If the idea behind the SUPERNATURAL TV series turns you on, but its hipper-than-thou stars turn you off, WildStorm’s comics prequel SUPERNATURAL: ORIGINS is for you. The pilot episode of the show began with a prologue that showed a wife and mother of two suddenly and inexplicably burning to death on the ceiling, while her husband watched helplessly. Then it flashed forward about two decades to tell the tale of the ghost-busting brothers.

But the six-chapter ORIGINS, scripted by Peter Johnson and illustrated by Matthew Dow Smith, fills in the blanks and focuses on their father, John Winchester. Understandably troubled at becoming a widower so young, the troubled new Mr. Mom vows to find who — or what — killed his wife.

While schlepping his boys off on distant relatives and complete strangers, the obsessed and depressed Winchester patriarch receives help from a psychic named Missouri, a creature expert named Fletcher Gable and a monster hunter named, well, Hunter. Along their twisted route of terror, they encounter hell hounds, a demented doctor, shapeshifters and your average, everyday demons.

It’s a story that’s instantly enthralling, and well-told from start to finish. The gruesome parts are only part of its appeal, but it would be nothing without John Winchester’s grief. Anyone who loves their spouse and/or children has thought about the fear of losing them before their time, so his character is totally sympathetic and easily relatable.

Smith’s art is well-suited for this book, all sharp angles and pastel tints. Johnson ties this arc up with a satisfying ending, but yet open enough for future adventures, of which one hopes there will be many. —Rod Lott

Buy it at Amazon.

OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS SERIES:
• THE SUPERNATURAL BOOK OF MONSTERS, SPIRITS, DEMONS, AND GHOULS by Alex Irvine
• SUPERNATURAL: NEVERMORE by Keith R.A. DeCandido