The Grendel strikes in Once And Future #10, by writer Kieron Gillen, artist Dan Mora, colorist Tamra Bonvillain, and letterer Ed Dukeshire. Gillen and company turn in a taut thriller of an issue, as Duncan tries to get to Gran’s nursing him before it’s too late.

Duncan panics as his Uber cancels. He hails a cab, but the driver isn’t going as far out as he wants, regardless of what Duncan is willing to pay, so Duncan pulls his gun and forces the driver to take him. At the nursing home, Gran is watching TV when the power goes out. She sees that Duncan has been trying to get in touch with her. While looking for a weapon, she’s interrupted by an orderly. She tries talking him into taking her to the kitchen, but he says he’ll make her a sandwich… when something massive breaks through the door. Gran hurries him into the kitchen. In the cab, Duncan talks to Rose. She tells him that she’s alerted the police but has been able to keep them from going in, just Gran would have wanted, but Duncan tells her to let them go in. At the nursing home, Gran prepares a trap for the creature, Grendel from Beowulf, and sends the orderly off to hide. She baits the creature into following her into the kitchen and throws the boiling concoction in its face and runs. Duncan is finally able to get through to someone on Gran’s phone- one of her friends. Gran busts into the room just as downstairs, the cops confront the Grendel… and get the worst of it. Upstairs, Gran asks her well-read friend how to kill Grendel, and Gran panics because Beowulf isn’t coming to kill anything…

Gillen does a wonderful job in this issue of building tension. There’s a definite horror movie vibe to the whole thing- the monster getting closer and closer, the sense of danger mounting, and finally the release of the attack. Gran’s dialogue with the orderly really underlines the whole situation, as she explains how her life has always been like this, giving readers a sense of the coming danger. It’s expertly done and sets a very nice tone for the rest of the book.

There’s also a lot of good humor in this book. When Rose and Duncan are talking about the cops, she says they are there in all of their “Hot Fuzz-y” glory, referencing the Simon Pegg and Nick Frost film directed by Edgar Wright. When the cops show up, they look exactly like the characters from the film, giving a punchline to an unexpected joke. Elsewhere in the issue, there’s some very dry humor from other characters as well, cutting the tension a bit- not so much that it ruins things but just enough, so the tone isn’t sabotaged.

As usual, Dan Mora and Tamra Bonvillain’s art is pitch-perfect. Grendel looks great, a truly frightening monster, and the tone that Gillen sets only works so well because of the art team’s excellent. Bonvillain keeps the panels dark, not so much that it’s hard to make the art but just enough to keep the tone up. The action sequence of Gran leading the Grendel back to the kitchen is wonderful. It takes up several pages, and it looks great. With another art team, the length of it might seem indulgent, but Mora and Bonvillain make it look perfect.

Once And Future #10 is another standout issue of this remarkable series. Gillen sets the perfect tone, building tension in two ways- underlining Duncan’s panic about getting to the nursing home on time and the events therein. There’s some great humor to cut the tension just enough to make the whole thing more palatable. Mora and Bonvillain’s art is perfect, as usual. Once And Future #10 is a white knuckle ride all the way through.


Grade: A