Spooky season is here! What better way to get ready for it then checking out some horror content? That’s at least the mode I’ve started to get into as we get close to October. That’s where the latest R.L. Stine series, The Graveyard Club, comes at just the right time. Teaming up with artist Carola Borelli, R.L. Stine new series looks to be designed to hit on blend of suspense, mystery, and horror his content normally hits on. I had the chance to check out an early copy of the first graphic novel of The Graveyard Club from BOOM! Studios. Find out how it turned out with our advanced review.
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: R.L. Stine
Artist: Carola Borelli
Colorist: Francesco Segala and Gloria Martinelli
Letterer: Jim Campbell
THE GRAVEYARD CLUB #1 SOLICITATION
“Graves End is as sleepy a town as they come… especially being surrounded by cemeteries, and the local kids could think of nowhere else they’d rather wreak harmless havoc. But being surrounded by graveyards comes with the pervasive reminder that… there are more dead than there are living.
This town is an endlessly eerie place with no shortage of strange and dangerous happenings, and when high schooler Parker West pulls what seems like a harmless prank, he may be putting his friends in more danger than he can imagine…
Legendary author R.L. Stine (Goosebumps, Fear Street, Stuff of Nightmares) and rising star artist Carola Borelli (Spider-Woman, The Deadliest Bouquet) launch a coming-of-age horror series, a Breakfast Club in a graveyard filled with frights both nostalgic and new, for fans of Locke & Key and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina!” – BOOM! Studios
REVIEW
The Graveyard Club #1 certainly nails blending when Breakfast Club with Locke & Key and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. This more of an oversized comic book with The Graveyard Club story being told in 57 pages with extra behind the scenes content and teasers for other comics to fill the page count for a graphic novel. Experiencing the complete story that R.L. Stine and Carola Borelli deliver made it even more impressive how much they maximized the 57 pages of the story they told.
Right away what is nailed is the tone of the small town environment that The Graveyard Club is set in. The opening pages immediately show the chemistry that Stine and Borelli have with one another. There is a balance of what is at the forefront with the writing and artwork always complimenting one another. That balance helps to enhance this comic book to have a vibe where it feels like we are reading a story that is both self-contained and the start of a new world. Which is exactly what is needed with this being the start of a graphic novel series with months in between the next release.
The success of The Graveyard Club #1 comes down to how much to buy into he cast of characters. The core group of five friends each are given designs and development to get an understanding of who they are. The group all using the town’s graveyard as their hangout spot further puts over the setting as being a small town. They don’t have many options of hangout spots, especially as teenagers. This setting choice also establishes that the group are of part of the cool club with how much of a mix of character archetypes they have.
Though as is normal with this start of a story two of the core cast members take the leading role. Choosing the two who are a couple in Parker and Patti does help quickly establish the different dynamics and history within the group. Parker and Patti have a natural chemistry with each other that you buy into their relationship right away. This allows dialogue that plays a bigger role later on in the story be something you pass of as a normal back-and-forth because of their chemistry.
The buy into the cast makes the story seem to simply be about a prank war with a school bully that just continues to escalate in dark manners. Stine and Borelli lull you into thinking the story is one about one thing when there is something much deeper going on. As the mystery gets unraveled the more you think back to things that happened in earlier pages. It all leads to discoveries that build a strong foundation for what future volumes of The Graveyard Club can follow-up on.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The Graveyard Club #1 delivers a story that blends of suspense, mystery, and horror extremely well. R.L. Stine crafts a narrative around a cast of characters that are all engaging with the way they are presented. The vibe that Carola Borelli, along with colorists Francesco Segala and Gloria Martinelli, provide the story through fantastic artwork hits on moments the grounded setting surprises the reader with horror elements. It all comes together for a must read for fans of classic horror and suspenseful mystery stories.
Story Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
Art Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
Check out a full preview of The Graveyard Club #1 releasing this Wednesday, September 18th, by clicking here.
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