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augustlight's review
4.0
Gorgeous art, and I love monsters, but the story and characters just failed to grab me.
saidtheraina's review against another edition
4.0
This is a gorgeous package. Good job, Dark Horse, on the fabulous cover*, end papers, extra matter, full color illustrations... yes, please, this is lovely.
I also warmed up to Ruth's illustration style (cf. my thoughts on The Lost Boy) when in color. Even though the colors here are muted, adding that element makes his work feel more edgy to me. More like the impressionistic elements are intentional, and not an indication of a lack of skill.
I'm sure this story was a much different experience when read issue to issue. I read this all in one sitting, and as such, felt there were chances missed. I wanted to know MORE about this world. About these characters. It's never totally clear what is freakish about (really ANY of) the characters, and the mythology around the town could be explored much further. Maybe the story will continue, but it doesn't feel like it's intended that way.
Beautiful work - I kinda really want to see the movie. In this case, I feel like it would be MORE detailed than the book. Or a TV series!!!
*although its similarity to the cover for Lost Boy kinda cracks me up.
I also warmed up to Ruth's illustration style (cf. my thoughts on The Lost Boy) when in color. Even though the colors here are muted, adding that element makes his work feel more edgy to me. More like the impressionistic elements are intentional, and not an indication of a lack of skill.
I'm sure this story was a much different experience when read issue to issue. I read this all in one sitting, and as such, felt there were chances missed. I wanted to know MORE about this world. About these characters. It's never totally clear what is freakish about (really ANY of) the characters, and the mythology around the town could be explored much further. Maybe the story will continue, but it doesn't feel like it's intended that way.
Beautiful work - I kinda really want to see the movie. In this case, I feel like it would be MORE detailed than the book. Or a TV series!!!
*although its similarity to the cover for Lost Boy kinda cracks me up.
nickininedoor's review
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
1.0
dr3mi's review against another edition
3.0
The illustration by Greg Ruth is quite dark, but presents the story well enough that there are very few dialogues needed throughout the whole book. Overall, it is quite a heartwarming story about acceptance. Trevor, our main character, has a brother who had a very strange appearance, but Trevor loved him and took great care of him nevertheless. I definitely recommend this book to people who loves touching stories taken place in a dark world.
linguana's review against another edition
3.0
Another nice Dark Horse comic book. Full review at: http://sffbookreview.wordpress.com/2012/05/03/steve-niles-and-greg-ruth-freaks-of-the-heartland/
trike's review against another edition
2.0
The art is really the only thing going on here. The story don’t make one dang lick o’ sense an’ it ain’t got no ending’. The characters, see, is alla buncha them clee-shays ‘bout rednecks an’ whatnot. Maybe if there were a hint of a theme besides “don’t treat people who look different from you badly” I’d be inclined to overlook the non-ending. It just feels like Niles saw he only had two pages left and went, “Welp, best rap this up.” Seemed mostly okay until then.
This is exactly the kind of story that the various X-Men books have done for decades, and done better. You really need to bring more to the table at this late date.
This is exactly the kind of story that the various X-Men books have done for decades, and done better. You really need to bring more to the table at this late date.
meghanc303's review against another edition
2.0
Beautiful graphics overshadowed a story that left me wanting more. I loved the "heartland" angle, and the perspectives of the children (both human and 'other') were intriguing. Even the darkness of the book worked for me in a way (Emily Carroll's new book comes to mind here). But I wanted more understanding of the scope of the world, what happened before, what the implications are afterwards, and although the rest of the Freaks series might contain that, I would've appreciated a little more to make this book stand more firmly on its own.
Recommended to: people who enjoy a dose of Lovecraft or Poe, your friend that likes movies on "redneck killers" (zombies or otherwise), those that like a little darkness in their art, fans to Steve Niles/Freaks that will perhaps appreciate this more than me!
Recommended to: people who enjoy a dose of Lovecraft or Poe, your friend that likes movies on "redneck killers" (zombies or otherwise), those that like a little darkness in their art, fans to Steve Niles/Freaks that will perhaps appreciate this more than me!
shinychick's review against another edition
2.0
Grabbed off of the YA shelf while I was pulling holds. I liked the 30 Days of Night graphic novels, so I thought, hey, can't be too bad. And it wasn't bad. But it wasn't wonderfully good, either. A good waste of an hour.
contemporarymeepsie's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
akmargie's review against another edition
3.0
I thought the art was strong and liked the relationship between the two brothers but felt the overall plot needed a little more development. But a good addition to the midwest gothic aesthetic.