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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
La trama es lenta y tiene un formato muy a lo "Perdidos" (la serie de TV) en cuanto a historia y flashbacks.
Pero tiene ese algo que no puedes parar de leer y buscar pistas en cada una de las viñetas. Dibujo muy atractivo visualmente y que funciona. Este primer tomo (de dos, se supone) no cierra nada de la historia así que presumiblemente habrá que releerlo cuando se publique el segundo.
Pero tiene ese algo que no puedes parar de leer y buscar pistas en cada una de las viñetas. Dibujo muy atractivo visualmente y que funciona. Este primer tomo (de dos, se supone) no cierra nada de la historia así que presumiblemente habrá que releerlo cuando se publique el segundo.
‘How do you think the world will end?’
Those who knew Walter, those who were in his circle, those he loved, all heard him ask this question. When the closest of Walter’s friends from his various friend’s circles through his life all come together for a weekend getaway in a gorgeous lakefront mansion, this question never even crossed their minds…Until it happens. The Nice House on the Lake from writer and artist duo James Tynion IV and Werther Dell'Edera (of Something is Killing the Children fame) is a tense horror survival graphic novel across two volumes (this first one collects issues 1-6) as a household of people must face the end of the world and their own slipping sanity in a house that may be either a haven or twisted prison. The artwork is stunning and gritty, though the frames are very text-heavy and the plot plods forward through the gloomy tone, though there are plenty of big reveals and endlessly growing tension to keep it gripping enough (having just come off their other series this felt a bit flat in comparison). With elements of sci-fi and horror, and a simulated-multimedia approach with transcripts, chat logs, emails and notebooks to aid the story, this is a big visual thrillride that could use a bit of a push but is enjoyable in all the density of backstory and though the number of characters (shoutout for queer and trans rep) can get a bit cumbersome they are all juggled pretty successfully. Who, and maybe more importantly what is Walter, how are they trapped in the house and is there a way out, what is happening outside the world and what are these strange puzzles are all questions that drive this story through its chilling twists and turns.
Something I enjoy about James Tynion IV is he aims to be very unsettling and hits you were it hurts, such as knowing everyone you’ve ever known or loved died in an absolutely horrific and gruesome apocalypse (Anderson Cooper gets singled out as someone who literally melts on live tv). In both series of his I’ve read now the art does not shirk away from depicting the most horrible things you can image. Like this:
Yup.
Coming out in 2021, it was interesting to see the pandemic briefly alluded to, though reading it in 2023 it was difficult to not compare the opening of the book to the film Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery as both have an extremely similar, mysterious set-up (and oddly both have someone working on a Democratic Party campaign). There are A LOT of characters, but this guide came in handy:
This was interesting to read directly after plowing through three volumes of Something is Killing… in a weekend. The two are quite different in tone, while both being horror, and this one is less fun and boisterous but more atmospheric and tense. While the art is fantastic in both, I prefer his art style in Something and this one can sometimes be hard to tell characters apart but also things being fairly obscured is part of the intent. Walter is very similar to the boy in the first arc of Something, and not just that both are drawn fairly similar with their big glasses you never see through but both have an element where in high school they were encouraged to ask their best friend to be their boyfriend, were rejected, and still maintain a friendship that is making them awkward. Comparatively though, this one felt a big of a slog, starting strong and ending strong, but sort of languishing in the middle (though Dave being goofy is pretty charming). Each issue being told in what appears to be a present set decently into the future where they all seem like battle hardened dystopia vets leads me to think this is only going to get epic.
There are a lot of questions to unravel still, like if their code names and symbols mean anything, what is the house exactly and if the world can be saved, and I suspect it is too early to really “rate” the series but I am having a lot of fun. If he can stick the landing I bet I will love this and overlook my few critiques, I just hope it doesn’t fall apart. It’s pretty high stakes and I am hooked though not as much as his other series. Can’t wait to see where they take us in volume 2.
3.5/5
Those who knew Walter, those who were in his circle, those he loved, all heard him ask this question. When the closest of Walter’s friends from his various friend’s circles through his life all come together for a weekend getaway in a gorgeous lakefront mansion, this question never even crossed their minds…Until it happens. The Nice House on the Lake from writer and artist duo James Tynion IV and Werther Dell'Edera (of Something is Killing the Children fame) is a tense horror survival graphic novel across two volumes (this first one collects issues 1-6) as a household of people must face the end of the world and their own slipping sanity in a house that may be either a haven or twisted prison. The artwork is stunning and gritty, though the frames are very text-heavy and the plot plods forward through the gloomy tone, though there are plenty of big reveals and endlessly growing tension to keep it gripping enough (having just come off their other series this felt a bit flat in comparison). With elements of sci-fi and horror, and a simulated-multimedia approach with transcripts, chat logs, emails and notebooks to aid the story, this is a big visual thrillride that could use a bit of a push but is enjoyable in all the density of backstory and though the number of characters (shoutout for queer and trans rep) can get a bit cumbersome they are all juggled pretty successfully. Who, and maybe more importantly what is Walter, how are they trapped in the house and is there a way out, what is happening outside the world and what are these strange puzzles are all questions that drive this story through its chilling twists and turns.
Something I enjoy about James Tynion IV is he aims to be very unsettling and hits you were it hurts, such as knowing everyone you’ve ever known or loved died in an absolutely horrific and gruesome apocalypse (Anderson Cooper gets singled out as someone who literally melts on live tv). In both series of his I’ve read now the art does not shirk away from depicting the most horrible things you can image. Like this:
Spoiler
Yup.
Coming out in 2021, it was interesting to see the pandemic briefly alluded to, though reading it in 2023 it was difficult to not compare the opening of the book to the film Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery as both have an extremely similar, mysterious set-up (and oddly both have someone working on a Democratic Party campaign). There are A LOT of characters, but this guide came in handy:
This was interesting to read directly after plowing through three volumes of Something is Killing… in a weekend. The two are quite different in tone, while both being horror, and this one is less fun and boisterous but more atmospheric and tense. While the art is fantastic in both, I prefer his art style in Something and this one can sometimes be hard to tell characters apart but also things being fairly obscured is part of the intent. Walter is very similar to the boy in the first arc of Something, and not just that both are drawn fairly similar with their big glasses you never see through but both have an element where in high school they were encouraged to ask their best friend to be their boyfriend, were rejected, and still maintain a friendship that is making them awkward. Comparatively though, this one felt a big of a slog, starting strong and ending strong, but sort of languishing in the middle (though Dave being goofy is pretty charming). Each issue being told in what appears to be a present set decently into the future where they all seem like battle hardened dystopia vets leads me to think this is only going to get epic.
There are a lot of questions to unravel still, like if their code names and symbols mean anything, what is the house exactly and if the world can be saved, and I suspect it is too early to really “rate” the series but I am having a lot of fun. If he can stick the landing I bet I will love this and overlook my few critiques, I just hope it doesn’t fall apart. It’s pretty high stakes and I am hooked though not as much as his other series. Can’t wait to see where they take us in volume 2.
3.5/5
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Took a long while to get into. While it is talking about the end of the world it doesn’t really feel like that especially with the pace of the book. There’s not really any urgency to figure out what’s going on with where there at. Less than an average read for me which was a let down considering the rave reviews I read before picking it up.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I had no idea what to expect when I started this story, and I'm glad. I picked it up because I read Something is Killing the Children and loved it. Also, the name of the story coupled with the cover art is just the kind of juxtaposition that tickles me.
Since I recommend that you go into this knowing little about what is going on in the story, I won't go into it except to say that the story is excellent and is full of surprising things.
I think Volume 2 is out, so I need to get my hands on that stat.
Update: Volume 2 is definitely out and I just read that, too. So, so good!
Since I recommend that you go into this knowing little about what is going on in the story, I won't go into it except to say that the story is excellent and is full of surprising things.
I think Volume 2 is out, so I need to get my hands on that stat.
Update: Volume 2 is definitely out and I just read that, too. So, so good!
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
fast-paced
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Finished this in one sitting. It was hard to remember who was who and how they were connected. It was easy to go back and look at each person's little introduction though. It's been fun watching things piece together. Curious to see how it ends in the second vol. Interesting themes of love and friendship we will see how that ends. I really want to know about why and how Ryan fits in.