My Rating
“Hallows’ Eve” — Issue #5
Midtown Manhattan — Anarchy has erupted in the street outside the Beyond Corporation headquarters. Maxine Danger and her elite squad of corporate goons have scooped up the magical Halloween masks that spilled across the sidewalk moments earlier. Janine Godbe has little time to react before spotting Detective Sebbens and several police cars pulling in behind her.
Why do things always have to be so damn difficult?
Maxine wastes no time experimenting with her newly acquired supernatural arsenal. She barks an order to her men: “Pick a monster!”
Oh, boy.
Janine never intended for her bag of masks to become a supernatural weapons locker for the Beyond Corporation, but what’s done is done. If Maxine wants a monster fight, Hallows’ Eve is happy to oblige.
Time to mummy-up!
Unfortunately, there is still the small matter of the NYPD arriving on the scene. Will the police recognize Janine as the lesser of two evils and help stop Beyond? The sudden cracking of 9mm gunfire answers that question. Bullets start flying as officers open fire on anything that doesn’t resemble your standard vanilla human!
As rank-and-file New Yorkers dive for cover, a full-blown monster brawl erupts across the street. Werewolves, mummies, vampires, and assorted creatures begin beating the hell out of each other while the police struggle to make sense of the supernatural free-for-all. Somewhere in the middle of all this chaos is Hallows’ Eve, trying to regain control of powers that were never supposed to fall into anybody else’s hands.
Between swipes of her werewolf claws, Maxine orders TJ to activate the building’s security protocols. Concealed hatches suddenly open along the front of Beyond headquarters as multiple sonic-wave cannons drop into position.
Uh-oh.
Within seconds, the street is bombarded by deafening sonic waves. Anyone not protected by a magical mask collapses to their knees, desperately covering their ears as the sound pounds through the surrounding area.
Inside the Beyond Corporation command center, TJ watches the disaster unfold through the external security cameras. Then the reality of the situation sinks in. Beyond has just deployed military-grade weaponry against the New York City Police Department.
“Well, everyone is going to jail now.”
No kidding!
For perhaps the first time tonight, Maxine’s assistant has to hope that Hallows’ Eve can actually save the situation.
How many of Madelyne Pryor’s masks did Janine drop onto that sidewalk anyway? Can old magic stand up against Beyond Corporation technology? Will Hallows’ Eve get her bag of tricks back before Midtown Manhattan becomes Monster Island?
And wait a minute…
Is that a gorilla?
Collect the series to find out!
Reviewer Notes
We’ve reached the end of the Hallows’ Eve miniseries, and I have to say that I ended up liking these characters quite a bit. I knew very little about Janine Godbe or her recent history with Ben Reilly because I don’t regularly follow the modern Spider-Man titles. I’m familiar with Marvel’s Limbo Dimension and enjoy that corner of the Marvel Universe, but I also haven’t followed all of the recent storylines surrounding Madelyne Pryor and the Dark Web crossover. Thankfully, you don’t need a doctorate in Spider-Man continuity to make it through these five issues. The series gives you enough information to understand Janine’s immediate situation and enjoy the ride.
I originally picked up Hallows’ Eve for the horror angle, and the magical Halloween masks remained the biggest attraction for me throughout the series. What a great gimmick for a Marvel supernatural character! Janine can essentially reach into a trick-or-treat bag and temporarily become one of the classic monsters. Werewolf, vampire, witch, mummy—you never know what she is going to pull out next. More importantly, the masks come with enough personality and danger to make them more interesting than a simple costume change. I could easily see Hallows’ Eve crossing paths with more of Marvel’s supernatural characters in the future. Put her in a story with Werewolf by Night, Blade, Elsa Bloodstone, or some of Marvel’s other monsters and I’m there.
Deep Dive
If you want to take a deep dive into Janine Godbe’s complete history, however, prepare yourself for a hunt through older issues and crossover events. That can become an expensive proposition, and I’m not convinced you need to spend all that money just to enjoy this miniseries. Read these five issues first. If Janine grabs your interest, then start digging backward. With Hallows’ Eve already set to appear again, Marvel clearly isn’t finished playing with this character or her bag of supernatural goodies.
As for issue #5 itself, I’m giving the finale three out of five stars. The monster free-for-all is fun, the artwork looks fantastic, and the creative team delivers plenty of visual spectacle. Unfortunately, this was also a very fast read. I’ve always preferred comic books with a little more meat on the bone, especially when I’m paying modern cover prices. Don’t get me wrong—the writing and artwork are top-notch—but, in my opinion, artwork should complement the story rather than substitute for more of it.
As a complete miniseries, however, Hallows’ Eve earns a stronger four out of five stars from me. The first few issues took some time to find their footing, but the bag of masks is simply too much fun to ignore. Janine Godbe also grew on me considerably over these five chapters. She isn’t your traditional squeaky-clean superhero, and that makes her a natural fit for Marvel’s darker supernatural corner. If you enjoy Marvel monsters, Halloween-themed powers, or slightly offbeat antiheroes, I recommend checking this one out.
Now somebody get Janine a Creature from the Black Lagoon mask!
Things I learned about this series:
- The wearer of the Vampire Mask will not burst into flames when exposed to the sun.
- Manhattan has its own Limbo embassy building now.
- Magic blocks sonic attacks for some but not others.