GTT #2 Chain Letter (vol 4)

Grimm Tales of Terror #2 Chain Letter (volume 4) see below for preview images

Credits:
Writer: Ralph Tedesco
Artwork: Vince Rodriguez (pgs. 1-15)/Babisu Kourtis (pgs. 16-23)
Colors: Fran Gamboa with J.C. Ruiz
Letters: Fabio Amelia
This was a great rendition of a chain letter spook story.  We’ve all probably gotten those chain emails that promise bad luck if we don’t forward the message.  A lot of people just ignore it and move on, nothing ever happening that is attributed to the chain letter.  But, in this issue, we have something so much darker and more sinister.
In this story, a guy named Steve receives an email notification on his phone.  The message is from a name familiar to him.  When he checks the email, he sees this:
“Now that you opened my email, you need to perform a simple task: Kill one person you know.  Anyone.
You will never be caught for the murder, so take solace in that.
If you do not complete this task, five people you know and care about will begin to die one by one until the task is completed.
Each person more important to you than the last.
The clock ticks.”
He doesn’t really pay much attention, thinking it’s just all around weird and goes on with his day.  That night at his job as a bartender, Steve gets razzed and berated by his boss, Pat, as usual.
The next day while out with his girlfriend, he gets a text that informs him one of their friends, Mickey, has died in a car wreck.  Steve is surprised and shaken but, doesn’t connect it with the email.
That night at work, one of the waitresses quits.  Pat is being an ass and she’s not going to take it anymore.  After she leaves, Pat yells at Steve again and tells him to get back to work. 
Meanwhile, Steve’s step-sister is enjoying an evening on the balcony with her boyfriend when, all of a sudden, she thinks she sees something that scares her and she falls against the railing.  It breaks off the balcony and she falls to her death.
Now, Steve realizes things are getting real.  That’s two people he knows that have died since he read that email.  But, to stop it he has to kill someone.  How do you choose who to murder in cold blood?
Starting to feel the pressure, Steve decides to find and talk to the person that sent him the email.  So, he has his girlfriend go to the airport to pick up his parents while he drives to talk to this Michael Hogan, the sender of the email.
They talk and Steve’s fears are confirmed.  Michael does suggest an out…Steve could kill himself, since there is no rule against that stated in the email.  Having his fill of information for the night, Steve decides to return home.  There is bad news awaiting him when he gets there.
So, who dies next?  Does Steve do the unthinkable?  Once again, I’m not going to give it away.
My favorite piece of imagery in this issue would be the car wreck.  It’s a great piece of art!  The rest of the issue is good and works well with the story.  The whole tone of the artwork is actually very complimentary to the story as it moves along. 
These urban legend stories are making me anxious for more and more issues like these.
RATINGS
Overall 4/5
Story 4/5
Artwork 4/5