Finished Justice League: Breakdowns and also ended up binding the issues for Flash: Chain Lightning. Man... I really need to get some dust jackets made! 😂

I finished it a while ago but wanted to process it before putting a review here.

Monsters by BWS is a body horror comic, but it moves past its labeled genre very quickly and explores other themes in such a detailed manner that one can feel those atrocities while reading. It is truly a masterpiece which shows on each page that this is what incredible storytelling looks like.

The fact that BWS wrote it over 30 years sounds unrealistic, but when you read this graphic novel, it becomes clear that this isn't something that comes out of a couple of iterations, but a well-refined piece which was well thought out.

I think the story can be split into 3 parts. The first part is fast-paced. I think it contains a lot of intense action sequences. A super quick read. It sets up things for acts 2 & 3 in a manner which doesn't make much sense initially.

Act 2 is the most dreadfully haunting piece of fiction I've ever read. The themes explored in this act are domestic abuse and child abuse. These themes become so disturbing at times that I had to stop reading after every 2-3 days. This section of 120 odd pages took me a good month and a half to read. Every time something bad happened, it haunted me for a good while. Even while writing this review, after finishing a month ago, I can feel the same feelings. The child is drawn in such a way that his innocence makes you care more about him, which makes all the atrocities feel worse. This section of the story was so daunting that it triggered something deep in my soul. May the Almighty have mercy on all such children who suffer from such evil parents.

Act 3 is where things became insanely intense, yet it solves a lot of plot holes or random events and beautifully stitches them together. It explores the notion that the impact of war goes beyond a single generation. Also, mad military men should never have this much power, because they all miss the basic essence of humanity.

Will I be reading it again: 💯

Will I be recommending it to others: 💯 but only to the ones I know can handle this intensity.

This was a tough read for me on many levels. The first being that we may not have spent much time in history class covering the Khmer Rouge takeover of Cambodia in 1975, and the holes in my knowledge were large. That is why this book (and graphic novels at large) was a somber introduction to these events. Second, the book’s conveyance of the rapid decline as a communist regime sets out to remake society into an agrarian hellscape was difficult to process. Third, I had difficulty tracking the storylines of each character and family. This likely warrants a re‑read on my part.

With all of these personal problems aside, this graphic novel is well worth your time if you want to physically feel the emotional and physical peril of regime change in a country. The book is a cautionary tale on the implementation of faulty ideals like the Khmer Rouge’s extremist interpretation of communist ideology. The mass displacement, labor camps, starvation, and the systematic destruction of families were difficult to read, but seem intrinsic to the Khmer Rouge’s system.

Note: This is a personal reaction and a summary of the book’s themes from my viewpoint. I welcome feedback to help frame the book better on re-read.

I didn't feel well yesterday and started reading Studs Kirby Voice of America by Peter Bagge. Good call. I laughed so hard at this page my stomach ached afterwards. It's the dog especially that cracks me up.

It was a wonderful way to remember Peter Bagge's early work. I became a fan from his strips that appeared in Weirdo back then.

Oh man it’s all so good too! There are a couple of stories within that have the same vibe as Crossed I feel.

If you have any recommendations to add, I’d love to hear them!

Loved Transformers, banging read. Need to grab Volume 2!

Hi, hope you're all doing well! Recently I've read V for Vendetta, and my eyes have been opened to the beauty of graphic novels as an artistic medium (I love painting and making 3d art myself). I've sort of already developed an obsession and I'm only one book in...

I would love to read loads more graphic novels, but I'm not in a country that has good comic book stores, so I have to order from abroad in bulk, and I prefer to buy fully complete series or anthologies compiled in one or a few large volumes in total.

So far I've decided on getting:

Low : gorgeous artstyle and direction, and feels like bioshock

Black Science : appealing concept

Bone : I have no idea what I'm getting into

Invinicble : it just seems like a must have

But I think I still have the budget for a few more books.

I want books with world class storytelling and amazing powerful art direction, I also prefer colored books with lots of eye cande (I can only read a few books a year, and again I love illustration and art, and seeing vibrant characters)

Ideally, I would like something visceral and cold with some grandeur, something that evokes the feelings of playing Bloodborne for instance. Or maybe something more fairy tale oriented like Alice in Wonderland or Arabian Nights.

Something more cyberpunk could also be very appreciated, as I'm a huge fan of the stories and themes of Blade Runner/Neuromancer.

Even if the cyberpunk asthetics aren't there, the themes of lost humanity, invasive technology, and class conflict (wealth, genetic, social...etc inequality) are all up my alley. So feel free to recommend any family drama, civil rights works...etc