This one-shot is being marketed by Image Comics as both a jumping on point for new readers and a glimpse into the past for long-time fans. As one of the former, this comic left me eager to delve into more stories from The Darkness. Read Full Review

Ales Kot has crafted a real winner here. Love, death and The Darkness. It's a perfect combination. Read Full Review

For a one shot I cannot speak highly enough of The Darkness; Close your eyes, it has depth and emotion oozing through the pages. One word of warning this is not a soft read and be prepared to sit and stare at a blank wall once it’s finished. Read Full Review

Although The Darkness never truly appears because it is set before and on the day of Aldemo's 21st birthday, the day that The Darkness blesses and curses the Estacado male line. However, this ancient is alluded to through the sad story of Aldemo's conception, his response to some Yo' Mama taunts, and of course, most artfully by the mention of the poet Rimbaud (Thank you for that Easter egg, Kot, from Literature geeks everywhere). Oh, and The Darkness is also a motherfucking video game. Again, TGW thanks Kot and Olesicki for classing it up and proving once again why comics are a valid literary medium that isn't just about hot superheroes in tight clothing beating up bad guys. Read Full Review

The book ends rather abruptly after 19 pages " a somewhat meager amount of content, if we're being completely fair. The final panel, which is just a black background with white text, synopsizes the story's subsequent events. It feels almost like a rush job after being pulled so deeply into a story that was, until that point, very engrossing. Read Full Review

Poetry is a running theme throughout this spectacular one-shot and it embodies a poetic voice in both writing and art. Kot's writing mixes brilliantly with Oleksicki's art and creates this gorgeous world that you can't help but to stare at and escape into.This story is There Will Be Blood meets Dexter, and what we get is a likable character who tries to do everything right but ends up being brought back down by the darkness. Readers that pick up this book will want to tell their friends and talk about the themes at great length. Capturing the imagination, and striking the perfect balance between horror and drama, Close Your Eyes is surely not one to be missed. Read Full Review

Marek Oleksickis art captures the Darkness on some pages, but on others, the art doesnt have the same effect. The art is mostly rife with shadows and hues of dark colors. In some panels, the art appears blocky and filled with unnecessary pencil strokes. Read Full Review

I liked the art in this issue a lot as well. There are few colors used other than a muted palette, making the bleak and dreary setting all the more believable when matched with the downright depressing writing. There are a few bursts of color here and there and when they are used, they really pop-but I don't want to give away why they appear so I can't say much more about that. Overall, I really think this is a great story regardless if you've read The Darkness before or not. Personally, I'm now very interested in going back and checking out the series after reading this one-shot. Read Full Review