REVIEW: ‘Eat the Rich,’ Issue #1

Eat the Rich #1 is published by BOOM! Studios and written by Sarah Gailey, with art by Pius Bak, colors by Roman Titov, and letters by Cardinal Rae. Joey and her boyfriend Astor have finished their college finals and are headed to Astor’s parents’ beach house for the summer. But Joey is worried about how she’ll fit in. She knows she is from a different world than Astor, but she is about to discover just how wide the gulf that lies between them really is.

The rich. They live by a special set of rules that is bequeathed to them purely due to the value of their bank accounts. Above most laws and expectations, the rich do as they please with the knowledge that the repercussions will be slaps on the wrist or a quick swipe of a credit card. How far does this power go? And just how corrupt can it make a group of people? Eat the Rich #1 seems to have some thoughts on just how corruptive power can truly be.

No sooner do Joey and Astor arrive at the beach house than the discomfort begins to seep into the panels of this story. Writer Gailey does a magnificent job of building the oddness of the situation in a way that is just innocuous enough to be just short of tangible. It’s there, but you can’t quite put your finger on it. The establishment of tone that Eat the Rich #1 constructs so skillfully is the cornerstone of a great horror story.

The other key to horror that is a personal must for me is the presence of at least one character I know I will be genuinely concerned for. Nothing will lose my interest faster than a horror story filled with two-dimensional cliches who exist purely to be butchered. Happily, once again, Gailey’s writing comes through wonderfully in the delivery of Joey’s character. As the fish out of water, who seems like a genuinely good person, the reader can instantly invest in the character.

Along with the wonderful writing comes a skillful delivery of the book’s art. Artist Bak’s lines deliver the story’s characters with just the right emotional expression. You often see what the characters intend to be seen while also having a hint of some ulterior motive hidden from view. These visual cues slowly create the discomfort that comes to surround Joey, as well as the reader.

The colors in Eat the Rich #1 bring a simple but effective layer to book’s art. Colorist Titov keeps the color palettes focused far more on the emotions of the panels, as opposed to making each object colored realistically. This focus furthers the book’s ability to create the tone it needs to.

Finally, we have the lettering. Letterist Rae does a solid job of placing the dialogue throughout this book. This permits the reader to follow the dialogue with ease and keep the art feeling balanced with the text.

When all is said and done, Eat the Rich #1 delivers a great start to this story. Finishing on a hook that is sure to grab readers, it only remains to be seen if Gailey and company can keep the momentum going from here.

Eat the Rich #1 is available now wherever comics are sold.