His ability to capture the emotions behind the characters' eyes is still impressive, even after reading Locke & Key numerous times. Rodriguez seems to be built for this type of story, and it is impossible to picture another artist creating a mood simply through background and color selection.

The essence of Barker’s brilliance is there, but the bloat is torn away, and the most important parts are treated with respect and a fresh perspective. That talent is what makes this collection one of the best I’ve read. We see the human suffering and the attempts to contextualize something that has no explanation. The aftereffects that each women goes through are portrayed with a more malicious undercurrent in the book, while Ryall seems to hit on the reality of it.

Ryall manages to weave the atrocity that happens to the women with a sympathetic bent. Barker has always had a penchant for handling sex and rape in a way that glorifies the power involved in sex (consensual or not), while shaming the other half of the equation, all while trying to be titillating, something I have personally always loathed. Surprisingly, the story does not entirely focus on Fletcher and Jaffe, but on their children who they produced by raping a group of women in hopes of continuing their war. Jaffe’s trek to discover the secrets of magic and, ultimately, find his way into the sea of dreams teams him up with Fletcher, and their partnership becomes a rivalry when both are granted powers that no one on Earth should have. He sets your teeth on edge from the get-go, setting up Jaffe as both a tragic story and a vile beast. The opening pages make use of Rodriguez’s distinct ability to show the most disgusting traits of a person through simple smiles and conniving looks. The battle of The Quiddity takes place between a mentally unstable former postal worker named Randolph Jaffe, and burnt-out, drug-addicted hippy Fletcher. It takes Barker’s story of a mystical war over the sea of dreams called The Quiddity and creates a narrative that is precise as well as creepy and powerful but profoundly disturbing. Robots) with art from Gabriel Rodriguez ( Locke & Key), resulting in an adaptation that far surpasses the source material not only in accessibility, but emotionally as well. The Great and Secret Show was adapted to a graphic novel by writer Chris Ryall ( Zombies vs.

The great and secret show book