When a giant monster attacks a city and swallows a bus full of civilians, chaos and fear reign supreme. Yet, in the heart of this monstrous turmoil, lies an unexpected tale of survival and courage. Behemoth, written by Grant Sputore & Ryan Engle and incredibly brought to life by illustrator Jay Martin, is truly a Kaiju story crossed with the age old tale of surviving the belly of the beast.

When a giant monster attacks a city and swallows a bus full of civilians, one woman must fight for her life. Trapped inside the enormous beast, Sara and her fellow bus passengers soon find out that they’re not alone. But what dangers lie within the belly of this beast? And who-or what-will they have to contend with in order to survive?

Behemoth is not your average monster tale, which is why I gravitated towards reading the debut issue. It takes inspirations from classic Kaiju stories while adding unique twists that set it apart from other monster stories. At its core is our protagonist Sara, an ordinary woman who is whole heartedly a good person gets trapped inside an enormous creature after a catastrophic attack on her city. This debut issue is a story of how bad things can happen to good people and its how you deal with these situations, no matter how big and scary they may be, that makes you a truly great person.

Grant Sputore & Ryan Engle, known for their screenwriting, have crafted a story that transcends typical monster mayhem by focusing on character development and tension-building storytelling. Not that monster mayhem does not exist in Behemoth, but their ability to weave suspense and action with moments of dialogue gives depth to this disaster story. You can feel the fear, trust, and hope on each page—elements that resonate deeply with anyone who has faced seemingly insurmountable challenges.

While the tale at hand is fantastic, the artwork from Jay Martin is the star of the show. Martin’s illustrations elevates the already outstanding script to new heights (no pun intended), capturing both the large scale of the monster’s exterior destruction but also the emotion and horror on each characters face. His illustrations are uniquely him with every panel offering something new for us to gaze at–including some stellar monstrous scenes.

Behemoth has a real cinematic feel to the debut issue–which comes as no surprise with the movie backgrounds of the writers, as well as Martin’s background as a storyboard artist. Behemoth feels as the creative team worked well together to create a truly cohesive story.

Grant Sputore & Ryan Engle along with Jay Martin have created something truly special in Behemoth #1. Those who typically shy away from Kaiju stories–like myself–should not dismiss this story as it has so much more going for it. Behemoth is a compelling tale enriched by fantastic artwork brimming with emotion and disaster alike–it stands poised to become one of my favorite comics of 2025 if subsequent issues are even close to this debut issue.

Behemoth #1 hits local comic shops on January 15, 2025 from Dark Horse.