Comic Review: Specter Inspectors #1

Boom! Studios

Writers: Bowen McCurdy & Kaitlyn Musto

Artist: Bowen McCurdy

Letter: Jim Campbell

All you have to do is take a glance at Specter Inspectors‘ art to see that this book has Boom! Studio’s style all over it. Of course, I’m a sucker for this style, which usually has strong slice-of-life vibes that go along with it. Specter Inspectors is created by a young team, so one might not have the highest expectations when they take a look at it. Fortunately, most will be pleasantly surprised by this charmingly spooky debut.

Specter Inspectors #1 is written by both Bowen McCurdy and Kaitlyn Musto. The two creators come together to deliver a delightful script that starts off light-enough but escalates into an unexpected and spooky direction. Noa believes in ghosts, and she is accompanied by her love interest Astrid, who is a skeptic. The couple is joined by Noa’s teenage sibling and a camera guy as they travel haunted sites to expose ghosts to their followers. The team is known as the Specter Inspectors.

The first half of the book is full of drama, as the characters’ dynamics are explored. The issue has a lot of banter, which is a fun way for readers to get to know everyone. After a heated exchange, things get sinister, and suddenly everyone’s well-being is at risk. The creative team does a fine job of balancing horror and comedy. There are quite a few occasions throughout the book where I chuckled out loud. The horror isn’t really anything that will keep readers up at night but is still enough to immerse them into the book’s atmosphere.

Noa and Astrid have wonderful chemistry. The characters are easy to believe in thanks to this issue’s genuine-feeling dialogue. Their bickering feels authentic, and it is easy to tell that despite their differences, the two do care for each other. It’s hard to make a fictional couple feel real in just a single issue. Despite this, McCurdy and Musto do everything they need to make it easy to fall for these characters.

Bowen McCurdy handles Specter Inspectors art, giving the book a distinct style. Her art is perfect for this kind of book, with her bold lines and expressive characters. The quiet moments are entertaining not only because of the script but because of the character’s faces. The panels are laid out in a way to make all of the dialogue and action move along naturally. Some panels feature larger-than-life expressions, which makes it easier to connect to the characters.

With such a light-hearted style, it’s hard for a book like Specter Inspectors to actually be scary. As mentioned before, you won’t be actually be scared by this issue. With that being said, there is a spooky atmosphere in this issue thanks to McCurdy’s use of color. Her colors throughout the issue don’t just add life to the issue. They also set the mood, creating tension in scenes that otherwise might not have much. Nice creative choices in fonts and speech bubbles allow for readers to give each character a clear voice. This is a debut where the creative team all comes together to give a fantastic comic-reading experience.

There aren’t a lot of debuts that are more fun than Specter Inspectors #1. The plot is engaging and the characters are easy to fall for. Throw in some fantastic art and you have a wonderful book. Fans of supernatural stories (or just great, young characters) will want to pick this one up.