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aemowers's review
4.0
Strangest thing I’ve ever read. Art style takes awhile to get used to. It is due to this graphic novel that I am now averse to earthworms.
bookdingo's review
4.0
Wonderful art, complete with bug guts and a large looming ant queen with bright yellow breasts. The centipede cameos are hilarious, as the author made them out to look like limos getting in everyone's way. The tales of various ants within this colony were dramatic and I'm ready for more.
chwaters's review
4.0
This is, by far, one of the strangest graphic novels I have ever read. As the title implies, it is about an ant colony. Or, more specifically, the collapse of an ant colony. The narrative follows several ants: a homosexual pair of males, an adolescent ant and his amoral father, a police officer with the gift of meta-narrative and an infertile female ant (only the queen is fertile in the black ant colony). Things get particularly weird when the spiders come to the area. The fluids produced by the mating spiders have a hallucinogenic effect on a red ant colony which causes them to begin attacking the black ants. In the meantime, the adolescent ant has accidentally ingested powered earthworm and subsequently gained prophetic powers. The adolescent ant's amoral father has decided it would be entertaining to destroy the egg sacks he's supposed to be guarding. War breaks out amongst the two ant colonies, which leaves the anthill all but abandoned. The brutal war kills off most of the ants, leaving the survivors to strike out on their own.
DeForge's artwork is totally unique. Yes, each insect is identifiable, but they're not depicted in the way in which we're used to seeing them drawn. The spiders have a distinctly wolfish quality to them and appear to have ingested far too many stimulants. The centipede has taken on the form of a stretch limo. The black ants are distinguished amongst one and other by the bumps on their heads and their colorful, visible internal organs. And then there are the bees.... The best way I can think of to describe this book is that it's a bit like an ant-based version of Watership Down - on peyote. It's crazy. It's funny. It's confusing. It's kind of brilliant.
DeForge's artwork is totally unique. Yes, each insect is identifiable, but they're not depicted in the way in which we're used to seeing them drawn. The spiders have a distinctly wolfish quality to them and appear to have ingested far too many stimulants. The centipede has taken on the form of a stretch limo. The black ants are distinguished amongst one and other by the bumps on their heads and their colorful, visible internal organs. And then there are the bees.... The best way I can think of to describe this book is that it's a bit like an ant-based version of Watership Down - on peyote. It's crazy. It's funny. It's confusing. It's kind of brilliant.
rachelmcshane's review
3.0
The book was......bizarre, to say the least. I don’t even know where or how to begin. It’s got a weird plot, colorful and enjoyable illustrations, some humor, is dark, political, and satirical all at once. I’d say the book is worth the read, if only for those cute little ant drawings.
francium87's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
lindick's review
4.0
This book is SO WEIRD. I think I loved it? But if someone told me they hated it, I'd be like "yeah."
Also, I knew it would be super dark and existential and gross, but I was surprised to find myself laughing out loud a lot. What does that say about me?
Also, I knew it would be super dark and existential and gross, but I was surprised to find myself laughing out loud a lot. What does that say about me?
tashtonnes's review
5.0
"Why am I suddenly horny?"
"The pheromones are released from the bodies and stay in the air for days after a cremation."
"The sky looks cool like that."
I loved this graphic novel that predominately features a short glimpse into the lives of five ants from the same colony whose lives altered and uprooted by a brief and bloody war.
There's not an awful lot of plot in this novel, nor is there solutions or even questions, only things and events that just are. While this is a beautiful graphic novel which briefly mentions and displays many different themes the most prominent aspect of Ant Colony is that it makes you feel uncomfortable. It drills down to the core of existence and this theme is pared with gross kinda squeamish illustrations.
I'll try to keep this brief, as that is exactly what Ant Colony is (it only took me like five minutes to read), I liked this novel but I am not as fond of it as I was of the first DeForge comic I read, Very Casual. I feel that DeForges' stories are very hit or miss, in regards to personal opinion, in an analytical sense they are all very good but I have a few different stand out favourites for no other particular reason aside from I liked them. This is why I think that having one novel with many different stories works better for DeForge than having one overarching story, as in Ant Colony.
If this looks like your thing and you're ready to be kinda grossed out, uncomfortable and reflective give this novel ago, if not, try one of his comics with numerous stories to see if he can make something you'll like, or just leave this be, it takes a certain type.
Also, I learnt too many ant facts that I care to know, in ways which I would rather not have learnt them.
"The pheromones are released from the bodies and stay in the air for days after a cremation."
"The sky looks cool like that."
I loved this graphic novel that predominately features a short glimpse into the lives of five ants from the same colony whose lives altered and uprooted by a brief and bloody war.
There's not an awful lot of plot in this novel, nor is there solutions or even questions, only things and events that just are. While this is a beautiful graphic novel which briefly mentions and displays many different themes the most prominent aspect of Ant Colony is that it makes you feel uncomfortable. It drills down to the core of existence and this theme is pared with gross kinda squeamish illustrations.
I'll try to keep this brief, as that is exactly what Ant Colony is (it only took me like five minutes to read), I liked this novel but I am not as fond of it as I was of the first DeForge comic I read, Very Casual. I feel that DeForges' stories are very hit or miss, in regards to personal opinion, in an analytical sense they are all very good but I have a few different stand out favourites for no other particular reason aside from I liked them. This is why I think that having one novel with many different stories works better for DeForge than having one overarching story, as in Ant Colony.
If this looks like your thing and you're ready to be kinda grossed out, uncomfortable and reflective give this novel ago, if not, try one of his comics with numerous stories to see if he can make something you'll like, or just leave this be, it takes a certain type.
Also, I learnt too many ant facts that I care to know, in ways which I would rather not have learnt them.