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A review by chantaal
Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees by Patrick Horvath
4.5
If you're looking for a delightfully fucked up little story to read, Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees has it all!
Set in a world full of anthropomorphized animals, it gives off Berenstain Bears or Richard Scarry vibes, especially with the setting of a very close knit small town. Samantha is the local hardware store owner, beloved by the town and has many friends. She just so happens to need to go to the nearby Big City every few months to kidnap a random person, take their body into the woods, and murder and dismember them. Just to quiet her brain, of course. When a local man is murdered and his body found in a gruesome fashion, Samantha realizes there's another serial killer in town and she needs to stop them before the cops accidentally stumble upon her.
The juxtaposition of the animal characters, the warmth of the small town and the soft color of the artwork vs the unhinged gore of the murders taking place is what really works here and elevated it from Yet Another Serial Killer Story to something special for me. The growing dread of the town's inhabitants as more bodies pile up, the focus on some of the townsfolk as more bodies drop, exploring Samantha's relationships with others - it all makes for a great good time.
I would say the only negative for me here is how things are wrapped up in the end. The discovery and climax seem to happen in one single issue and it blows by so fast that it was almost unsatisfying.
Still, I had a good time with this comic - at least, as much of a good time as one can have when see-sawing between cozy smalltown vibes and gory murder. Very much recommend this if it's up your alley.
Content warning: I'm not kidding about the gore. There's some gruesome shit in here, but it works so well in contrast to the overall artwork choice.
Set in a world full of anthropomorphized animals, it gives off Berenstain Bears or Richard Scarry vibes, especially with the setting of a very close knit small town. Samantha is the local hardware store owner, beloved by the town and has many friends. She just so happens to need to go to the nearby Big City every few months to kidnap a random person, take their body into the woods, and murder and dismember them. Just to quiet her brain, of course. When a local man is murdered and his body found in a gruesome fashion, Samantha realizes there's another serial killer in town and she needs to stop them before the cops accidentally stumble upon her.
The juxtaposition of the animal characters, the warmth of the small town and the soft color of the artwork vs the unhinged gore of the murders taking place is what really works here and elevated it from Yet Another Serial Killer Story to something special for me. The growing dread of the town's inhabitants as more bodies pile up, the focus on some of the townsfolk as more bodies drop, exploring Samantha's relationships with others - it all makes for a great good time.
I would say the only negative for me here is how things are wrapped up in the end. The discovery and climax seem to happen in one single issue and it blows by so fast that it was almost unsatisfying.
Still, I had a good time with this comic - at least, as much of a good time as one can have when see-sawing between cozy smalltown vibes and gory murder. Very much recommend this if it's up your alley.
Content warning: I'm not kidding about the gore. There's some gruesome shit in here, but it works so well in contrast to the overall artwork choice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Dementia