Speed Saunders and the Skull-Face Cult #1: A Definite Plot

It begins with a lovely lady sunning herself by the sea.

OR DOES IT...?!

It does not. Because that lovely lady is, in fact, a lovely corpse, who died in the most decoratively dramatic pose possible.  Really; that entire panel is a work of true art.  

But, meanwhile, an hour later...

"A definite plot." Gee, ya think, Officer Dullard?  No wonder Speed is considered an Ace Investigator in his world.

Speed checks for "symptoms", the main one being, I suppose, that she's been dead an hour (at which point the body is already getting...unpleasant).

Heart failure? Did your little notebook tell you that, Speed? Did you have the corpse's stomach pumped off-panel?

By the way, if that Seashore is really that Lonely, how were the cops notified in time to show up a mere hour after the murder? These are the kind of details the readers of Speed Saunders' stories are simply not privy to.

"SQUIRREL!"

Speed, who misses nothing, notices a Really Obvious Clue.

I am not going to make a joke about the absurd clue.
Just pausing to note again: this panel is ART, people.

So usually, this corpse-confrontation would lead to some rapid speedstigation, with more bodies and suspects and clues.  But instead...

Seven DAYS?!  Speed is accustomed to wrapping things up in fewer than seven PAGES.  Naturally, after working (?) on the same case for a week, Speed is Fed Up With The Whole Thing.  So, he decides to do one of the things he does best:

Go on vacation.

How do we know that Speed is talking to his supervisor, Commission Safetybelt, rather than just a random cop at a desk? The cigar. Only a Boss would have a cigar.

Note that, naturally, Speed does not ASK to go on vacation. He simply INFORMS you that he is going on vacation and you should feel grateful he took the time to tell you.  I pity Commissioner Safetybelt, who's left to explain to the victims' families, that, although his best man was on the case, he gave up after a week and went mountaineering.

So Speed goes on vacation where he always go on vacation: The North Woods.

With that sleek design, the Speedmobile is equal to the challenge of any incline.

In literally no time, Speed is at a rustic cabin surveying his domain: reality.

There's a lot going on in this panel. Let's break it down...

Speed is now clearly in The North Woods, and, as we already know, that means bad things are going to happen.  Weird bad things.  Killer sleds. Scarecrow skiers.  Stuff like that.

Speed intends to go fishing.  Is there some significance to this action?  Is reeling in fish corpses from the water symbolic of the deaths of the victims as they emerged from the water? No, I think Speed just likes fishing, which is a fast and tasty way to legally surround yourself with corpses.

Speed thinks you can go fishing in a canoe. That is not what canoes are for, Speed. They do not provide the stability and room required to wrangle any substantial fish on your line into your craft.  Do not go fishing in a canoe.

Speed was supposed to meet someone here, named Pierre (who, I hope, knows not to fish from a canoe). Who is Pierre? Is he just a friend and does Speed have those?  We know he is a native to The North Woods, because of his French-Canadian name.  Does he have some connection to the case? Pay no attention to that. For now.

There are three tree stumps prominently figured. Why? Because stumps are, essentially, corpses of trees. They are evidence that trees have been murdered.  They might be there simply so that Speed is surrounded by corpses (what better environment to welcome him?). But I assert that they are representations of the Three Victims who have already been felled, cut down in their prime by the Skull-Face Cult.  They symbolize not only what has driven Speed to vacation in The North Woods, but also the fact that he has not really escaped it at all!  Is it just that these deaths haunt him or is it a sign of a more concrete connection?  We shall see.

There is a blood-red canoe under the porch. But pay no attention to that. For now.

Last, there is Speed's outfit.  Mere words would only detract from its glorious absurdity. Just appreciate that Speed (who is, don't forget, not merely an Ace Investigator, but a perfectly handsome and buff underwear model) can look good in ANYTHING, which is what models do.  This is why he wears so many ridiculous outfits: because he can.

Speed does his Ace Investigating for free. His real money comes from J. Crew.

Tomorrow, Speed's photoshoot ends and his vacation takes a quick turn into nightmare territory.