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Sight Unseen
Graphic Novel Review
Book Released: 21 June 2006
Posted 14 September 2006
Writer: Robert Tinnell
Artist: Bo Hampton
Publisher: Image Comics
5.00 out of 5 Stars
Reviewed by Adam White
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Writer Robert Tinnell is two for two on being 5/5 Stars so far; in Sight Unseen, he, along with artist Bo Hampton,
produces the first true Horror graphic novel that I have ever read. Tinnell and Hampton avoid all the current fake horror
trends — which mainly amount to who can out-gore everybody else — and focus on true psychological Horror both in
the writing and the art. Sight Unseen truly creeped me out and made it hard to go to sleep that night.
Robert Tinnell has shifted over to comics from the film world and not only made the transition with ease but shown he
excels as a writer in any
medium.
Tinnell not only takes the “ghost story” and
reinvigorates it to its fullest but also creates an original story, something virtually impossible to find in film or comics
these days. Tinnell bases the story partly on certain scientific discoveries, even if those facts are somewhat controversial in
the science community, and then procedes to scare the hell out of you from beginning to end. Sight Unseen has no
extraneous set-up or dialogue within; Tinnell gets right into the story and trusts the reader to follow along (again, a
rarity). Nor does Tinnell use unnecessary dialogue in the spookiest parts — he lets the artist do the talking.
Bo Hampton takes that opportunity to let the art do the talking and runs
with it, painting a Horror masterpiece to which
all the current so-called horror (read: gore) comics can’t hold a candle.
Hampton produces truly beautiful art, yet he also provides the eeriest panels ever committed to paper. Every ghost scene
raises the hairs on the back of your neck, and the first scene with the main poltergeist almost makes you drop the book.
Hampton makes the reader feel the ghosts as much as see them, and he leaves you breathless with fright.
Sight Unseen forces you to turn on all the lights and constantly check over your shoulder, but more than that it
leaves an unsettling feeling in the pit of your stomach. Tinnell and Hampton capture true Horror unlike any other comic
creators, and they blow away any horror filmmakers of the last half-century. These guys know how to freak you out, and do so
gleefully. I cannot recommend Sight Unseen highly enough, especially if you are a Horror fan — look inside and
see how it’s done.
—CCdC—
Cover image used without explicit permission in accordance with the "Fair Use" provision of US copyright law.
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