DARK HORSE PRESENTS was the very first title launched by the publisher in 1986, and has set the standard for the strange and unique comics to follow its stead. Though Dark Horse now has literally tons of works to its name, DHP is still remembered as a series that many of us had cut our teeth on in terms of indie horror, sci-fi, and noir comics.

The original series ran a whopping 16 years until a sad and untimely demise in 2000, briefly popping it's head back up in 2007 on, of all places, MySpace. Though it fizzled out two years later, we are once again treated to all the bizzare and underrated comics that the country has to offer thanks a realaunch of DARK HORSE PRESENTS in 2011 that’s still running strong to this day. Collecting work from various writers and authors, DHP is once again back to its former glory, blazing the way for known and unknown comics alike to get the exposure that they deserve. I believe I speak for all of us when I say, it's about time.

Issue #17 is no exception when it comes to the quality we expect from Dark Horse's flagship title. For the sci-fi lovers, we have such fine work like FINDER by Carla Speed McNeil, a continuation of that amazing series, and DEEP SEA about a ship-wrecked crew that finds themselves 50 years in the future. In terms of noir, there’s CRIME DOES NOT PAY, a modern throw-back to old Jack Kirby Crime comics about a good-girl-gone-bad, and even a bit of fantasy with SACRIFICE, about a young elf who learns the price to glory is lined with deceit. Of course, no DHP is complete without a healthy dose of horror to chill your spines and this particular issue brings us a splendid adaptation of Edgar Allen Poe's THE SLEEPER by the great indie god Richard Corben and a horror/steampunk crossover titled UXB, with monsters, corpses, and fantastic bowler hats.

If Dark Horse Comics is a port, then DHP is the ship that launched a thousand careers. Thanks to DHP, we have SIN CITY, CONCRETE and NEXT MEN. The likes of Mike Mignola, Matt Wagner, Ed Brubaker, and Evan Dorkin saw some of their earliest works also appear within the pages. The new series promises to bring even more young and eager creators to the public and possibly bring a whole new age of comics with it. Never scared to take chances, DHP is always on the cutting edge of what's going to be big in comics, and never disappoints. Though some of the stories are self-contained one-shots, most of them are spread through several issues, so you might have to go back and pick up some of the previous books to really get the full scope. If you are a bit low on scratch, you can always wait until the graphic novels come out as well and collect the stories that way. Either way, this is a must read, and a definite in for those interested in seeing what the big, bad world of comics has been hiding.

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