistication, so it isn’t a bunch of dummies running around. Their characters are smart and resourceful, and so are the villains. None of this is dumbed down for the reader, and now’s the perfect time to catch up!

Creative Team: Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden (writer, creator), Peter Bergting (artist), Michelle Madsen (colors), Dave Palumbo (cover art)
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
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