The Winters Clan Crumbles From Within In Bone Parish #7

Even as they wage war on multiple fronts, the Winters family can’t help but fracture from within following their shocking loss.

I’ve seen the posters at the doctor’s offices, but I have to tell you, not all generics are, in fact, equal to the brand name pharmaceuticals. In Bone Parish #7, low rent junkies are learning that the hard way. The Winters family’s competitors have been working diligently to crack Brigitte’s formula, with horrifying results. Brae is losing traction with the local snitches, and Detective Herron is left vulnerable after her home is ransacked in a clear message.

Cullen Bunn explores more of those complex family issues in this installment. Seems like every member of the Winters clan has their own little secret side game. For the time being, at least, Brigitte is the only one who’s irreplaceable, since she has the secret blend of 11 herbs and spices the whole enterprise hangs from. The competition is nipping at her heels, though. Once they break through that wall they’re stuck on, even her position is at risk.

Jonas Scharf and Alex Guimaraes get to cut loose with the body horror elements in this one. One of the most disturbing scenes takes place in an ash den, where the bodies of recently deceased junkies are strewn about in various levels of twisted, grotesque deformity (I really, really want to talk about the nature of deformity, but, you know, spoilers).

There are a lot of moving pieces here. A family coping with heavy loss, a NY crime boss, a violent biker gang, street level dealers and junkies, the Big Easy itself…Bone Parish somehow juggles all these elements and delivers a very nicely balanced horror/family/mafia/biker/noir.
Bone Parish #7, Boom! Studios, released 27 February 2019. Written by Cullen Bunn, art by Jonas Scharf, color by Alex Guimaraes, letters by Ed Dukeshire, covers available by Rod Reis and Jakub Rebelka.