BURIED LONG, LONG AGO #1 by Anthony Cleveland and Alex Cormack (Mad Cave Studios, expected release date April 16, 2025) The story is inspired by a true case of a female serial killer in the last decade of the 19th Century (1884-1908). However, it’s not necessary to be familiar with the history of Belle Gunness to read this story, based on those murders.
The opening of Issue #1, which relates a fairy tale as told by the oldest daughter to her two younger sisters during a train trip to their new home in Indiana, is a brilliant set-up for the horror to follow. It foreshadows the establishment of a mindset of dread among the three former town girls (Chicago) who are disturbed by the differences of country life on a rural farm in La Pointe, Indiana. Pigs, chickens, a bloody slaughterhouse where the animals are butchered and sold, and a strange lurking pair of eyes seen in the dark and through the windows. What is happening outside the farmhouse is as traumatizing as what is happening inside.
That fairy tale told on the train detailed an ogre witch who disguised herself and lured victims into a hollow. It ends with a knight being devoured, only bones remaining, and the witch never captured despite a manhunt. It haunts the younger sisters and makes them nervous in their new setting on the property owned by their new stepfather. The opening issue ends with a brutal murder (deemed an accident) and a cover-up by a domineering mother (coincidentally named Belle Gunness) and backed-up by a fearful older daughter.
The art is simply great, so good at creating nervous images, revealing scenes, and fearful body language that I would gladly read this without text boxes or dialogue - - just for the art.. However, the script is taut and succinctly effective. You can tell that writer Anthony Delaware is into the story, and it shows. I’ve followed the work of artist Alex Cormack for some time, and this ranks with his best efforts.
The story is a re-telling of the dark history of Belle Gunness, told from the perspective of her three daughters. If that wasn’t dreadful enough, there’s a fearful presence lurking on the farm premises that is apparently being revived and empowered as the issue ends.
"If my career was limited to telling only one story, it would absolutely be this one. I have been wanting to write a story involving the Belle Gunness case since I first saw a museum exhibit about her in middle school. Alex has stuck by and matched my passion for this story for the past five years. There were many setbacks to reach the finish, but with each delay there was always a shared rally to return and do even better than before. Truly, this book is a high point for both of us. You're going to see surprises you would not expect from us or this type of story." – Writer, Anthony Cleveland
“Buried Long, Long Ago is not a story for the weak. It is probably the heaviest book that I have worked on and to ring my own bell, I’ve drawn some horrific things. This story–and for that matter–Anthony’s writing, is fantastic, horrific, beautiful and smart. The way he writes these characters reminds you of people you may have known and people you hope to never meet. This is a passion project for Anthony, and I am incredibly proud to be a part of it and cannot wait for people to see it. Come and stay forever.”
– Artist, Alex Cormack
This is a promising FIVE-STAR debut. We’ll see if BURIED LONG, LONG AGO can maintain that quality in the following issues and through the conclusion. I received an advance digital review copy from Mad Cave Studios without obligation. I wrote this review because I wanted to share my excitement. If you’re intrigued by this title, place a pre-order with your local comic shop before March 24, 2025.
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