I Luv Halloween, Volume 1 - Softcover

Ben Roman; Keith Giffen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1595328319 ISBN 13: 9781595328311

Publisher: TokyoPop, 2005

Synopsis

Halloween has always been and always will be about one thing: getting the best CANDY. And, some fiendish friends excel at tricks if they don't get the right treats. When these gremlins receive a frickin' apple at their first house of the night, they plan deadly revenge on the offending fruit-favoring old-timer. Join the misadventures of a group of particularly disturbing trick-or-treaters as they go about their macabre business on Halloween night. Believing that the apples they received at their first house of the night are the cause of the bad candy they've been receiving, the kids plot deadly revenge on the old lady who handed out the cursed fruit. Colored by Michael Kellaher, Kyle Foster and Glasshouse Graphics.

About this title

Reviews

Grade 10 Up–Four boys–cool Finch, girl-obsessed Mr. Kitty, slovenly Pig Pig, and enigmatic Devil Lad–set out in search of candy one All Hallow's Eve. Along the way, mishaps and misadventures ensue involving revenge on an elderly woman who doles out apples as treats and a bloody pursuit that revolves around a piece of stolen lingerie. What follows is a feeble plot overshadowed by off-color sexual humor and gratuitous violence. At first glance, this book appears to have a Nightmare before Christmas meets South Park feel, though it is clearly not meant for those with a weak stomach. Placing itself in the comedy-horror genre, it offers more gore than laughs and even fewer scares. A stronger buy in this category would be Ted Naifeh's Courtney Crumrin series (Oni Pr.) or Matsuri Akino's Pet Shop of Horrors (Tokyopop). Instead of delivering trick-or-treat fun, I Luv Halloween presents little more than a meager blood-spattered romp.–Jennifer Feigelman, Plattekill Public Library, Modena, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Finch and his sister, Moochie, are all ready for Halloween, and they look adorable. Finch is dressed as a zombie, while Moochie is the Tooth Fairy. By the time we realize that Moochie is stealing teeth from a house full of dead bodies, and Finch knows more about zombies than any child has a right to, we've already been drawn into their cute but gruesome world. Giffen (Formerly Known as the Justice League) and Roman (The Lonely Tombstone) have concocted a black comedy that reads as if Quentin Tarantino and Tim Burton had collaborated on a Halloween heist story. As the story progresses, a mysterious kid dressed as a devil who might just be one, razor blades in apples, a boy named Mr. Kitty with a breast fetish, a dead dog, a missing bra and much more mix together for a lively and inventive tale. Giffen's darkly humored script draws laughs from such things as evisceration while capturing the childlike glee at dressing up and walking by a scary graveyard. He also leaves plenty of mysteries for the next two volumes to solve. Cocreator Roman's art is occasionally too detailed for the small pages, but he excels at unique character designs and macabre details. Full of ghoulish tricks, I Luv Halloween is a seasonal treat that the not easily offended will thoroughly enjoy. (Oct.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

I Luv Halloween is an exercise in dark humor. Twisted and almost evilly funny, it hits the spot usually reserved for zombie movies. Finch, his little sister Moochie, and his gang of friends head out for the traditional kid ritual of trick or treat but are thwarted early in the night when their efforts garner only apples. Worrying that this kind of catastrophic failure so early on may be a sign of things to come, the group sets out to get things back on track. Their efforts result in arrests, lost undergarments, and more than a couple of deaths. While the humor is probably best left to more mature readers, Roman has managed to get close to the way real kids talk among themselves--a mixture of bravado and feigned disinterest held together by loads of sarcasm. Giffen's art is spot-on for the characters' warped wit: edgy and loaded with attitude but just cute enough to add to the hilarity. This book should become a fond favorite of Tim Burton fans. Tina Coleman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: TokyoPop
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1595328319
• ISBN 13: 9781595328311
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 192