‘Extinction’ Review: Another Zombie Tale in Black and White Worth Reading

November 19, 2011 Patrick Hickey Jr. Books & Comics 0

I know what you’re thinking: another zombie comic book in black and white? Why the heck should I read this?

Well, because unlike the myriad of other zombie-inspired tales written today to make good on the recent success the creature has created in the industry, this is actually good.

Funny, original and a different take on the zombie tale, Stephan Nilson and Kevin Stokes’ “Extinction” feels like an awesome Saturday morning cartoon at times. Here we see zombies are able to speak and in the middle of a takeover of Prince Edward Island that could ruin the hard work of doctor, Chris Perry, who everyday, inches closer to a possible cure. The tone, although comedic at times, especially considering Perry’s lesbian ex-wife and her diesel partner, gets serious at times, while the army of the undead and their demented leader march across the island to exterminate all forms of life.

With thousands infected, the imagery is grim and Stokes is able, like Nilson, to shift tones naturally. The expressions on Perry’s face do a great job of showing a man at a crossroads. Obsessed with his work, a part of him died a long time before the zombie apocalypse. It’s crazy that it took the near extinction of the human race for him to be the man the world needed him to be, but it’s better late than never, right?

But behind this coming of age tale is a battle of good vs. evil, which isn’t as captivating as you’d like. Sure, it works, but it lacks complete precision at times. While the zombie leader is maniacal, he comes across a bit hokey at times. It doesn’t help that he kind of resembles Skeletor from the old “He-Man” cartoon either. His speeches are often intense, but they feel forced. This feeling is hard to avoid, but it would be unfair to say he isn’t a worthy adversary for Perry. Able to organize his troops and kill without mercy, his highly developed Velveeta-inspired words can be forgiven.

All in all, with multi-tonal visuals and writing, both Nilson and Stokes are able to make their take at a zombie infestation an enjoyable one. With a cliffhanger ending to the trade, their adventure is sure to continue. We can’t wait.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 14230 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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