🧠 Clean Room #14 (2016) – A Deep Dive into the Mind of Madness
📚 Genre
Psychological Horror, Supernatural Thriller, Sci-Fi Mystery
👤 Main Characters
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Chloe Pierce – A determined journalist seeking truth after the death of her fiancé.
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Killian Reed – A reluctant ally caught in the whirlwind of psychological manipulation.
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Astrid Mueller – Charismatic cult leader with a hidden agenda and a connection to dark forces.
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Astrid’s Niece – A mysterious child whose presence signals a greater, impending doom.
✍️ Writer
Gail Simone – Renowned for her sharp psychological storytelling, Simone brings a unique blend of horror and character-driven drama to Clean Room.
🎨 Artist
Jon Davis-Hunt – With clean lines and disturbingly vivid imagery, Davis-Hunt excels at bringing nightmarish visions to life in excruciating detail.
📝 Editor Details
Editor: Shelly Bond – Known for her work in Vertigo, Bond ensures the story remains as unsettling and unpredictable as ever.
🏢 Publisher and Brand
Publisher: Vertigo Comics
Brand: DC’s Vertigo (Mature Readers Imprint)
📅 Release Year
2016
📖 Brief Plot Summary
In Clean Room #14, the walls of reality collapse when Chloe and Killian are thrown into the mental maze of a serial killer—an environment crafted entirely from twisted memories. In this warped mental space, the rules are unrecognizable, and danger exists in every thought. Outside the mental chaos, Astrid contends with a new threat: her niece, whose eerie innocence may mark the beginning of a catastrophic event for humanity.
📚 Notable Arcs or Storylines
This issue continues the "Inside the Clean Room" arc, where the inner workings of the sinister Clean Room—Astrid's mind-revealing technology—are explored more deeply. The memory sequence with the serial killer presents one of the series’ darkest and most disturbing mental projections to date.
🧩 Fan Theories or Interpretations
💭 The Child as an Antichrist Figure: Some fans speculate Astrid’s niece is not just symbolic of innocence turned dark, but may literally be a harbinger of apocalyptic change—possibly an entity born of the same dimension the Clean Room connects to.
💭 Killian as the Moral Compass: Despite his flaws, readers often interpret Killian as a grounding force—a morally grey character who might ultimately resist the manipulations of both Astrid and Chloe.
🌟 Review Summary
Clean Room #14 continues to masterfully blend psychological horror with rich character drama. Gail Simone’s writing delves deep into mental trauma and moral ambiguity, while Jon Davis-Hunt’s art captures both grotesque horror and emotional vulnerability with stunning precision. The visuals are clean yet terrifying, giving the issue a surreal, cinematic quality. With compelling dialogue and escalating stakes, this installment pushes readers further into the abyss—making it a standout in the series.
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐½ (4.5/5)
A must-read for fans of cerebral horror and deeply layered storytelling. 🧠🩸📖
Comic Resource / Read Online (External Source)
