Haunter
by Sam Alden
2014
I saw an excerpt of Haunter in the most recent volume of "Best American Comics" I read, and wanted to see the rest. Alden uses ink lines and watercolor to tell a wordless story about a lone figure discovering a temple in the forest.
The imagery - of the hunter, the temple, and the temple's stone guardian - reminded me of some classic video games, especially Zelda and Metroid. One of the back-cover blurbs mentions the same thing.
The hunter uses her bow and arrow to try to kill a boar, which eludes her. The closest to dialogue we get are word bubbles containing a single red X that announce her frustration. She gives chase into the forest and finds an abandoned stone temple decorated with triangle motifs.
She enters, explores, and encounters the guardian, a giant stone woman, armed with a giant stone bow and arrow, who pursues the hunter outside and into the forest. The fight, and despite their difference in size and strength, the hunter prevails and the guardian is killed.
The hunter seems to feel guilt, and runs away, but we see the start of a transformation, and we know - she will become the next guardian.
The story is short, not much longer than a standard comic book issue, I don't think, but its emotions and imagery are both powerful.
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