Event Horizon: Dark Descent

Event Horizon is one of those movies that stays with you. This ’90s cult classic tells the story of a large spaceship that disappears, and when it reappears, something is terribly wrong. It’s a ghost story in space, and it works on nearly every level.

The casting is excellent, anchored by Sam Neill and Laurence Fishburne. Much like the crew of the Nostromo in Alien, they feel like a believable group of people thrown into an impossible situation. The Event Horizon itself also feels lived-in, which makes it even more unsettling when the crew discovers the abandoned ship floating in the middle of nowhere, with no help anywhere nearby.

I do my best to avoid spoilers on my blog. I don’t care if a movie is thirty years old, it may still be new to you, and I don’t want to ruin that experience. However, discussing Event Horizon: Dark Descent, the comic-book prequel series, requires referencing events from the film.

If you’re looking for a spoiler-free reaction, here it is: I enjoyed the comic.

The artwork is excellent, although the story feels rushed, and I wasn’t completely sold on the direction it ultimately took.

From here on, I’ll keep the spoilers to a minimum, but some discussion of the film and comic is unavoidable.

Event Horizon: Dark Descent concluded its five-issue run earlier this year, expanding on the events surrounding the ship’s original disappearance and offering a new look at the horrors waiting beyond our universe. The story serves as a prequel to the film, telling the story of the original crew: what they encountered, and how their fate was decided.

This raises an important question: is any of this necessary?

Part of what makes Event Horizon work so well is that we never get a clear answer about what went wrong. We don’t see all the gory details, nor are they particularly relevant. The mystery is part of the horror. So, is shining a light on the events leading up to the film necessary or even entertaining?

Necessary? No. Entertaining... sorta.

That said, the comic does a good job of introducing us to several crew members, each of whom boards the Event Horizon carrying their own baggage. They’re all running from something, and when the ship’s gravity drive brings Hell aboard, their secrets are revealed and each person is forced to confront them.

This results in gore. Lots and lots of gore.

Artist Tristan Jones does an incredible job of channeling the crew’s desperation and despair while allowing the horror to spill across the page. The artwork is the highlight of the book, especially since the story itself is somewhat underwhelming.

The individual narrative threads surrounding each crew member never really interweave. Instead, they’re introduced one at a time, and then we’re shown the consequences. That’s more or less the extent of it. I blame this on the five issue run, as there just wasn't enough room to really get to known an entire crew of a ship. Instead, I just remember: there was one crew member who had a twin sister, there was one who killed her husband, etc. etc.

The crew is forced to face their secrets by a demon that has come through the ship’s gravity drive, and that’s where the story loses me. I love the vague idea of entering Hell or having Hell come through the gravity drive. I don’t need to see that concept manifested as a character who looks vaguely humanoid.

We all know how this book ends, everyone dies and this demon is nowhere to be seen in the film, at least not in the form he shows up in the comic.

Having been a fan of this movie for almost thirty years, I really thought I wanted more of this world, and while there is nothing wrong with this comic, it didn't really enhance or add to the Event Horizon, if anything it took away from it.

Dark Descent sold well and there is currently a new Event Horizon series being published by IDW called Event Horizon Inferno by the same creative team. I'm sure I'll check it out, because at the bare minimum, the artwork is truly great and the book feels different, which is always nice.

Event Horizon: Dark Descent was written by Christian Ward, with art by Tristan Jones, colors by Pip Martin, and lettering by Alex Ray.