ECC Ediciones from the Vertigo label brings us the latest adaptation of the Netflix series: Cadavers, the work of C. Spencer, who has a great team of illustrators.
DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint spawned some of the best stories to be found in the ninth century, but if there’s anything special about it, it’s even works that don’t appear in the comic world’s Olympus (ed.) like Babylon Sheriff, Scalped, Animal Man, Preacher, Swamp Thing, Sandman…) always had something interesting to offer, mainly because of their distance from the American mainstream. This is the case of Cadaveres, which has now been rescued by ECC Ediciones following its Netflix adaptation.
Four secrets in time
There is no doubt that the most attractive thing in this work is the idea of origin, this mystery is well carried in many lengths. Anyone who comes to this comic from the Netflix series will notice serious differences, most of them for the better, but the basic idea remains, we are talking about a story set in four different timelines, with four different main characters and four corpses with familiar similarities in this rotation. Time. Of course, the place is always London.
Screenwriter C. Spencer began with Today (2014), a Muslim sub-inspector Shahara Hasan discovers the body of a man who has been murdered while witnessing far-right demonstrations in the city. The origin becomes the most revealing aspect of this researcher’s plot arc to explore. Megan Hetrick will be in charge of this department, doing a very successful job of making the reading flow smooth.
But the most interesting and the best period was in 1890 when Jack the Ripper became famous for the recent Whitechapel murders. Here, detective Edmund Hillinghead will be tasked with investigating the case in question, and the mystery surrounding his sexuality will determine his path. In this case, it’s the wonderful Dean Ormston, best known for his work with Jeff Lemire in Black Hammer, who is responsible for the graphic design and is largely responsible for making this story so much fun to read.
In the midst of the Blues Krieg era, Charles Wightman, a Polish-born and Nazi-affiliated inspector with a dark secret and ties to the Nazis, becomes the protagonist of the fast-paced plot. This person lives a double life every day and threatens to collapse as the case progresses. Phil Winslade, with a very sober and classic tone and a subdued color palette, is responsible for cleverly transporting him to this tumultuous time.
Finally, we move to 2050 to follow the most dangerous, controversial and complex subplots developed here. We are introduced to a memory-impaired society affected by an incredible tidal wave of techno-apocalypse. Here an often annoying young woman named Mapplewood is responsible for taking our hands on one of the weakest and most confusing stories here. In the same way, it is Tula Lothai who leads the graphic department and without doing anything bad, he can be called the least successful artist among the cartoonists we see here.
Successes and failures
The initial approach presented here is quite accurate and the way it is built on the first stages of the story should be the reason to attract readers to this work. Also, the main characters of the plot as a whole (with the exception of Mapplewood) are very well written and their individual plots are brilliantly developed.
However, regarding the low points of Cadaveres, two main parts should be noted. On the one hand, the 2050 plan does not work properly. Maybe the proposal is too ambitious for the space on the pages, or Spencer just couldn’t quite capture the ideas in his head. In any case, you should be prepared for a heavy and confusing narrative where the action jumps to this point, even when the plot is advanced, the ending doesn’t become completely clear.
On the other hand, no matter how well the mystery and everything around it is developed in most of the works, the ending does not have a satisfactory closed end. Like Mapplewood’s plot, it seems like something overly incomprehensible is happening that doesn’t match what we’ve seen in the first three quarters of comics.
Despite everything, we are talking about a reading that does not waste time in any way, rather the positive points outweigh the negative. And for those who have watched the Netflix series, despite the significant differences, especially once the story is released, it is a curiosity that can be enjoyed a lot, and even if you consider that the story is better told here.
Published by ECC Ediciones, this volume is presented in hardcover cardboard format. The volume contains 208 full-color pages, and the American edition includes eight issues covering Bodius Ministries, as well as the first covers of each issue and a small end section with illustrations. It has a recommended retail price of €27.50 and goes on sale in February 2024.
Corpses
ISBN: 978-84-10108-24-0
The graphic novel on which the popular Netflix series is based! Four murders. Four investigators. Four ages. Impossible connection.
Screenwriter C. Spencer joins Dean Ormston, Phil Winslade, Megan Hetrick and Tula Lotay in Modern Murder to open the channel and discover the strange secret within.
Edmund Hillinghead is a brilliant detective from the 1890s who tries to solve crimes that no one has seen while hiding his own secrets. Carl Whiteman is a handsome 1940s adventurer with a shocking past. Shahara Hasan In 2014, he is a Muslim sub-inspector, fighting against religious prejudice. And Maplewood, an amnesiac young woman from the techno-apocalyptic 2050, brings a disturbing vision to all.
Authors: C. Spencer, Dean Ormston, Phil Winslade, Tula Lotay and Megan Hetrick