spacem's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
dozmuttz's review
5.0
WARNING: NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART, BUT ED PISKOR IS A BRUTALLY DISGUSTING GENIUS!!!
If you’re looking for some creative horror writing with some gruesome and awesome artwork, look no further than Ed Piskor’s ‘Red Room’. This first volume, and the start to the series, is called ‘The Antisocial Network’. Ed starts us off with 4 issues showing us the interweb world of the red rooms. Brutal killings and torture live on stream for the filthy rich (emphasive on *filthy*) to donate crypto currency to view. Each issue shows us the vast cast of disgusting individuals who are at the top of the black web. In the first issue we are introduced to the biggest baddie of them all, Mistress Pentagram. The sort of orchestrator of the stream snuff business. We see her break down what the red rooms are and in turn we get different perspectives from each issue on what happens in these secret chat rooms. Be careful when opening this one, because it does not hold back, much like if you were to actually open a link to one of these terrifying streams. If you can stomach it though, and make sure not to eat before or directly after, you’ll get a glance at a very creative horror comic.
Ed Piskor shows he is a true renaissance man, as he tackles every bit of work in this book. Writing, pencils, inking, coloring, hell even the lettering! Of course though let’s start with the writing. Man, did Piskor deliver a horror chef’s kiss. I love his overall plot and concept and I feel like he captures the idea perfectly. With the massive popularity and uptick on streaming platforms, this book couldn’t have come out at a better time. Piskor also shows his knowledge with social media, as he himself has a pretty big youtube following with his shared channel, “Cartoonist Kayfabe” (great channel, you should check it out). But I mean this guy set’s up a lot of moments where the dialogue you’re reading is straight from the chatroom. It all actually feels like a live chat too. It’s funny and it for sure is done in a way to make it feel relatable. Whether you’ve been the one to type the stuff in the chat or read it. I also just think the whole aspect of the snuff stream is super scary, seeing as this isn’t something Piskor just came out of nowhere and thought up. The fact that his inspiration is mainly over exaggerated (some cases not that exaggerated ) real life events that took place on the internet sends straight up chills down my spine and anxiety pumping to my heart. He also does a great job of making each issue feel its own, while also adding to the overarching plot. That was one of his main goals going into this mini-series and I think he does it perfectly. It kinda has an anthology feel, but it’s all still connected. Like there are characters that are in each issue who are just simply recurring, but don’t make you feel like it’s something you need a deep dive in. If you want to go back to issue one that’s totally fine, but starting with issue 4 still gives you a great idea about what the whole thing is about.
Now onto the main entree, his artwork. Piskor shows that he is a brilliant cartoonist! It’s almost scary to think someone can think of gory things like what Piskor drew. Some of the best are able to reach deep down and come up with anything and in Piskor’s case, anything *is* up to the drawing board. There is some super gnarly stuff in this read and most of the time that’s not my jam, but there’s more to Piskor’s artwork than just the nasty torture and killing. The overall technique of his cartonning is outstanding! The paneling was on another level, super creative for the regular shots, but him involving the streams *as a part of the paneling* was genius to me. Stuff like the live chat, the donations, the bans, EVERYTHING. It looked and felt like a real life stream and chat. It was a really creative way to make the book move forward and it made the read feel unique. Now of course the brutal stuff was also insane, but again there is a technique to it, a great technique. Because of it being more cartoonist artwork I feel like I was able to stomach more than if it was a more *realistic* style. That's why Piskor shines so well with this kind of story. It’s sort of like when cartoons back in the day would show some borderline intense stuff, and it made us laugh, but sometimes we had to stop and think “why is this allowed?” haha. It’s obviously over exaggerated, but that’s what makes it entertaining. The character designs are also brilliant and terrifying. Each psycho is very much their own character, and it plays to the bigger plot of the story. It’s great attention to detail from start to finish.
Overall; You gotta give this a read if you’re in the mood for something scary and gross. And in general if you just want to see a very talented cartoonist with outstanding art styles/technique, I promise you won’t find it anywhere else than here in the Red Rooms.
If you’re looking for some creative horror writing with some gruesome and awesome artwork, look no further than Ed Piskor’s ‘Red Room’. This first volume, and the start to the series, is called ‘The Antisocial Network’. Ed starts us off with 4 issues showing us the interweb world of the red rooms. Brutal killings and torture live on stream for the filthy rich (emphasive on *filthy*) to donate crypto currency to view. Each issue shows us the vast cast of disgusting individuals who are at the top of the black web. In the first issue we are introduced to the biggest baddie of them all, Mistress Pentagram. The sort of orchestrator of the stream snuff business. We see her break down what the red rooms are and in turn we get different perspectives from each issue on what happens in these secret chat rooms. Be careful when opening this one, because it does not hold back, much like if you were to actually open a link to one of these terrifying streams. If you can stomach it though, and make sure not to eat before or directly after, you’ll get a glance at a very creative horror comic.
Ed Piskor shows he is a true renaissance man, as he tackles every bit of work in this book. Writing, pencils, inking, coloring, hell even the lettering! Of course though let’s start with the writing. Man, did Piskor deliver a horror chef’s kiss. I love his overall plot and concept and I feel like he captures the idea perfectly. With the massive popularity and uptick on streaming platforms, this book couldn’t have come out at a better time. Piskor also shows his knowledge with social media, as he himself has a pretty big youtube following with his shared channel, “Cartoonist Kayfabe” (great channel, you should check it out). But I mean this guy set’s up a lot of moments where the dialogue you’re reading is straight from the chatroom. It all actually feels like a live chat too. It’s funny and it for sure is done in a way to make it feel relatable. Whether you’ve been the one to type the stuff in the chat or read it. I also just think the whole aspect of the snuff stream is super scary, seeing as this isn’t something Piskor just came out of nowhere and thought up. The fact that his inspiration is mainly over exaggerated (some cases not that exaggerated ) real life events that took place on the internet sends straight up chills down my spine and anxiety pumping to my heart. He also does a great job of making each issue feel its own, while also adding to the overarching plot. That was one of his main goals going into this mini-series and I think he does it perfectly. It kinda has an anthology feel, but it’s all still connected. Like there are characters that are in each issue who are just simply recurring, but don’t make you feel like it’s something you need a deep dive in. If you want to go back to issue one that’s totally fine, but starting with issue 4 still gives you a great idea about what the whole thing is about.
Now onto the main entree, his artwork. Piskor shows that he is a brilliant cartoonist! It’s almost scary to think someone can think of gory things like what Piskor drew. Some of the best are able to reach deep down and come up with anything and in Piskor’s case, anything *is* up to the drawing board. There is some super gnarly stuff in this read and most of the time that’s not my jam, but there’s more to Piskor’s artwork than just the nasty torture and killing. The overall technique of his cartonning is outstanding! The paneling was on another level, super creative for the regular shots, but him involving the streams *as a part of the paneling* was genius to me. Stuff like the live chat, the donations, the bans, EVERYTHING. It looked and felt like a real life stream and chat. It was a really creative way to make the book move forward and it made the read feel unique. Now of course the brutal stuff was also insane, but again there is a technique to it, a great technique. Because of it being more cartoonist artwork I feel like I was able to stomach more than if it was a more *realistic* style. That's why Piskor shines so well with this kind of story. It’s sort of like when cartoons back in the day would show some borderline intense stuff, and it made us laugh, but sometimes we had to stop and think “why is this allowed?” haha. It’s obviously over exaggerated, but that’s what makes it entertaining. The character designs are also brilliant and terrifying. Each psycho is very much their own character, and it plays to the bigger plot of the story. It’s great attention to detail from start to finish.
Overall; You gotta give this a read if you’re in the mood for something scary and gross. And in general if you just want to see a very talented cartoonist with outstanding art styles/technique, I promise you won’t find it anywhere else than here in the Red Rooms.
jackphoenix's review
3.0
It won’t fail on all the malicious, gory, splatter-punk violence, or pitch black humor, but it might disappoint if you’re looking for a single, cohesive story.
myweereads's review
4.0
“I’m just looking to make you a little uneasy, to freak you out a little bit, and if I have to resort to some gross—outs to get the results I want, you’ll clearly see that I’m not above that in the very least.”
I happened to be in Forbidden Planet looking at the new releases and this one stood out to me. I mean the graphics are pretty disgusting yet you cant look away. That is exactly how I would describe very page in this graphic novel.
This volume collects four stories which overall connect in the most gross possible way. The idea is that in the dark web there exists a series of videos known as the Red Room videos. These are highly sought after as they consist of the most brutal and depraved acts carried out on people. The viewers of these videos have their favourite serial killers and tune in on specific days to see them give their best performance.
It does sound unbelievably sick and that is the best way to describe this volume. The stories do connect and create an overall image of a dark world one can only imagine exists. I love horror so this was a pretty messed up read.
The graphics are very explicit and practically every trigger warning possible applies here. With that in mind this may not be for everyone but I impose you to give it a go
I happened to be in Forbidden Planet looking at the new releases and this one stood out to me. I mean the graphics are pretty disgusting yet you cant look away. That is exactly how I would describe very page in this graphic novel.
This volume collects four stories which overall connect in the most gross possible way. The idea is that in the dark web there exists a series of videos known as the Red Room videos. These are highly sought after as they consist of the most brutal and depraved acts carried out on people. The viewers of these videos have their favourite serial killers and tune in on specific days to see them give their best performance.
It does sound unbelievably sick and that is the best way to describe this volume. The stories do connect and create an overall image of a dark world one can only imagine exists. I love horror so this was a pretty messed up read.
The graphics are very explicit and practically every trigger warning possible applies here. With that in mind this may not be for everyone but I impose you to give it a go
heytayashleigh's review
challenging
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Torture, and Death
Minor: Animal death
jasperellis's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
denisxcore's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
rebus's review
1.5
A dull and derivative modern take on EC comics from the 1950s fails to illuminate this predatory corner of the dark web in any way (the author is such a coward that he himself has never logged in to the dark web, relying instead upon the 'research' of 'experts').
What we have instead is pro-cop BS that serves only as propaganda, filled with nothing but lies and distortions (at best). Piskor states that serial killers are obsessed with cops and often take jobs adjacent to law enforcement because they could not make the cut, when in fact cops--like soldiers, who now make up a majority of cops--have an average IQ of 88. The truth is that the VAST majority of serial killers--an obsession that borders on stupid, as there have been just a few hundred in human history, with only a couple of thousand total victims, while the US economy kills more than 10 times that amount daily in our slave states without firing a shot--are stone cold geniuses who may in fact be failed med students, which is why they end up with jobs in places like medical examiner's offices. Cops are bottom of the barrel sociopaths. They kill HALF as many people annually as serial killers have killed in ALL of human history. The fact that people fear that there is a crazy killer or predator around every corner is ludicrous, as serial killings and mass killings almost never occur (especially compared to the casual sociopathy of Corporate Capitalism).
Once again, we find a far more telling afterword, which shows what a joke this creator is, comparing some of his techniques to the great Alan Moore, and revealing his obsession with crypto-fascist violence peddlers like Frank Miller. He's a right wing tool to suggest the torture of ISIS agents didn't happen, and even more of one to adhere to the views of a full on Nazi like John E. Douglas (does anyone really still believe the tired tropes that serial killing is a result of bed wetting, pyromania, or animal torture, especially when our Capitalist meat eating society enslaves 65 BILLION animals in torturous conditions before slaughtering them, much like in a Red Room video?).
This is puerile garbage from a guy who hypocritically called Justin Bieber a schmuck, and, as he reveals in his notes at the end, it sounds like most of the modern generation of comic book creators are the twisted types who would love to watch or participate in Red Rooms.
His name dropping reveals mostly bad taste in everything, but I guess we should count our blessings that he and his ilk had some small amount of artistic talent and didn't become characters in these spaces.
What we have instead is pro-cop BS that serves only as propaganda, filled with nothing but lies and distortions (at best). Piskor states that serial killers are obsessed with cops and often take jobs adjacent to law enforcement because they could not make the cut, when in fact cops--like soldiers, who now make up a majority of cops--have an average IQ of 88. The truth is that the VAST majority of serial killers--an obsession that borders on stupid, as there have been just a few hundred in human history, with only a couple of thousand total victims, while the US economy kills more than 10 times that amount daily in our slave states without firing a shot--are stone cold geniuses who may in fact be failed med students, which is why they end up with jobs in places like medical examiner's offices. Cops are bottom of the barrel sociopaths. They kill HALF as many people annually as serial killers have killed in ALL of human history. The fact that people fear that there is a crazy killer or predator around every corner is ludicrous, as serial killings and mass killings almost never occur (especially compared to the casual sociopathy of Corporate Capitalism).
Once again, we find a far more telling afterword, which shows what a joke this creator is, comparing some of his techniques to the great Alan Moore, and revealing his obsession with crypto-fascist violence peddlers like Frank Miller. He's a right wing tool to suggest the torture of ISIS agents didn't happen, and even more of one to adhere to the views of a full on Nazi like John E. Douglas (does anyone really still believe the tired tropes that serial killing is a result of bed wetting, pyromania, or animal torture, especially when our Capitalist meat eating society enslaves 65 BILLION animals in torturous conditions before slaughtering them, much like in a Red Room video?).
This is puerile garbage from a guy who hypocritically called Justin Bieber a schmuck, and, as he reveals in his notes at the end, it sounds like most of the modern generation of comic book creators are the twisted types who would love to watch or participate in Red Rooms.
His name dropping reveals mostly bad taste in everything, but I guess we should count our blessings that he and his ilk had some small amount of artistic talent and didn't become characters in these spaces.