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geekwayne's review against another edition
4.0
'The Damned, Vol. 1: Three Days Dead' by Cullen Bunn with art by Brian Hurtt is kind of a weird alternate world where prohibition era gangsters are ruled by
demonic overlords.
One crime family is run by Big Al, a red and horned demon. In order to find a missing bookkeeper, he brings a guy named Eddie back from the dead. Eddie can't die, but that doesn't mean he can't be killed. Every time he is, he spends some time in a weird shadowy world where things make even less sense than in his world. He finds the bookkeeper, along with a missing ledger. Unfortunately, that discovery could lead to a gang war, and when you're dealing with demons, that may not be something you want to stick around for.
I'm familiar with this creative team from the series The Sixth Gun. I wasn't familiar with this earlier book, but I'm happy to have gotten the chance to read this reprint. The story feels fairly standard underneath all the weird demonic trappings, but I liked it. The art works really well for this story and I loved it.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Oni Press, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
demonic overlords.
One crime family is run by Big Al, a red and horned demon. In order to find a missing bookkeeper, he brings a guy named Eddie back from the dead. Eddie can't die, but that doesn't mean he can't be killed. Every time he is, he spends some time in a weird shadowy world where things make even less sense than in his world. He finds the bookkeeper, along with a missing ledger. Unfortunately, that discovery could lead to a gang war, and when you're dealing with demons, that may not be something you want to stick around for.
I'm familiar with this creative team from the series The Sixth Gun. I wasn't familiar with this earlier book, but I'm happy to have gotten the chance to read this reprint. The story feels fairly standard underneath all the weird demonic trappings, but I liked it. The art works really well for this story and I loved it.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Oni Press, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
mcbeezie's review against another edition
4.0
I loved almost everything about this graphic novel. The humor, the characters, the grit, the art. Fantastic! This is a new favorite of mine and I will continue to read these as they come out. Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for my honest feedback.
nkives's review against another edition
4.0
After reading this and Sixth Gun, I have become a fan of Cullen Bunn. This is basically a detective comic, but with demons involved who run the under world crime syndicate of the city. If you like demons, and like detective/crime comics, then check this out.
iffer's review
3.0
Thanks to Netgalley for the digital ARC.
This was 2 stars for me; the third star is pretty much for Brian Hurtt's art, which is reminiscent of his work in Queen and Country.
This didn't have anything that bugged me about it, but I just didn't find it engaging whatsoever. The Damned didn't contain any of the feeling of dread that I've enjoyed in the past in Cullen Bunn's horror titles, and it just felt like a gimmick that there were demons in this attempt at Prohibition-Era noir tale. I remember thinking, "Eh, this isn't Hellboy."
This was 2 stars for me; the third star is pretty much for Brian Hurtt's art, which is reminiscent of his work in Queen and Country.
This didn't have anything that bugged me about it, but I just didn't find it engaging whatsoever. The Damned didn't contain any of the feeling of dread that I've enjoyed in the past in Cullen Bunn's horror titles, and it just felt like a gimmick that there were demons in this attempt at Prohibition-Era noir tale. I remember thinking, "Eh, this isn't Hellboy."
softstarrynights's review
4.0
***This review is SPOILER FREE***
I was kindly sent an eARC of this book but all opinions are my own.
In all honesty, while I have been enjoying my DC graphic novels, I really did not know what to expect from this stand alone story. Clearly I had no need to worry.
The Damned take place in the U.S during the prohibition era, if the Prohibition era had been swarming with demons. Essentially I'd class it as historical urban fantasy, which there really is not enough of. The city is rued by mister families, these families being of the demonic variety, who not only deal in alcohol, but there is a roaring trade in human souls. We follow Eddie, as he is tasked with finding a demon who had got missing and could hold the key to peace among these waring families.
Granted this premise has many things that I love to see, such as gangsters, urban fantasy, the prohibition, but the way they were combined was near perfection.
Before I talk about art in graphic novels, I always preface it by saying that I am not super well-read in the genre, nor am I any sort of artist, but I am going to judge the art anyway. I really loved the art style in this novel. It had a sort of film noir vibe that really fit with the narrative. It was clear, and easy to follow (something I really value) , but still was interesting, and worked alongside the story.
Regarding the plot, it reminded me a lot of films like L.A Confidential and The Nice Guys, in the sense that the mystery builds and unravel is a way that seems natural, but you know that a lot of work has gone into making it happen like this. There were a couple fo moments, and I mean maybe three panels, where I would find myself lost, but it was easy to recover myself, and fall back into the plot. This is no way affected the plot overall, and I still found myself having a ball.
In addition to a great plot Three Days Dead managed to do something that is so hard to do in a graphic novel, and that is characterisation. As with most graphic novels this is around the 150 page mark, and you have very little chance to really explore a single character, especially when you have got to balance that with the plot itself, lest the novel feel dull. Somehow this feels like a fully fledged world, with fleshed out characters which have history, and backstories. I can't imagine a character I would not want to see more from. Eddie was a fantastic protagonist, who has a really unique voice, and I just want more.
Overall I am in love with this world, and this concept, and these characters. I want more from them, and this world! If you're unsure about graphic novels, give this one a whirl, and you won't find yourself disappointed.
Come find me at www.cartonmanettedarnay.wordpress.com
I was kindly sent an eARC of this book but all opinions are my own.
In all honesty, while I have been enjoying my DC graphic novels, I really did not know what to expect from this stand alone story. Clearly I had no need to worry.
The Damned take place in the U.S during the prohibition era, if the Prohibition era had been swarming with demons. Essentially I'd class it as historical urban fantasy, which there really is not enough of. The city is rued by mister families, these families being of the demonic variety, who not only deal in alcohol, but there is a roaring trade in human souls. We follow Eddie, as he is tasked with finding a demon who had got missing and could hold the key to peace among these waring families.
Granted this premise has many things that I love to see, such as gangsters, urban fantasy, the prohibition, but the way they were combined was near perfection.
Before I talk about art in graphic novels, I always preface it by saying that I am not super well-read in the genre, nor am I any sort of artist, but I am going to judge the art anyway. I really loved the art style in this novel. It had a sort of film noir vibe that really fit with the narrative. It was clear, and easy to follow (something I really value) , but still was interesting, and worked alongside the story.
Regarding the plot, it reminded me a lot of films like L.A Confidential and The Nice Guys, in the sense that the mystery builds and unravel is a way that seems natural, but you know that a lot of work has gone into making it happen like this. There were a couple fo moments, and I mean maybe three panels, where I would find myself lost, but it was easy to recover myself, and fall back into the plot. This is no way affected the plot overall, and I still found myself having a ball.
In addition to a great plot Three Days Dead managed to do something that is so hard to do in a graphic novel, and that is characterisation. As with most graphic novels this is around the 150 page mark, and you have very little chance to really explore a single character, especially when you have got to balance that with the plot itself, lest the novel feel dull. Somehow this feels like a fully fledged world, with fleshed out characters which have history, and backstories. I can't imagine a character I would not want to see more from. Eddie was a fantastic protagonist, who has a really unique voice, and I just want more.
Overall I am in love with this world, and this concept, and these characters. I want more from them, and this world! If you're unsure about graphic novels, give this one a whirl, and you won't find yourself disappointed.
Come find me at www.cartonmanettedarnay.wordpress.com
old_tim's review against another edition
3.0
I honestly don't see anything to make this book stand out over the plethora of Noir tinged UF released in the last ten years or so.
http://fedpeaches.blogspot.com/2017/04/but-they-are-actually-demons.html
http://fedpeaches.blogspot.com/2017/04/but-they-are-actually-demons.html
carroq's review
3.0
Disclaimer: I received a free ecopy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I love the concept behind this book. It is set in an alternate reality where demons exist and are actively involved in the world. The story is placed during Prohibition, so there are lots of gangsters too. And then there is Eddie, the protagonist, who just won't stay dead. It has a bit of that off the cuff vibe that can come with hard-boiled detective/noir stories. That's a perfect fit for Eddie.
The art is pretty good too. Particularly the depictions of the demons. There is a lot of variety to make them seem distinct.
However, things didn't pick up for me until near the end of this volume. I feel like I kept asking myself "so what?" about characters and events as they came up. Most of it is addressed eventually, but it left me sort of blasé about the whole thing. There wasn't enough information to get me invested in the character early. I might feel differently about it if I went back and reread it though.
I love the concept behind this book. It is set in an alternate reality where demons exist and are actively involved in the world. The story is placed during Prohibition, so there are lots of gangsters too. And then there is Eddie, the protagonist, who just won't stay dead. It has a bit of that off the cuff vibe that can come with hard-boiled detective/noir stories. That's a perfect fit for Eddie.
The art is pretty good too. Particularly the depictions of the demons. There is a lot of variety to make them seem distinct.
However, things didn't pick up for me until near the end of this volume. I feel like I kept asking myself "so what?" about characters and events as they came up. Most of it is addressed eventually, but it left me sort of blasé about the whole thing. There wasn't enough information to get me invested in the character early. I might feel differently about it if I went back and reread it though.
skepticalri's review
3.0
Loved the noir feel of the artwork, and the insertion of demons in the mob world is inspired. There were a couple of twists I didn't see coming. It's not my usual fare, but I'd probably pick up the next volume at the library to see where it goes.