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After a jaw-dropping triple-sized debut, Exquisite Corpses returns with its second issue and doesn’t waste a beat. One killer’s already down, the townspeople are clueless, and the game, hosted by the elite and played with real blood, is in full motion. This issue tightens the grip on its horror-thriller setup while revealing more twisted layers behind the curtain.

Exquisite Corpses #2 is a standout segment in an issue that refuses to slow down. The issue wastes no time reminding us of its brutal premise: 13 killers, each backed by one of America’s founding families, set loose in a small Maine town, like Halloween’s about to get Hunger Games levels of intense. The slasher dubbed The Congregation, a skin-wearing nightmare in human form, takes center stage here. He rolls into a rural gas station with murder on his mind, but ends up derailed when a civilian throws a wrench into his plan. Meanwhile, we catch glimpses of the power players sipping cocktails and casually spectating this death match like it’s a Sunday golf tournament. Elsewhere, townsfolk wander into danger like EMTs responding to last issue’s bloodbath or teenagers heading to a Halloween party, oblivious to the chaos about to erupt.

Image Comics

The story pulls you in with its structure and quick cuts between seemingly disconnected characters, each with a rising sense of dread. The killers are getting closer. The town’s blissful ignorance is unsettling. And above it all, the rich puppet masters are smugly enjoying the show, plotting, betting, and backstabbing each other. You get the sense that none of this is random; every interaction might mean something later. The Congregation is terrifying not just because he’s violent, but because he’s methodical, restrained even. It’s horror with a slow burn, rare in a comic where killers are running wild.

I love how the comic plays with tone. On one page, you’re in a cold, polished control room with billionaires bickering over blood sports; on the next, you’re in a corner store with someone crying behind the register, praying not to die. It’s horror and satire balanced on a razor’s edge. And the artwork sells it. Marianna Ignazzi nails the quiet dread, from subtle facial expressions to eerie lighting that turns everyday places into potential slaughterhouses. Add in Bellaire’s colors, those stark reds and pale blues, and it starts to feel like the horror movie your dreams warned you about.

What works? Pretty much everything. What doesn’t? Just a bit of the momentum. The second issue does the hard job of expanding the world without losing focus. It threads in new characters and subplots like a creepy nurse offering help at a crime scene, or trick-or-treaters unknowingly befriending a killer while still building on the first issue’s foundation. If there’s a downside, it’s that the momentum feels slightly throttled. The opening issue was a bold, bloody sprint; this one’s a tense walk through a haunted maze. It’s not bad, just a different flavor, less shock, more setup. Some readers might want more immediate payoffs, but the slow-burn tension here is worth the investment.

Image Comics

Ignazzi’s art, while not as instantly dynamic as Walsh’s from issue #1, still hits hard. There’s a gritty, indie-horror vibe to her lines that fits the tone like a glove. It’s not glossy, it’s raw, and it works. The facial expressions carry weight, the environments ooze menace, and when the violence hits, it hits.

Exquisite Corpses #2 doubles down on its chilling premise with more strategy, more creeping tension, and more room for the twisted puzzle to take shape. The kills might be fewer this time around, but the psychological horror is ramped up. This issue makes one thing clear: this isn’t just a gorefest. It’s a bloody chessboard, and the pawns don’t even know they’re being played.

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• X
• Reddit
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After a jaw-dropping triple-sized debut, Exquisite Corpses returns with its second issue and doesn’t waste a beat. One killer’s already down, the townspeople are clueless, and the game, hosted by the elite and played with real blood, is in full motion. This issue tightens the grip on its horror-thriller setup while revealing more twisted layers behind the curtain.

Exquisite Corpses #2 is a standout segment in an issue that refuses to slow down. The issue wastes no time reminding us of its brutal premise: 13 killers, each backed by one of America’s founding families, set loose in a small Maine town, like Halloween’s about to get Hunger Games levels of intense. The slasher dubbed The Congregation, a skin-wearing nightmare in human form, takes center stage here. He rolls into a rural gas station with murder on his mind, but ends up derailed when a civilian throws a wrench into his plan. Meanwhile, we catch glimpses of the power players sipping cocktails and casually spectating this death match like it’s a Sunday golf tournament. Elsewhere, townsfolk wander into danger like EMTs responding to last issue’s bloodbath or teenagers heading to a Halloween party, oblivious to the chaos about to erupt.

Image Comics

The story pulls you in with its structure and quick cuts between seemingly disconnected characters, each with a rising sense of dread. The killers are getting closer. The town’s blissful ignorance is unsettling. And above it all, the rich puppet masters are smugly enjoying the show, plotting, betting, and backstabbing each other. You get the sense that none of this is random; every interaction might mean something later. The Congregation is terrifying not just because he’s violent, but because he’s methodical, restrained even. It’s horror with a slow burn, rare in a comic where killers are running wild.

I love how the comic plays with tone. On one page, you’re in a cold, polished control room with billionaires bickering over blood sports; on the next, you’re in a corner store with someone crying behind the register, praying not to die. It’s horror and satire balanced on a razor’s edge. And the artwork sells it. Marianna Ignazzi nails the quiet dread, from subtle facial expressions to eerie lighting that turns everyday places into potential slaughterhouses. Add in Bellaire’s colors, those stark reds and pale blues, and it starts to feel like the horror movie your dreams warned you about.

What works? Pretty much everything. What doesn’t? Just a bit of the momentum. The second issue does the hard job of expanding the world without losing focus. It threads in new characters and subplots like a creepy nurse offering help at a crime scene, or trick-or-treaters unknowingly befriending a killer while still building on the first issue’s foundation. If there’s a downside, it’s that the momentum feels slightly throttled. The opening issue was a bold, bloody sprint; this one’s a tense walk through a haunted maze. It’s not bad, just a different flavor, less shock, more setup. Some readers might want more immediate payoffs, but the slow-burn tension here is worth the investment.

Image Comics

Ignazzi’s art, while not as instantly dynamic as Walsh’s from issue #1, still hits hard. There’s a gritty, indie-horror vibe to her lines that fits the tone like a glove. It’s not glossy, it’s raw, and it works. The facial expressions carry weight, the environments ooze menace, and when the violence hits, it hits.

Exquisite Corpses #2 doubles down on its chilling premise with more strategy, more creeping tension, and more room for the twisted puzzle to take shape. The kills might be fewer this time around, but the psychological horror is ramped up. This issue makes one thing clear: this isn’t just a gorefest. It’s a bloody chessboard, and the pawns don’t even know they’re being played.