Nameless
Cosmic Thing
Release Date: OUT NOW!
Publisher: Image Comics Writer: Grant Morrison Artist: Chris Burnham
He’s responsible for some of the weirdest mainstream comics ever, so when Grant Morrison writes a horror story, it’s wise to brace yourself. Nameless doesn’t mess around when it comes to violence and gore, but it’s in the combined approaches of Morrison and artistic collaborator Chris Burnham that this six- issue miniseries finds its bizarre and disturbing voice.
The story follows a foul- mouthed occult dream- thief known only as Nameless, who’s hired by a billionaire to embark on a surreal mission to save the world. A gigantic asteroid is about to collide with Earth and a team of scientists are out to stop it with the help of ritual magic – but when they discover what’s waiting inside the asteroid, it soon becomes clear that humanity is about to encounter something god- like and terrifying…
Morrison’s script throws together a host of influences into a typically dense story which, three issues in, is only just starting to reveal its secrets. Characterisation is a little thin, but the story’s ambition is impressive, while the brooding atmosphere of cosmic, unknowable horror owes just as much to Chris Burnham’s clammy, imaginative artwork.
The comic’s visuals show the same kind of creative layouts and inventive energy previously seen in Burnham’s work on Batman: Incorporated, blended with moments of ferocious horror that aren’t easily unseen. Nameless isn’t yet top- grade Morrisonian madness, but it’s still a blisteringly dark and well- crafted nightmare that already looks to be heading towards a seriously mind- bending climax. Saxon Bullock