Joe Hill says this is a tribute to the works of H. P. Lovecraft and the films of John Carpenter. Neither of those guys do much for me, which might explain why this book didn't do much for me.
I was annoyed that math stuff was thrown around like it was important to the series but was really used for nothing but window dressing. Mentioning pi does not make this men vs. monsters tale deeper or more interesting. 8418931221 Another great Joe Hill publication.
'Spooky, huh? Real ghost story stuff. Ship of the dead. Like a lonely voice calling out from a house you know is empty.'
Great artwork, a fun and gory story plus plenty of strangeness going on. What more could you want?
'Maybe he heard Russel playing Wonderwall on his mandolin and decided suicide was the only way out.' 8418931221 This was an amazing read and omg maybe my fav Hill house comic I have read so far. The story is like a crew of a ship missing and then signals coming 40 yeras later so a salvage crew sent to rescue them and find out some secret and the crew is the people like Carpenter brothers aka Gage, Clark and Russell and Moriah, another diver/biologist and some others but what we find our crew seeing over the course of the series will change a lot of things and then the character work done is brilliant, the slow mysteries unravelling, what are these creatures haunting them and the big stuff with the crew that happened and so much more, mysticism, cosmic horror, fear of the depths/unknown, and a solid ending filled with heart <3!
This series has it all, over the course of the series I really started to love all the Carpenter brothers and seeing how they are ready for sacrificing themselves was brilliant and that feeling made this an even better read ad then the big threat (which could have used a issue or two) but regardless makes for a good threat and by the end has you hooked and delivers on a solid ending, plus the art of Immonen which makes this series even better! I will highly recommend it for maybe a day you feel like in horror spirit or on Halloween days! 8418931221 In the aftermath of a devastating tsunami, an exploration vessel known as the Derleth begins sending an automated distress signal from a remote atoll in the Bering Strait. The only problem is that the Derleth has been missing for 40 years. Marine biologist Moriah Lamb joins the Carpenter Wreck Removal team to recover the Derleth’s dead, only to find that in this remote part of the Arctic Circle, the dead have plenty to say to the living.
This was a neat little comic. It wasn’t high-art by any means, but it’s a nice love letter to all things ‘80s horror. It feels very much like a John Carpenter horror movie from that time in comic book form, which I believe is exactly what Joe Hill was going for. He’s joined by Stuart Immonen, who does fantastic work penciling and inking the story, while the incredible Dave Stewart knocks it out of the park on the coloring work. I usually write longer reviews, but every other review on here has summed up this comics' pros and cons better than I could, so go read those. I liked this a lot though, as there’s still a solid-enough story here that anyone who likes horror can enjoy. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who likes ‘80s horror flicks like I do. 8418931221
You can find my review on my blog by clicking here.
Humans are filled with motives of all kind, orienting their actions, especially when facing adversity. Drawing upon their most basic desires while fearing the most terrifying outcomes pertaining to their well-being, their actions lead them to make decisions that are beyond principles of utilitarianism. Thankfully, some individuals will sacrifice themselves for the greater good, especially if the end of the world is around the corner. The final story published under the Hill House Comics—at least for the time being—now belongs once again to the curator himself, writer Joe Hill, who teams up with artist Stuart Immonen to explore a mission to an isolated island where unfathomable terrors lurk and bide their time to finally crawl out of the darkness and wreak havoc.
What is Plunge about? Back in 1983, an impeccable and renown drilling ship known as the Derleth goes missing near the Arctic Circle. Decades later, the Rococo oil company hires the Carpenter brothers to investigate odd distress signals coming from that very long-ago disappeared ghost ship. With a marine biologist and an oil executive, the team embarks on a treacherous adventure only to discover that the crew that should have been dead has somehow survived and they now have answers to humanity’s greatest questions that no one has ever solved to this day. Unfortunately for the team, their rescue mission turns into a survival game, one where the stakes implicate the fate of humanity that now rests upon the shoulders of peculiar individuals, some with the most vile vices.
Without hiding anything from his readers, writer Joe Hill channels his inner H.P. Lovecraft, Ridley Scott, and John Carpenter to deliver a brilliant horror story with the right amount of dark humour to counterbalance the ghastly horror elements. As the story progresses, he brilliantly and methodically unveils the shape and form of the imminent danger, a pool of menace that the characters unfortunately find themselves in. While the story grows at a steady pace all the way to the grand finale, writer Joe Hill also does an excellent job in meticulously exploring his characters in the little timeframe he has. He allows each and every one of them the chance to showcase their personalities and contribute in some way to the unfolding of events, clearly impacting the outcome of their escapade as they all debate individual and world interests to decide how they wish to act if they are to survive or die honourably.
As noted by writer Joe Hill in his afterword, this graphic novel also succeeds immensely thanks to artist Stuart Immonen’s stunning artwork. His concept art is impeccable, his grasp on developing eerie atmospheres is mind-boggling, and his ability to draw emotionally-nuanced characters is indubitable. The story itself isn’t told to scare readers through raw gore and horror but rather instore a sense of fear within the narrative through ideas and Stuart Immonen’s artwork achieves the necessary terror to remind us that the threat presented here should not be taken lightly. Not to mention that colourist Dave Stewart’s work is the ultimate touch that gives this volume the tone and mood needed to immerse the reader in a captivating story that they won’t be disappointed to discover.
Plunge is a chilling horror story exploring humanity’s fear and greed on top of their genuine sense of solidarity and fraternity in the face of evil.
Yours truly,
Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/ 8418931221
Joe Hill ó 6 Read
¡Sumérgete en el terror! En 1983, el Derleth, un buque de perforación de última generación, desaparece cerca del Círculo Polar Ártico. Décadas más tarde empieza a emitir una señal de socorro… La compañía petrolífera Rococo sigue la señal hasta un remoto atolón del Estrecho de Bering y contrata a los hermanos Carpenter y su tripulación de rescate para investigar el barco fantasma. Junto con una bióloga marina y un ejecutivo petrolífero, los hermanos se embarcan en una siniestra misión para averiguar las causas de la desaparición del barco y recuperar los cuerpos de la tripulación… ¡pero resulta que los hombres del Derleth no están muertos! Aunque tampoco están ya del todo… vivos… Inmersión es una celebración surrealista y sangrienta del género de terror de los 80 que reúne a Joe Hill (NOS4A2, Locke & Key) y Stuart Immonen (El increíble Spiderman, Superman: Identidad secreta) en un viaje a las profundidades insondables del terror. Recopila la miniserie de seis números junto con comentarios exclusivos y bocetos. Inmersión (Hill House Comics)
This was absolutely fantastic — easily one of the best releases in this new Hill House line so far. The art took a little time to grow on me, but the characters are so enjoyable and the plot is genuinely unsettling and dreadful, right down to the bone. This is going down as one of my favorite cosmic horror media pieces, no question, not only for the fear factor and the otherworldly appeal of the villains, but for how effortlessly Joe Hill made me love our little cast of misfit heroes, too.
Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this review copy in exchange for an honest review! 8418931221 The Thing meets Cthulhu with beautiful artwork. 8418931221 This was terrific! A salvage crew goes to investigate a boat that's been missing for 40 years in the Arctic Sea. They find the ship wrecked on an atoll and a whole lot more. Hill borrows from some of the best horror influences. There's a little Aliens, some of The Thing, and some Lovecraft all mixed into this in the best ways.
Stuart Immonen's art is fantastic. He should ink his own work more often. Particularly when Dave Stewart is providing the colors. 8418931221 40 years ago the Derleth went missing off the coast of Alaska with all hands. Except now, suddenly, a signal from the lost ship begins transmitting again! A mysterious businessman charters a shipping crew for a salvage mission to the wreck in the middle of nowhere. Could the crew still be alive - and, if not, what onboard is broadcasting the signal…?
I like the premise and look of Plunge more than the execution. Lovecraftian stories are my jam and this is Lovecraftian as hell: there are cosmic alien horrors manifesting as giant tentacled monsters tearing apart reality, shambolic zombies toting weird talismans, not to mention the nod to August Derleth, HP Lovecraft’s first publisher.
But Joe HIll doesn’t do much besides slowly introduce these elements then drearily smoosh them together for a predictably Hollywood-esque finale. Hands emerging from the dark, corpse bags slowly unzipping, eyeless figures, “call us… Legion”, corpses talking but only one person hears - it’s all stuff I’ve seen before in many other horror stories trotted out again unoriginally.
The Ingot is like any other Macguffin that does whatever a spider can and the ending is too pat, almost cliched, in the way it wraps everything up. I didn’t understand why the Derleth would contain a “lifeboat” for these creatures and it’s just a bit too convenient that it’s protected by something that’s fatal to them but not to humans, providing a contrived conclusion to close out on.
The cast of characters are an unremarkable bunch, none of whom leave much of an impression, and their banter was mostly irritating and tedious (all that rubbish about the coffee - ugh! Also, how does anyone jump to the conclusion that the coffee wards off possession?!).
I also didn’t get why they would scrawl out Pi in its entirety - it just seems like something that seems cool and spooky in a story but doesn’t make sense from the perspective of the ones actually doing it. And there’s not a lot of it but the untranslated Russian was annoying - why have this for an English-speaking audience? And if it’s because the dialogue itself is easily-imagined and irrelevant, why include these scenes to begin with?
Stuart Immonen’s art is superb, particularly when you add Dave Stewart’s colours. The Lovecraftian monster designs were awesome and I’m pretty sure the mysterious businessman IS Paul Giamatti! I also discovered that fire retardant grenades are actually a real thing which is super cool.
It’s got nice art and a strong premise with interesting aspects but Joe Hill can’t bring it all together into a compelling narrative. Plunge is a dull, wet sea shanty of a horror comic - another Hill House clunker. 8418931221 I absolutely loved this one. It's definitely a toss-up between this and 'Basketful of Heads' for best Hill House horror title. It wears its influences on its sleeve but the execution is SO good that you can forgive its borrowing of certain horror/SF tropes from Lovecraft and 'Aliens'. The artwork is absolutely fantastic; Stuart Immonen's work has never looked so good; he should ink his own pencils more often.
I'm really hoping this isn't it for the Hill House line. I really enjoyed it, for the most part, and I'm eagerly anticipating any news of a second wave. 8418931221
