this book is part of writer rick geary's (National Lampoon, Mad, Rolling Stone, Heavy Metal) ongoing non-fiction comic book series titled - A Treasury of Victorian Murder. The Beast of Chicago is the sixth volume in the series.
in case youre unfamiliar with the subject matter, Herman Webster Mudgett also better known as Dr. Henry Howard Holmes, was one of the first documented American serial killers within the modern sense of the term. He was also a con man, and he kept several wives and families.
during the 1893 World's Fair in chicago, Holmes designed, built and opened a hotel in which he had designated as his personal labyrinthine chamber of horrors. while he confessed to 27 murders, of which four were confirmed. his actual body count could be as high as 200 as he took an unknown number of his victims from the that years World's Fair.
this graphic novel was the perfect medium to explore Holmes' "Castle," .... (which was) a maze of secret doors, airtight rooms, gas chambers, and ovens where he disposed his victims.
Holmes' traveling cons, bigamy, and murder spree was criminally ambitious to say the least, but building an elaborate murder castle really shows how today's serial killers are kinda slacking.. JOKING!
Geary's interpretation of details drawn from old newspaper reports and courtroom drawings are awesome. his rendition of the Castle’s mysterious second floor, with all its secret passageways and deadly rooms are even more incredible. ex- asphyxiation chamer, hanging room,
geary places holmes against the glowing electric lights of the fair and does a great job at presenting the "history and myth" surrounding Holmes's ever-changing aliases, schemes, co-conspirators, families, and victims. i think the inherent complexity of the tale reduces many of the episodes and I wish he had settled into some of the details of the story more, especially the characters. It has a slightly less well developed plot in this book but that may be in relation to the extent of his crimes were never really uncovered ,much less a time line for most of them. But it was chilling story none the less.
The black-and-white artwork comparisons to Edward Gorey (in theme and style) are inevitable. but geary's work has a stylish and engaging feel to it: very clean lines and good use of space. This macabre tale prob better suited for older readers who are fans of murder mysteries, or true crime.
thanks to brett hampton for this most excellent gift!
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