Halloween Recommendations: Return To Whisper

by Zachary Whittaker

Return To Whisper is a one and done mini-series that’s 50% It and 50% that Episode of The Simpsons with The Hellfish having hidden treasure. With that being said this first instalment from Eliot Rahal’s Cult Classic series wears those influences proudly on its sleeve.

Following a group of nine childhood friends who share a treehouse overlooking a graveyard and a love of late night horror films, Return To Whisper tells the story of how they discover the truth behind the events of the movie they’re watching and the mysterious treasure buried in their very own town of Whisper.

Without giving too much away, the series progresses more or less the way you might expect. After discovering the location of the treasure they’re seeking, the group all agree to let sleeping dogs lie until fifteen years have passed, the museum staff that are hot on their trail have all but given up and they can safely collect their prize as much wiser adults.

Everything’s going according to plan until the sudden death of one of the group brings the nonet back to Whisper a little earlier than planned. Inevitably revealing that the past might not be done with them yet.

With each issue indulging in a series of back and forth time jumps we see both our childhood protagonists and their older selves running around Whisper in attempts to outwit the pesky museum curators with a little help from the only likeable cop in town Sheriff Stokes.

This isn’t the kind of comic book that’s going to change your life, or even the way that you see comics, but it definitely delivers the B-Movie thrills that it promises. Felipe Cunha’s art really suits the story here as he channels an old school cartoon feel. Paired with Eliot Rahal’s heartfelt rollercoaster writing style. While he might not be the most well known of writers Rahal rarely seems to fail in producing some really interesting and eclectic reads.