'Graphic Novel Review: Clementine, Book One' by Tillie Walden TWD (Based on the Telltale's The Walking Dead character)

If you've played Telltale Games' The Walking Dead video game series, you'll be very familiar with Clementine, the series protagonist. Clementine lived on after the end of the game, making her first post-game appearance in Clementine Lives, which featured in Skybound X along with the first chapter of Rick Grimes 2000. Written by Tillie Walden, Clementine: Book One is Clem's first dedicated comic book series.

Official Synopsis

Clementine is back on the road, looking to put her traumatic past behind her and forge new path all her own.

But when she comes across an Amish teenager named Amos with his head in the clouds, the unlikely pair journeys North to an abandoned ski resort in Vermont, where they meet up with a small group of teenagers attempting to build a new, walker-free settlement.

As friendship, rivalry, and romance begin to blossom amongst the group, the harsh winter soon reveals that the biggest threat to their survival… might be each other.

The Story

Clementine: Book One has proved controversial among fans, many of whom weren't willing to accept Clementine leaving AJ in Clementine Lives. I think this notion was immediately put to bed in the opening pages of Clementine: Book One with Clementine meeting Amos as he embarks on Rumspringa. Just like Amos needs to go on his voyage of self-discovery, so too must Clementine find herself in this coming of age tale. And if that ultimately leads her back to AJ, then so be it.

The Art

I'm not going to lie, the artwork was disappointing. I'd been drawn in by the gorgeous, eye-catching cover and was dismayed to see the grey, bland pages inside. I'm also a little annoyed - they'd ultimately reissued The Walking Dead comics in colour, so haven't they learned that fans prefer colour?

Verdict

I wanted to love this comic with all of my heart but sadly the artwork let it down. It’s not just about aesthetics – there were scenes that I had to read once, twice more to try understand what was happening because it wasn’t clear from either the text nor graphics. This was most evident in what could be described as the most important scene in the book, one where there shouldn’t have been a shred of ambiguity. I think Clementine: Book One could be saved with a colour re-issue but even then they might need to enhance some artwork or dialogue.

Stan Zone

Recommended if you like: The Walking Dead, zombies, post-apocalyptica

Buy

Clementine: Book One will be released on 28 June 2022 and is available from the following retailers:

Amazon | Forbidden Planet | Waterstones

Affiliate links. I will earn a small commission if you purchase using these links, at no extra cost to you.

Links

Tillie Walden Instagram | Tillie Walden Tumblr

I received an advance, electronic copy of this graphic novel from Edelweiss. I will always provide an honest review, whether books are provided to me or purchased by me.

Image Credits © Tillie Walden

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Graphic Novel Review: 'If UR Stabby' by Kaz Windness

Do you ever feel like you're not like everyone else? That while all the other unicorns are all sparkles and rainbows, you'd rather stab everyone? Me too. The good news? We're not alone. Meet Stabby the very cool unicorn.

The Story

The world's surliest unicorn Stabby is the star of Kaz Windness's graphic novel If UR Stabby. It's a quick read but the kind that becomes a cult favourite because it's perfect to read when you're in the mood to stab someone where it hurts.

The Art

Kaz Windness has both written and illustrated If UR Stabby and the artwork of the sardonic and surly unicorn is cute as a button.

Stan Zone

Recommended if you like: grumpy, sardonic, anti-heroes.

Verdict

Stabby was a fan favourite from Mother Goth Rhymes and it's only right that he got his own comic. I enjoyed this a lot and will definitely keep an eye on Kaz Windness in future.

Buy

Amazon

Affiliate links. I will earn a small commission if you purchase using these links, at no extra cost to you.

Links

Twitter | Facebook | Website | LinkTr.ee

Image Credits © Kaz Windness

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Graphic Novel Review: 'Olive - Volume 1 - By the Light of a Blue Moon' by Vero Cazot and Lucy Mazel ★★★★★

I think what I love most about graphic novels is the ability to pick you up and transport you to incredible, fascinating worlds at the flick of a pen. Comic books present a lurid, impossible view that can alter your consciousness in a matter of pages. I was reminded of this when I picked up writer Vero Cazot and illustrator Lucy Mazel's Olive - Volume 1 - By the Light of a Blue Moon, a tale about the incredibly rich inner world of a neurodivergent young woman that somehow receives a real life visitor.

The Story

Seventeen-year-old Olive has always received a lot of support at her school, with administration respecting her neurodivergency and allowing Olive to board alone. That all changes with the arrival of her room mate and the crisis it unearths in Olive's world. But that's okay. When things in the outer world get too overwhelming, Olive can escape to her own imaginary world complete with a laboratory, observatory and her favourite place of all, a dreamarium. It is all wonderful until one day Olive discovers a visitor.

The Art

The art in Olive is absolutely beautiful. Lucy Mazel captured Olive's inner world perfectly as well as illustrating the trauma of her outer world.

Verdict

Like Oliver, writer Vero Cazot is not keen on oral communication and prefers to express herself through the written word. Together with Lucy Mazel, she has created a dreamy, magical illustration of the inner world of a neurodivergent person that I found especially relatable.

I give Olive a superb five out of five stars and will definitely be reading the other three graphic novels in the series.

★★★★★

Buy

Amazon (affiliate link; I will receive a small commission if you purchase using this link at no extra cost to you)

Links

Vero Cazot - Instagram | Lucy Mazel - Instagram

I received an electronic copy of this graphic novel from Netgalley. I will always provide an honest review, whether books are provided to me or purchased by me.

Text & Image Credits © Vero Cazot & Lucy Mazel

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Graphic Novel Review: Dead Day by Ryan Parrott, Evgeniy Bornyakov (Illustrator), Juanchoi (Color Artist) ★★★★☆

I'm a proud zombie fan and lover of the dead. I feel it necessary to get that out the way because I was always going to like Ryan Parrott' and Evgeniy Bornyakov's Dead Day, the question was simply: how much. The thing about the genre is that you can make the rules up as you go along and that is done brilliantly in this latest graphic novel about the dead rising again. To be clear, Parrott states up from that this is not a zombie story.

The Story

The inspiration for Dead Day came from extremely painful events in Parrott's own life: the murder of his grandparents. In the aftermath, he asked himself what he would say to them if they could gone back for just one night. And what would that night look like? What if it happened the whole world over?

Dead Day is set in that world where the dead come back - every now and again - for just one night and loose ends are tied up. The only problem? Dead things are best left as they are.

The Art and Letters

Dead Day is gorgeous and I was drawn in immediately by the cover and concept. Evgeniy Bornyakov (Descendent, You Are Obsolete) is the artist and Juancho! is responsible for the vibrant, lush colours. Letterers often go unmentioned but I really liked Charles Pritchett's letters and the manner in which he distinguished between narration and story.

Stan Zone

Recommended if you like: The Walking Dead, The Purge

Verdict

I liked Dead Day a lot and will definitely be keeping an eye on what Parrott, Bornyakov, Juancho! and Pritchett do next. Will be great if they work together again.

Buy

Amazon (affiliate link; I will receive a small commission if you purchase using these links at no extra cost to you)

I received an electronic copy of this graphic novel from Netgalley. I will always provide an honest review, whether books are provided to me or purchased by me.

Image Credits © Evgeniy Bornyakov / Juancho!

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Odessa by Jonathan Hill: A Graphic Novel About the End of the World (Odessa #1) ★★★★☆

Reading comics is a relatively new thing for me. It was only during lockdown, when I had the attention span of a fig, that I discovered the joy and page-turning wonder of graphic novels. Joe Hill's Locke & Key and The Walking Dead were my gateway series but I soon began to discover a theme with the graphic novels I was reading: they are pure art. A lot of work goes into the art, colour and expressions and the experience can often be deeper than normal novels.

I realise I'm probably the last person on earth to discover this.

Jonathan Hill's Odessa piqued my interest given my obsession with post-apocalyptic landscapes.

Eight years ago an earthquake - the Big One - hit along the Cascadia fault line, toppling cities and changing landscapes all up and down the west coast of the United States

Vietnamese-American Virginia Crane and her two younger brothers have grown up in this landscape, a strange new world based on bartering and luck. The earthquake unearthed primordial species from deep below the earth's surface, resulting in entirely new systems of fauna and flora. All of the strange new plants, creatures and bugs that emerged after the Big One are part of this world that the Crane kids have grown up in.

Ginny, Wes and Harry are used to not having a mom around. She disappeared so many years ago that only Ginny can remember her and their father has brought them up alone. When a strange package arrives from her mother on Ginny's 18th birthday, she sets off across the post-apocalyptic wasteland towards what used to be California. Little does she realise that her two younger brothers have followed her.

In a journey filled with peril, betrayals and deceit, Ginny, Wes and Harry travel across the crumbling remains of America in search of their mother. They meet strangers and long-lost relatives along the way, some of whom they can trust and some of whom they definitely can't.

Will they be successful? Only time will tell because Odessa ends on a heck of a cliffhanger!

I enjoyed Odessa a lot. The art work was simple but powerfully portrayed the desolate and crumbling landscape through which the kids travel. I enjoyed the story too, especially the idea of new plants and bugs being unearthed by the Big One. I'm definitely looking forward to the next graphic novel in the series but there is no news on a release date yet. Hill has mentioned just how much work a graphic novel is - and he is doing both art and story - so hopefully that process is going well.

I give Odessa an excellent four out of five stars and recommend to post-apocalyptic graphic novel lovers.

★★★★☆

I received an electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley. I will always provide an honest review, whether books are provided to me or purchased by me.

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Graphic Novel: Moon Lake by Dan Fogler ★★☆☆☆

Horror is meant to push you out of your comfort zone. It's meant to be creepy and unsettling and often toes the line between exhilaration and plain fear. Sometimes horror skirts too close to your own fears; I will never forget the scene in The Basement where Cayleb Long's Craig is forced to swallow his own teeth.

So it's not the discomfort and sheer inappropriateness of Dan Fogler's Moon Lake that offended me. It reminded me of a subpar MAD magazine issue but whereas I subscribed to MAD for many years and am a big fan of Dan Foglers, this just isn't very good.

I get the feeling a lot of people are buoyed by Dan's increasing popularity (or have been drinking the same Kool Aid as him) but this should not be receiving a reissue with a brand new cover.

I give Moon Lake a disappointing two out of five stars because some of the artwork is good but if you're a fan of Dan-and-horror, I'd recommend just viewing his The Walking Dead episodes again.

I received an advanced copy of the 2020 reissue of this graphic novel from Netgalley.

★★☆☆☆

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Invisible Differences by Julie Dachez and Mademoiselle Caroline: A Graphic Novel About Aspergers ★★★★★

It was the cover that caught my eye on Mademoiselle Caroline and Julie Dachez's graphic novel Invisible Differences, translated from French and now available in English for the first time. A lone figure, Marguerite, stares out from the cover, surrounded by the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Invisible Differences tells Marguerite's story, from working in an office completely oblivious to her needs, to receiving an Asperger's diagnosis in her late 20s, to living her best life and finding a fulfilling career.

Despite being an introvert, I am neurotypical yet I saw so much of myself in Marguerite. This is why books like Invisible Differences are so important because it enables us to reach a common ground where those who are neuroatypical can be accommodated and live in a world less full of overwhelming stimuli and ignorant interactions.

Invisible Differences is beautifully written, a semi-autobiographical account by YouTuber and activist Julie Dachez of the road she travelled and the liberating impact of the diagnosis on her life. Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the novel is learning how hard-won advancements in Asperger's Syndrome and autism awareness were in France, how common late-life (as opposed to early) diagnoses are, and how clinicians still doggedly insist on psychoanalytic treatment, despite autism being genetic not psychological in nature.

While set in France, this graphic novel has universal appeal and I would absolutely recommend this as an educational tool for both young adults and adults. Through Mademoiselle Caroline's superb graphics, we experience the difficulties and over-stimulation Marguerite experiences at work, the lack of empathy and understanding from her superiors, and the draining impact this has on Marguerite's life.

The section at the end of the story was especially helpful, containing notes on the history and facts of autism, the impacts and challenges facing those on the spectrum and tips for how workplaces can support Aspies and ensure they succeed.

Most importantly, Invisible Differences is a fun, heart-warming graphic novel where the heroine most definitely overcomes her limitations in the end and I thoroughly enjoyed both the story and the graphics.

I give Invisible Differences a superb five out of five stars. You can discover more of Mademoiselle Caroline's work on her Facebook page and Julie Dachez vlogs in French on YouTube.

★★★★★

I received an electronic copy of this graphic novel from Netgalley. I will always provide an honest review, whether books are provided to me or purchased by me.

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