It is the last days of the Roman Republic. The armies expanding into Gaul face increasing resistance from the Helvetii and Germanic tribes. The future of Rome itself is in question.
All of this is meaningless to Coax. He is Gallic, yet knows nothing of his tribe, for his parents were enslaved by Romans before he was born and died in the revolt led by Spartacus. He was content to be a slave himself, until an act of sacrilege destroyed his family. He freed himself and became a pirate, bleeding Rome as much as he could. And yet, while his thirst for the blood of Roman soldiers is great, he still ransoms one young officer who convinces Coax he is worth more alive than dead. Surprisingly, he proves to be right, and soon has the ransom Coax set.
Years later, Coax is in bondage again, captured and sentenced to slavery for his crimes. He seems sure to die in the arena as a gladiator, but for the intervention of a Roman officer. To his surprise, it is the officer he ransomed years before—a man named Gaius Julius Caesar. He offers Coax a choice – serve as his spy in those places where a Gaul can pass that a Roman cannot. In exchange, Caesar offers Coax his aid in finding those responsible for killing his daughter and driving his wife to end her life.
It is a devil’s bargain, though the two fighting men get along well enough despite their different stations. However, Coax is not under any delusions that he is anything but a weapon to Caesar. And though he does not realize it, his actions in the service of his savior may yet bring about the downfall of Rome.
I went into Caesar’s Spy with enthusiasm. Not out of any love for Roman history, but because of the pedigree of the creative team. I was familiar with Max Von Fafner’s work on various Conan the Barbarian books and loved what I had seen. I was less familiar with French writer Jean-Pierre Pecau, though I did enjoy his steampunk Sherlock Holmes story Moriarty: Clockwork Empire. Both are in fine form in Caesar’s Spy.
While it is tempting to call Coax a Conan substitute based on Max Von Fafner’s designs, Coax is a radically different character. He lacks Conan’s crude chivalry, though he does have a code of honor. He gives respect to those who respect him, even if they are Roman. He also takes offense at Caesar going against Coax’s word that a group of Helvetii refugees would be given safe passage. Not enough to stand against Caesar, who he honors as his commander. But enough to free the Helvetii princess Sanian, who is presented to him as a slave.
This goes on to form one of the main conflicts of the novel, with Sanian organizing her own campaign against Rome and Caesar. The irony is that she and Coax might have been allies, had it not been for Coax’s promise to Caesar and, later, Sanian’s rebellion killing one of the few men Coax calls friend. This is but one example of the emotional complexity of Jean-Pierre Pecau’s scripting. The story is also well-researched regarding Roman history during The First Triumvirate.
In terms of art, Caesar’s Spy is equally fantastic. As I said earlier, I’m a big fan of Max Von Fafner. His artwork is beautifully detailed and visceral, yet subtly streamlined. The action scenes are intense and the period costuming generally well depicted. The sole exception to this is some of the women’s clothing seems more like specialty lingerie than the sort of thing an Egytpian noblewoman would wear in her private chambers. In fairness, Von Fafner does not shy away from showing fit young men in equally revealing outfits.
On that note, Titan Comics rated Caesar’s Spy as 15+. Generally, I would agree with that assessment, but I would still classify this one as a graphic novel for adults. There is ample sexual content, brief nudity, and copious violence, though nothing I would classify as pornographic. The sexual acts are not depicted on the page, though we do see the characters naked before and after the acts. And yet, I would classify this as a work for adults because most teenagers are unlikely to appreciate the complex relationships and emotional depth of the characters.
Caesar’s Spy By Jean-Pierre Pecau Art by Max Von Fafner Titan, 2025 ISBN: 9781787746978
Company Age Rating: 15+
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+), Older Teen (16-18) Creator Representation: French, Serbian,
Echoes of October is built around a simple yet difficult question. The sort of question that children often ask and adults wish they could answer.
Why can’t we just get along?
That question is asked around the world in many ways and many languages. Yet it has taken on a particular vibrancy within the Middle East and especially regarding the Gaza conflict. This is the focal point of Echoes in October, which builds to the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The story is told through the eyes of four children. All of them are 11 years old, but all of them were born of drastically different circumstances. Jannah is a Muslim girl from Gaza City. Amir is a Druze boy from Daliyat-al-Karmel. Lily is a Canadian Evangelical Christian, born in Toronto but recently relocated to Kibbut Kfar Aza. Eli is a Jewish boy from Tel Aviv. The children do not meet as a group over the course of the novel, though Eli and Amir are cousins. Lily and Jannah also meet briefly, as Lily’s father works as a volunteer driver who escorts Jannah into Israel for medical treatment.
However, despite its setting, Echoes of October plays out as a slice-of-life comic rather than a political thriller. The story remains firmly focused upon the children and their individual issues. This drives home their common ground and makes them more relatable to the young readers for who Echoes of October was written.
Eli, for instance, is worried about his parents talk of moving away from Israel. Their only concern is the safety of their family and what the threat of war may do to Eli. Yet Eli’s biggest fear is moving away from his friends, his school, and everything he knows. This is counterbalanced by the story of Lily, who has already undergone this trauma. She misses her friends in Canada and worries that her dream of being the next Taylor Swift may be short-circuited by moving halfway around the world.
Amir, an aspiring comic creator, has similarly big dreams of creating the first Druze superhero – a Captain America figure modeled on his soldier father. Unfortunately, most of his family have no use for his art and intend to put him to work in their restaurant instead of letting him continue school. Jannah also has issues with her family, for she has dreams of becoming a politician and bringing peace to the region so the people around her can be happy. Unfortunately, the people calling for violence on both sides are so much louder and so many refuse to listen to women, let alone girls.
Echoes of October does not pretend there are any easy answers. It does, however, offer one of the most heartfelt and well-structured introductions to the conflict in Gaza and how there is more than one side involved in the conflict. While the artwork and language used by Ami Adan are simple, they deliver a powerful idea that ultimately boils down to that one big question.
Why can’t we just get along?
Echoes of October is recommended by the author for readers 10 and up. This is a fair rating, as there is no objectionable content to be found here. Doubtless some will object to the idea of a children’s graphic novel that discusses the conflict in Gaza sight unseen. Yet this book is not entirely about that conflict. It is about four young people struggling to cling to some sense of normalcy in an increasingly angry world. That is something that all too many of us can related to in modern times and why I would recommend this graphic novel to readers of all ages rather than just children.
Echoes of October By Ami Adan Self-Published, 2025
Company Age Rating: 10+
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+), Older Teen (16-18), Teen (13-16), Tween (10-13) Creator Representation: Israeli, Palestinian, Jewish, Muslim, Character Representation: Canadian, Israeli, Palestinian, Jewish, Muslim, Protestant ,
To know Chase Darrow is to love her. But to love Chase Darrow is certain death.
There is something about Chase that draws men to her like flies to honey. Although a more apt metaphor might be ‘like moths to a flame.’ One kiss of Chase’s lips draws the life out of a man, slowly aging him and eventually leaving him dead. Even the men around her she doesn’t kiss just love her and want to make her happy.
The problem is that there’s something within Chase that forces her to seek out company. She’s tried living alone without success. She’s tried throwing herself at bad men who deserve a bad death. She even tried romancing an older man who would be content to just have a beautiful trophy wife to look at. Unfortunately, nothing has worked. Eventually either she or they push for a kiss and the inevitable happens.
When Chase’s latest relationship ends with a dead billionaire, she finally gets the attention of the American government. Thinking she’s some natural-born superhuman, they dispatch their oldest and most powerful home-grown superhuman agent in turn – an invincible slab of testosterone simply known as “The Man.” He has a talent for killing and not much use for empathy. This sets up a long manhunt and a confrontation between the unrelenting and the irresistible. What will prove stronger? The Man’s ability to deal death or Chase’s tainted love?
Originally published as a four-issue miniseries by Vertigo Comics in 1990, Breathtaker is the definition of a cult classic comic. It was well-regarded upon release and saw a trade paperback collection in 1994. However, because it was intended to be a one-and-done story, it fell into obscurity compared to other mature readers’ titles of the age that were longer-running and sought out for film and television adaptations. This may be because Breathtaker is distinctly designed for the world of comics.
No less a luminary than Walt Simonson speaks on this point in the introduction to this hardcover collection. The way a train silhouette becomes a roof to the three panels under it showing a conversation on said train. The way a checkboard pattern sets up the layout of the room beyond. There are many visual tricks like this that might be replicated on film, but nowhere near as well. Marc Hempel and Mark Wheately crafted one heck of a visual extravaganza, with the writer painting several sequences that punctuate key moments of the story.
That story is what truly makes Breathtaker memorable beyond the outstanding visuals. While many comics have explored the idea of a superpower that is more curse than blessing, few have done it with the same political acumen. Beyond the psychological torment Chase experiences as a woman who just wants to be loved despite knowing she is literally poison, Breathtaker examines the paradoxical nature of sex and sexuality in American society and media. Women are encouraged to be sexy yet are looked down upon as harlots who seek to drag good men down. Likewise “The Man” is held up as the epitome of everything a man should be – a cinematic action hero in the flesh – despite being an unpleasant bore.
Breathtaker is rated M for readers 18 and up by Titan Comics and rightly so. With a plot based around love, death, sex, and power, this title requires a certain level of life experience to fully appreciate. Beyond that, it depicts numerous scenes of sexual content and aggressive violence that it should go without saying are not suitable for children.
Breathtaker Collection By Mark Wheatley Art by Marc Hempel, Mark Wheatley Titan, 2025 ISBN: 9781785867354
When last we left Lenore, the Cute Little Dead Girl, she and her friends were in dire circumstances. Well, as dire as they can be when you’re already dead and Hell has pretty much given up on reclaiming you.
Regardless, Pooty Applewater (the bucket-headed bounty hunter demon) accidentally awakened, killed, and resurrected a pickle hat, which turned into a murderous monster. Unfortunately, despite it wanting to kill Lenore, Pooty and their doll-friend Ragamuffin, Lenore forbid Pooty to kill the pickle hat. Again. Even though this left them trapped in their house and slowly starving to death. Or undeath. Or whatever.
Salvation seemed to arrive in the form of the Time Goats – a group of advanced goats from the future, who mastered the science of time travel. They came to stop Pooty from killing the pickle hat and bringing about the end of all reality. Or making sure he killed it, so the pickle hat didn’t destroy all reality. Instead, they became a meal for Lenore and her friends, which wound up scattering them across time.
Yeah. Eating cooked Time Goat makes you time travel. Who knew?!
Now Lenore and her friends are scattered across time and trying to make their way home. And this is where things start to get weird…
Those who are familiar with Lenore, the Cute Little Dead Girl and the comics of Roman Dirge will find more of the same wacky weirdness and oddball artwork in Lenore: The Time War. Those who are not familiar with Lenore, the Cute Little Dead Girl will soon grasp the core concept.
Despite picking up where the previous series ended, this book is fairly friendly to new readers thanks to Dirge satirizing comic book continuity with the character of Flashback Squirrel. This strange being happily explains everything at the start of each chapter, even as he fakes his own death to escape his secret families to indulge in sick, twisted activities. Yes, even more sick and twisted than the events of Lenore: The Time War.
Regardless, while Roman Dirge’s work is sure to appeal to those who like Tim Burton movies and other cute, Gothic and twisted things, there is another angle to be appreciated here. The time-travel based storyline offers a lot of humor for sci-fi fans. I can particularly see the quirky humor appealing to Doctor Who fans, particularly when Lenore starts dealing with various gods and a frenemy who hasn’t met them yet, but they know all too well.
Titan Comics rated this volume as appropriate for readers 15 and up. This made me quirk my head a bit, because the last Lenore volume I looked at was rated 18+. I would put this one in the Adult Graphic Novels collection for consistency. Beyond several jokes about cannibalism, there are also references to Thai sex tourism, marital infidelity, murder, mayhem, child abuse, child neglect, animal abuse, butt-wiping, and repeated violations of the space-time continuum.
It’s all in the name of good fun, however, for a given value of good fun. Just be forewarned that it is not appropriate for children and sensitive souls.
Lenore: The Time War By Roman Dirge Titan, 2025 ISBN: 9781787745421
Company Age Rating: 15+
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+), Older Teen (16-18)
What would you do if you had only six months to live?
This is the question facing everyone who contracts the G+ Virus. There is no cure. It is definitively lethal.
However, for some victims, it is also the best thing that ever happened to them. Because even as the G+ Virus overclocks the host body, it also allows people to briefly become more of what they are.
Creative people seem to become more creative, perhaps driven to make something that will outlive them. Even the baseline cases somehow become more physically capable.
A rare few, however, become something superhuman.
Death Sentence was an oddly prescient work. Originally published in 2014, it predates the many works of superhero fiction inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic. Of course, the idea of a disease bestowing superpowers is not entirely original. (George R. R. Martin’s Wild Cards is built around the same general premise.) What marks Death Sentence as unique is its distinctly British flavor and its tight characterization.
The first volume centers around a trio of newly infected G+ patients. Verity is an artist who accidentally kills the government agents sent to bring her in. Weasel is a rock star hoping for a comeback who becomes a fugitive after his powers accidentally kill a groupie. They become the unlikely heroes recruited to stop the third focus character, David “Monty” Montgomery – a comedian whose mind control powers allow him to turn all of London into a captive audience.
The second and third volumes explore the aftermath of the first, as the American and British governments attempt to exploit the most visible expression of superpowers in history. This leads to the introduction of new characters like Roots – a drug farmer who uses her powers to enhance her product and defend her neighborhood.
Writer Monty Nero does a fantastic job of building up the world and the characters. With subversive takes on politics and pop culture, Death Sentence invites comparison to the work of Alan Moore. This seems to be intentional, as Nero references Moore twice in the text. Once with the analogy “like Alan Moore on an acid trip,” and once more with the character of Creighton Baines, a comic writer whose creation is co-opted by masked protesters. (A clear reference to Anonymous and V for Vendetta.) However, while the influence is apparent, Nero still makes the story his own and goes beyond simply mimicking Moore.
The artwork is fantastic across the board, with each section of the story has a distinctive look. Mike Dowling draws the first volume with a gritty, dark aesthetic that evokes memories of classic Judge Dredd comics and the early years of Hellblazer. Martin Simmonds skews a bit more surreal in the second and third volume, as Verity begins to fully master her powers. And Nero takes over the art for the final three chapters of Volume 3, with more traditional comic art as the story skews into more traditional superhero fare.
Death Sentence: The Collected Edition is rated M for readers 18 and up and rightly so. This should be obvious given the back cover blurb screams “Sex, Superpowers, And Six Months To Live.” For those who need more detail, there is indeed explicit sexual content, outright nudity, and multiple acts of sexual violence. There is also physical violence in plenty, with considerable gore. There is also cursing, with liberal use of the F-dash-dash-dash-word. Needless to say, none of this is suitable for children. Adult audiences, however, looking for something in the same vein as The Boys but more dramatic, will be well served
Death Sentence: The Complete Collection By Monty Nero Art by Mike Dowling, Martin Simmonds, and Monty Nero Titan, 2025 ISBN: 9781787741461
Company Age Rating: M (18+)
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+) Creator Representation: Scottish, Character Representation: British, Bisexual,
The town of Maple Hollow holds a special fondness for Halloween. Every October is marked with a lengthy celebration of the spooky season. There are nightly haunted hayrides, pumpkin carving contests and all manner of amusements! Indeed, there are only two people in Maple Hollow who don’t celebrate Halloween—the town’s dentists, Dr. and Dr. Hollowell. They see Halloween as the night all their hard work safeguarding the town’s smiles is ruined, thanks to all the trick-or-treating and the candy that comes with it.
To make matters worse, their daughter Holly Hollowell was born with a natural attraction to the Halloween holiday. She rejected plush toys in favor of a rubber spider and always dressed in orange and black. However, despite Holly’s well-researched arguments that there is more to Halloween than candy, her parents refuse to let her trick-or-treat or dress up. Indeed, they make her stay home on Halloween night while they go out to a dentist convention!
Thankfully, Holly’s wish that she might finally have the Halloween of her dreams is heard by the Spoops – the little spirits of Halloween who make the world a little bit more magical every autumn. With their help, Holly will make up for lost time. And, with a little bit of pumpkin spice, the Spoops just might help Holly’s parents see the magic of Halloween.
I will admit to some bias in my enjoyment of Spoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween. All Hallow’s Eve has always been my favorite holiday. I made it a point to dress up every year as a kid and I spent more than few Halloween’s during my misspent youth dressing up at The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Even now, I’m a cosplayer who dresses up enough that, while maybe not every day is Halloween, I certainly keep to the spirit of the season all year around. Spoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween will appeal to those of a similar bend.
This is the first graphic novel of voice actor A.J. Locascio. Hopefully it will not be his last, as he shows a tremendous talent for writing for children. His rhyme scheme evokes memories of Dr. Seuss and Clement Clarke Moore, though he avoids the silly words of the former. At first, I thought some of Locascio’s word usage might be a bit too advanced for the intended audience. Then again, since the point of children’s poetry is often to expand vocabulary along with horizons, I don’t think this is a huge problem.
The artwork by Laurie Conley is born of the same spirit. It calls back to classic Easy Reader books, with colorful pictures interspersed amid the text. In this case, however, the colors are all black, white, and orange. There are many subtle touches in the art, like Holly’s parents being dully monochrome amidst the colorful world around them. Holly in particular stands out from her dull home, thanks to her bright orange clothing. The Spoops themselves, it should be noted, are suitably designed, splitting the difference between eldritch and adorable.
Spoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween contains no adult content or cursing. The only thing I think might draw objections is the belief that Holly’s Halloween wish might equate to summoning demons or performing witchcraft. Then again, anyone who would make that argument is unlikely to read a book about Halloween spirits in the first place. Most, I think, will find this appropriate for its intended audience of 5–9-year-olds, though some young readers may need help with some of the words.
Spoops: The Little Spirits of Halloween By A.J. Locascio Art by Laurie Conley Top Shelf, 2025 ISBN: 9781603095617
Company Age Rating: 5-8 years
NFNT Age Recommendation: Easy Readers (5-9), Picture Books (3-8)
Many young people know what they want to do with their lives from the very beginning. Ema Asano is one such person. Most of her classmates are focused on fashion and dating. But Ema cannot be bothered with such things. She dreams of following in the footsteps of her parents, who were both police officers before their deaths defending their community. Until such time as she can become a real cop, Ema roams the streets of Tokyo as a vigilante.
Ema’s diligence leads her into the bad part of town one night after her older sister, Yuko, goes missing. To her horror, she discovers that Yuko was lured there by one of her co-workers, Tamaki, who is a vampire in need of a meal. Ema is ready to call the authorities, but is stopped by another of Yuko’s co-workers, Taiga, who also a werewolf.
That encounter marks the night when Ema’s vigil becomes something else entirely. For there are monsters in the shadows besides vampires and werewolves. And Tamaki and Taiga, despite nominally being on opposite sides of an eternal war, find they have more in common with each other than their own kind. Thus forms an unusual team, as the trio work to put down those monsters who cannot control their urges to kill.
On the surface, there is little to distinguish Outsiders from other urban fantasy series. Indeed, creator Akira Kanou freely admits to having been inspired by the Twilight Saga. And there certainly are innumerable horror series built around the idea of a rivalry between werewolves and vampires. Despite this, Outsiders puts enough unique spins on its mythology to mark it as unique. It also boasts some twisted artwork with a far lighter and sketchier style than one would associate with a horror shojo.
Outsiders defies expectations in other ways as well. Usually, a novel of this sort would inevitably feature a love triangle between the teen heroine and the two dashing older men who barely look older than her. There is no such romance in Outsiders. While Ema does show some casual interest in wondering what dating a vampire or a werewolf would be like, her feelings are not reciprocated by Tamaki or Taiga. In fact, most of the romance in this first volume involves subtle hints of a growing attraction between the vampire and werewolf. All these twists help to make Outsiders into something unique that may appeal to fans of the genre looking for something different.
Outsiders Vol. 1 is rated 12+ by Titan Manga. I consider that to be a fair grade for the content. There is a fair bit of violence and bloodshed, but nothing inappropriate to a T-rated Manga. As noted, there is no sexual content or nudity. Indeed, there is barely any hit of romance and most of that confined to meaningful glances between the two male leads that the heroine presumes mean something more. The closest any of the characters come to impropriety is Tamaki undressing and dressing an unconscious Ema in clean clothes after her own clothing is torn while trying to save her sister. Even then, he is a perfect gentleman, and explains he only did this because he couldn’t well let Ema (who is immune to his hypnosis powers for some reason) run off into the night in a bedraggled state.
Outsiders Vol. 1 By Akira Kanou Titan, 2025 ISBN: 9781787745711
Company Age Rating: 12+
NFNT Age Recommendation: Older Teen (16-18), Teen (13-16) Creator Representation: Japanese, Character Representation: Japanese,
The character of John Law is an interesting footnote in the long career of comics legend Will Eisner. He was created in 1948 and was to headline a new comic book as part of Eisner’s independent imprint. Unfortunately, the early sales on his first two comics were not promising, and Eisner elected to stick to his more reliable (and profitable) work on The Spirit. To that end, he took the three John Law stories he had written and reworked them into stories for The Spirit.
At first glance, John Law would appear to be a knock-off of The Spirit. Both figures are brawny, wearing suits and fedoras. However, the characters are wildly different beyond John Law sporting an eyepatch instead of a mask and smoking a pipe while on the job. Whereas The Spirit was a superhero who worked outside the law, John Law was one of the few honest cops in the Crossroads City Police Department. Both men fought colorful criminals, but John Law also had to navigate the corruption of his fellow police officers.
Even so, it was only a twist of fate and a devout archivist that led to John Law seeing the light of day. Eclipse Comics editor Cat Yronwode stumbled across the original John Law proofs while organizing Will Eisner’s archives in 1983. With his permission, she published the three John Law stories as a one-shot comic.
That was all that existed until 2001, when Australian comic creator Gary Chaloner asked Eisner for permission to put his own spin on John Law. This led to a new John Law series, which was originally published as a web comic on the website Modern Tales. It was later published in print by IDW.
Chaloner went beyond writing new John Law tales. He began building a shared universe made up of other obscure Will Eisner creations. For instance, he tweaked John Law’s background a bit, giving him a lost love in the form of socialite Brenda Banks. This was the secret identity of one of Eisner’s detective heroines, Lady Luck. This was not entirely unprecedented, however, as Eisner had given John Law a kid sidekick in the form of another one of his less-popular comedy creations, Nubbin the Shoeshine Boy.
The Collected Will Eisner’s John Law contains all these stories, plus a new John Law story by Chaloner that gives him a new squad of young detectives to mentor. All of them are established Eisner creations and one of them establishes a connection between the worlds of John Law and The Spirit. That alone is enough to make this volume of interest to comics history buffs, and anyone who enjoys shared universes or Noir thrillers. Both Eisner and Chaloner are in fine form and Chaloner truly honors the legacy of his inspiration.
Titan Comics rates this volume 15+ for older teens and adults. I think that is a fair rating. While there’s little in the way of overt violence or bloodshed, one story does feature the shocking death of a child. There’s some suggested sex and teased nudity, including a bit of butt crack when John Law accidentally walks in on Brenda Banks as she’s toweling off after a shower. There’s also a bit of weird horror in some stories that may be a bit much for the easily spooked.
The Collected Will Eisner’s John Law By Will Eisner, Gary Chaloner Titan, 2025 ISBN: 9781787745353
Company Age Rating: 15+
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+), Older Teen (16-18) Creator Representation: Australian,
I did not read any of the original Lenore, the Cute Little Dead Girl comics when they first came out in the late 1990s and early 2000s. This is astonishing for several reasons. Chief among them was my being a Goth and comic nerd who came of age around that time.
Alas, despite being exposed to Sandman and Johnny the Homicidal Maniac through Lucy; the cute Goth grrrll who worked at the local comic shop, I somehow never learned that Lenore was a comic and not an icon created to sell merchandise at Hot Topic until several years later. By that point, the original comics were out of print and hard to come by honestly. Or even dishonestly. I didn’t think much about Lenore until earlier this year, when I was asked if I would review the current Lenore series published by Titan Comics. I said I would like to, but I had never actually read the earlier Lenore comics. Lo and behold, they offered to send me a copy of The Bloody Best of Lenore and told me to get to work. So I did. And oh my badness I am even more astonished I did not read this before!
There is not much of a plot to Lenore, nor much continuity between the individual chapters. At least, none that matters beyond introducing the various characters. Lenore is a zombie who was about 10 when she died over 100 years earlier. She lives in a scary mansion with her two friends: Ragamuffin and Pooty Applewater. Ragamuffin is a vampire who was cursed and trapped in the body of a rag doll. Pooty is a bounty hunter, with a bucket for a head, who was meant to take Lenore back to Hell, but decided not to because that would mean he’d have to return to Hell too and he really didn’t want to do that. Because of it being Hell.
The comics center around them goofing off, reenacting various children’s nursey rhymes in a dark fashion, and dealing with various supernatural menaces. These range from the creepy mad coroner who wants to finish embalming Lenore, to the Creepig; an undead pig that kills all creatures who eat leftover pork products after midnight.
The artwork by Roman Dirge is deceptively cute yet disturbing. Dirge’s own recollection of their past is that their art teacher told them they would never find success as an artist. This inspired him to become a stage magician, a musician and, most shamefully, a comic book magazine publisher, before several empty pages forced him to fill the space with something. That something became Lenore and thus did an international nightmare begin
Fans of Tim Burton and other dark yet cute things are the ones most likely to enjoy Lenore. It should be noted, however, that the darkness here is very dark and Titan Comics rated this volume M for audiences 18 and up for a reason. There are disturbing images. There are dead baby jokes. There are numerous references to various bad things happening to Ragamuffin while he sleeps up to and including sexual assault. You have been warned.
The Bloody Best of Lenore By Roman Dirge Titan, 2017 ISBN: 9781785863042
Giovanni is the kind of painfully shy child bullies focus on. He’s intelligent, despite doubting himself, and is devoted to his homebound mother. Since his father is away and his mother too ill to work, he must support the family—which he does happily—but this means he can’t play with the other children after school. This, of course, doesn’t help his social standing. His one friend is Campanella, who is friends with absolutely everyone. After a brief meeting at the Star Festival, the two find themselves inexplicably on a train to the stars.
They’re awed by their journey through strange lands where birds taste like candy, scorpions burn brightly, and scientists excavate fossils eternally. It’s Giovanni’s first real adventure and he’s delighted with Campanella’s full attention. At each stop they meet new travelers full of purpose. Giovanni—and readers—will slowly realize that there’s a reason the boys are on the train and why he has a special ticket different from everyone else’s.
While I have not yet read the original novel, I was fascinated and followed the story easily, indicating that it made the transition to graphic novel well. This classic story has been adapted several times, including to stage and screen, so it may be of particular interest to readers who enjoy learning about Japanese literature. I’ve even been enticed to check out the novel so I can experience the journey again in another format.
The art style uses fine lines and plenty of detail to bring each stop to life during the journey. At the same time, there are often aspects of the celestial lands that don’t quite feel real. The characters sometimes seem separate from the scenery and some elements almost look like stage props. The level of care and detail elsewhere—particularly on Earth—make this seem planned, as if the other lands truly aren’t quite real or, perhaps, not something Giovanni can fully understand.
Savvy readers will quickly pick up on the twist in the story as the illustrations provide many clues, but it’s also easy to just follow Giovanni’s journey and tensely wait for his intelligence to catch up with the unexpected joy. That intense happiness is readily apparently since Kitahara’s art has a strong focus on the characters’ emotions from blatant to subtle. They’ll display a nearly comical level of exuberance on one page and be sharing a million thoughts with a tiny smile on the next.
As a small critique, the font used for the English translations doesn’t fit all the speech bubbles well, presumably because of the way the Japanese and English writing is oriented differently.
This is a coming of age tale best appreciated by younger teens as the galactic journey is also Giovanni’s road to maturity. While he’s needed to work hard and be responsible, that’s isolated him from his community and many experiences that could shape his older self. On the Galactic Railway he’ll confront the true meaning of friendship, religion, compassion, and loss while having an adventure that may jar him out of his timid life.
This lovely, quiet graphic novel is definitely recommended for library collections.
Kenji Miyazawa’s A Night on the Galactic Railway By Ayano Kitahara Tuttle, 2025 ISBN: 9784805318713
Company Age Rating: Teen Related media: Book to Comic
tribes. The future of Rome itself is in question.
Echoes of October is built around a simple yet difficult question. The sort of question that children often ask and adults wish they could answer.
To know Chase Darrow is to love her. But to love Chase Darrow is certain death.
you’re already dead and Hell has pretty much given up on reclaiming you.
The town of Maple Hollow holds a special fondness for Halloween. Every October is marked with a lengthy celebration of the spooky season. There are nightly haunted hayrides, pumpkin carving contests and all manner of amusements! Indeed, there are only two people in Maple Hollow who don’t celebrate Halloween—the town’s dentists, Dr. and Dr. Hollowell. They see Halloween as the night all their hard work safeguarding the town’s smiles is ruined, thanks to all the trick-or-treating and the candy that comes with it.
classmates are focused on fashion and dating. But Ema cannot be bothered with such things. She dreams of following in the footsteps of her parents, who were both police officers before their deaths defending their community. Until such time as she can become a real cop, Ema roams the streets of Tokyo as a vigilante.
headline a new comic book as part of Eisner’s independent imprint. Unfortunately, the early sales on his first two comics were not promising, and Eisner elected to stick to his more reliable (and profitable) work on The Spirit. To that end, he took the three John Law stories he had written and reworked them into stories for The Spirit.
is astonishing for several reasons. Chief among them was my being a Goth and comic nerd who came of age around that time.
mother. Since his father is away and his mother too ill to work, he must support the family—which he does happily—but this means he can’t play with the other children after school. This, of course, doesn’t help his social standing. His one friend is Campanella, who is friends with absolutely everyone. After a brief meeting at the Star Festival, the two find themselves inexplicably on a train to the stars.
