sjj169's review against another edition
2.0
Paranormal Noir?
I don't think I liked this one.
This guy meets Josephine and gets all hot and bothered about her. So her becomes obsessed with her and cheats on his PREGNANT WIFE with her.
Then he finds out the same chick was around and looks exactly the same in the 1950's.
This is an odd little book. I think it's me today because I've read two books that are out there and I haven't cared for either one.
In this one you have corrupt cops, cultish behavior and of course...tentacles!
I'm usually a Brubaker fan, but this one just didn't hit the home run with me.
I don't think I liked this one.
This guy meets Josephine and gets all hot and bothered about her. So her becomes obsessed with her and cheats on his PREGNANT WIFE with her.
Then he finds out the same chick was around and looks exactly the same in the 1950's.
This is an odd little book. I think it's me today because I've read two books that are out there and I haven't cared for either one.
In this one you have corrupt cops, cultish behavior and of course...tentacles!
I'm usually a Brubaker fan, but this one just didn't hit the home run with me.
jsantucci's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.25
peter_xxx's review
4.0
A mix between noir detective and lovecraft style horror. Very nice and very fitting illustrated by Sean Philips.
Brubaker shows once more what a good writer he is. Very good.
Brubaker shows once more what a good writer he is. Very good.
andy5185's review
3.0
Super fun old-school noir in graphic novel form along with some horror too. I’m intrigued enough to want to read the next one.
eoghann's review
3.0
Perhaps I was expecting too much.
I mean Ed Brubaker writing a noir comic, with art by Sean Phillips. That's a pretty strong combination. And on top of that I've seen some rave reviews for the series. So I did have very high expectations. And it's not that it's bad, but I just didn't seem to connect with it.
And the artwork easily lived up to my anticipation Sean Phillips is a seasoned artist and he's worked with Brubaker several times before. His art is ideal suited to the noir influenced stories that Brubaker writes.
The plot is good too. The mystery is well developed and I like the mixture of Cthulhu tinged horror with classic noir settings.
The characters are where it falls down for me though. I just don't care about any of them. In the case of the Josephine. She is essentially created to be the archetypal Femme Fatale and that pretty much is her character at least in this first volume.
But I can't really connect with the other characters either. Things happen to them. And I'm being told how it affects them, but I don't really feel it. Maybe it's the dry narration. Maybe it's the shifting between time periods. But it doesn't properly convey the power that Jo has over men.
People are suffering in the way that you would expect in a noir story, but it's not presented in a way that makes me empathize with their situation.
It's not bad, but Brubaker has written better.
I mean Ed Brubaker writing a noir comic, with art by Sean Phillips. That's a pretty strong combination. And on top of that I've seen some rave reviews for the series. So I did have very high expectations. And it's not that it's bad, but I just didn't seem to connect with it.
And the artwork easily lived up to my anticipation Sean Phillips is a seasoned artist and he's worked with Brubaker several times before. His art is ideal suited to the noir influenced stories that Brubaker writes.
The plot is good too. The mystery is well developed and I like the mixture of Cthulhu tinged horror with classic noir settings.
The characters are where it falls down for me though. I just don't care about any of them. In the case of the Josephine. She is essentially created to be the archetypal Femme Fatale and that pretty much is her character at least in this first volume.
But I can't really connect with the other characters either. Things happen to them. And I'm being told how it affects them, but I don't really feel it. Maybe it's the dry narration. Maybe it's the shifting between time periods. But it doesn't properly convey the power that Jo has over men.
People are suffering in the way that you would expect in a noir story, but it's not presented in a way that makes me empathize with their situation.
It's not bad, but Brubaker has written better.
roshonline12's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
mjfmjfmjf's review against another edition
3.0
Creepy confused noir set in both current day and the past. Good art. Good writing. But I just didn't like it. Which is fair because I'm not that big of noir. Or period pieces. Or semi-vampirish creatures. Or misleading plots. But well don't otherwise. I'll see how the sequel goes.
kellylynnthomas's review
3.0
You have to read closely or things might get confusing. A lot of the male characters look a bit similar/have nicknames so you're not sure who's who when. But otherwise a fun twist on the noir genre.