Plunge #1 is out Feb. 19, 2020. — **Plunge #1** is out Feb. 19, 2020.

By d. emerson eddy — When I was five years old, I drowned. I was on a houseboat cruise and slipped going down the ladder that connected the top and lower decks. Luckily one of the other people aboard saw it happen, as I hit my head on the deck and I went in the water. I don't know how long I was out, but I awoke coughing later on land, covered with a sheet, with astonished paramedics thinking that the resuscitation had failed. Suffice it to say, I have a strong aversion to boats and open water due to this. Even in film and video games, I get uneasy in underwater settings. So for me, Plunge #1 from Joe Hill, Stuart Immonen, Dave Stewart, and Deron Bennett has an added hook to spook.

Now, one thing that certainly isn't dead in the water is DC's Hill House. All four of the previous entries in the imprint have been solid, and vastly different, experiences in horror with the creative teams seriously bringing their A-games. Plunge #1 is no different. The story here builds tension and atmosphere, paced and executed much like a creature horror film. We get introduced to a team of salvagers hired to sail into contested waters and help a group of scientists and their corporate benefactors recover a vessel that disappeared decades ago. The characters are very nicely developed through the dialogue and we get eased into a sense of security through normal everyday and unassuming activities. Joe Hill continues to amaze me as to just how deep his knowledge and ability of horror storytelling extends.

It's also absolutely wonderful to see the return of Stuart Immonen here. His artwork is gorgeous and it's refreshing to see him stretch his wings on something that isn't superheroes. There's a grit and an added use of heavy thick lines and more solid shadows here that helps emphasize a more ominous atmosphere and serious tone to the story. During the opening sequence, there are some suitably creepy giant squids that give us a treat as to what's in store for us.

Helping set the tone is Dave Stewart's colors. He employs a limited color palette here, especially giving backgrounds a kind of hazy often monochromatic look. It kind of gives the impression that there's a fog surrounding everything at the moment, which is about as suitable as you can get given that we're still unsure as to what the characters are headed towards. Deron Bennett also adds to the atmosphere with his lettering, particularly among the location, date, and time captions that feel like they are potentially going to be important. As well as a very intriguing shift in vocalization that adds extra creepiness to a scene.

Like all of the Hill House comics, there's an added bonus in a chapter of the ongoing Sea Dogs serial from Hill, Dan McDaid, John Kalisz, and Wes Abbott.

Overall, Plunge #1 from Hill, Immonen, Stewart, and Bennett is another winner for an imprint that only has winners. This one feels like it taps into what could be considered cinematic creature horror and this opening chapter is perfectly paced. I recommend everyone to go ahead and take the plunge into this series.

Plunge #1
Writer: Joe Hill
Artist: Stuart Immonen
Colorist: Dave Stewart
Letterer: Deron Bennett
Publisher: DC Comics – Black Label / Hill House
Price: $3.99
In the aftermath of a devastating tsunami, an exploration vessel known as the Derleth begins sending an automated distress signal from a remote atoll in the Bering Strait. The only problem is that the Derleth has been missing for 40 years. Marine biologist Moriah Lamb joins the Carpenter Salvage team to recover the Derleth's dead...only to find that in this remote part of the Arctic Circle the dead have plenty to say to the living...Joe Hill and Stuart Immonen's Plunge into terror begins here!

d. emerson eddy is a student and writer of things. He fell in love with comics during Moore, Bissette, & Totleben's run on Swamp Thing and it has been a torrid affair ever since. His madness typically manifests itself on Twitter @93418.