Swine

In Mark, Chapter 5, of the Bible, Jesus casts the demons from a madman into a herd of swine. The swine go mad and throw themselves off a cliff, presumably drowning. However, in Swine by Tyrone Finch, that’s not the end of the story. The swine live and wreak havoc on the world. Two thousand years later, Ellis Rafferty has spent seven years in prison after being wrongly convicted for the murder of his wife, Becky. Now released, he seeks to avenge her death. Joining forces with Becky’s sister, Zoey, they hit the road to take on the swine demons. Ellis and Zoey travel the country to put a stop to the pigs’ murderous rampage, leaving carnage in their wake.
The premise of Swine is nothing new to horror. The idea of casting out demons and putting them into another body is a horror staple and is the driving plot behind such horror classics as The Exorcist, which even mentions the same tale. However, Finch takes the story and makes the pigs themselves the antagonist in a clever interpretation of the tale. The demon swine have been responsible for many of history’s great disasters—The Titanic, The Hindenburg, Chernobyl—and are now running rampant through the United States. Add to that plot a healthy dose of humor (the herd of piglet assassins in Chapter Three was particularly amusing) as well as some great scenes of blood and slaughter thanks to illustrator Mauricet, and readers have a really successful graphic novel on their hands.
Some might find the plot too far-fetched or silly; to be sure, Finch is working as much withing the horror comedy genre as he is the religious horror and body horror genres. However, with a bit of suspended disbelief, readers will be able to delve deep into this world where demon swine have plagued mankind for centuries and are finally meeting their match. There are enough twists and turns in the plot to keep people guessing, and while there are some graphic scenes of blood and guts, it’s pretty understated, so squeamish readers will not be too put off. Overall, Swine is a really fun and successful horror graphic novel with a unique and clever premise, and horror readers will enjoy this tale.

If Joe Lansdale and Grady Hendrix has taught me anything about fiction, it’s that many out-there premises can work as a story as long as it pays attention to the fundamentals. By fundamentals, I mean plot and specifically character development. And even if those are lacking, within the horror genre, a reader can forgive a story if there are copious amounts of gore and/or surreal weirdness. Not to say that the graphic novel Swine by Tyrone Finch and Alain Mauricet is trying to heap buckets of blood into their work to disguise its shortcomings. Rather, the pair tell an insanely weird horror comedy tale that saws at the heartstrings.

Simply explaining this premise makes me feel like I’m a director explaining this to a room full of skeptical Hollywood execs. Ellis has just been released on parole for the murder of his wife, and Zoe, the victim’s sister, doesn’t feel justice has been served. In following Ellis, ready to get vengeance on behalf of her sister, she makes a crazy and horrifying discovery: her sister Becky was killed by pigs. Not just any pigs, these swine that Ellis is hunting are members of Legion, the demonic horde that Jesus had cast into pigs.Zoe joins Ellis on his quest and, along with a possessed talking pig that has broken away from Legion, they seek to slaughter the rest of Legion.

A tale like this could easily end up fodder for a Syfy Movie of the Week, but Finch’s story strikes the proper tone between comedy and horror. The pigs are set up as formidable, especially since each issue shows these immortal swine helping guide humanity into its most infamous disasters. Simon, the talking pig that serves as a divining rod for locating these pigs, offers comedy relief when needed and a dose of reality, as much as a talking pig can provide, when the situation is dramatic. Mauricet’s realistic comic illustrations are allowed to go wild as he depicts some pig animal hybrids that channel Wells’s The Island of Dr. Moreau. Writer Finch and artist Mauricet have pooled their efforts beautifully to create a bizarre tale that has horror, humor, and heart. You might laugh, you might gasp, but this story will definitely keep you interested.