Reviews

Sons Of The Devil Vol. 1 by Toni Infante, Brian Buccellato

geekwayne's review against another edition

4.0

'Sons of the Devil, Volume 1' by Brian Buccellato with art by Toni Infante proves that the eyes have it, but maybe what they have is something you shouldn't want.

Travis has spent his troubled youth bouncing around the foster care system not knowing who his real parents are. When a friend finds a link to his past, then is removed from Travis' life, things get strange. We see a story that jumps between the present and past. In the past, Travis' mom was in a cult in California run by a guy who had a weird pact with the devil. He and all of his kids have a trait of two different colored eyes. Could this be who Travis is looking for? And who is the creepy guy running an anger management class in the open, and acting like a serial killer in private. Travis finds himself in over his head, and it may be too much for his girlfriend to take.

The story doesn't get too far along before the five issues in this volume are over, but that's okay. The story and art work well together. There are a couple short backup stories that give some illumination to a couple characters. This is quite the thrill ride, and I like it. Travis is far from perfect and has a really short fuse. It'll be interesting to see how that plays out along with whatver schemes are going on with his real father.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Image Comics, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

ogreart's review

3.0

Meh. It is okay. I don't feel drawn to immediately go out and search for the next volume in the series.

sharperteeth's review against another edition

2.0

I really wanted to like this comic because the premise sounded fantastic, but unfortunately it was a major let down. The main character, Travis, was extraordinarily unlikeable with no redeeming qualities, not at all interesting, and gave me so many reasons to roll my eyes that they almost hurt. His relationships with everyone were extremely predictable and stereotypically for an ~unhinged, angry guy~. It didn't end at Travis though, in fact every single character was pretty much unlikeable (save for maybe one) and uninteresting. Some of the characters acted and looked so alike that it was difficult to tell them apart throughout the "story" that it was confusing to read and keep track of who was doing what and what was going on. Speaking of the story (if you could call it that) it was incoherent, jumbled, and clunky with random flashbacks peppered throughout the five issues. The plot is almost completely undefined and there's no backstory for what is really occurring and it's not even presented in a way to make it mysterious and to pique your curiosity. It just feels like there is tons and tons of missing information due to bad storytelling or overly trying to keep the reader in the dark. The art style is okay, but nothing to write home about.

The entire read was frustrating and not enjoyable and thus I wouldn't recommend this comic.

katieejayne's review against another edition

3.0

**Actual review 3.5**
The premise of this graphic novel had me from the beginning. Last year I read The Girls by Emma Cline, which I thoroughly enjoyed. In fact I read quite a few novels with commune/cult elements and that was what really excited me about this graphic novel. It's described as True Detective meets Orphan Black and also Helter Skelter, um yes pls.

However, all though this was an incredibly promising start to a series it seemed rushed. Or at least the latter half of the story was. All of a sudden these multiple elements collided together and it was a little much, to the point where I couldn't focus on the story. So there is definitely a devil worship thing going on but it isn't fully explained. I've been left with a lot of questions but I'm hoping it'll be explained in the next volume.

Also, two different coloured eyes? V.E Schwab that you?

www.a-novel-idea.co.uk

almo's review against another edition

4.0

I bought this novel after reading Magda's raving review of the first issue here, and to be completely honest, when I opened the book and saw the artwork, I thought we were going to have a bitchfight over this one because it didn't look appealing to me at ALL.

The artwork is raw and has a lot of 'lines' in it; something I can't stand to watch in certain anime series either.

I mean, what's going on here? Was he attacked by a grizzly bear in the face? Is he sprouting hair in a weird fashion trying to become the new Chewbacca?
Yeah, not a fan.
Luckily, I got used to it after awhile because the story is fan-fucking-tastic!

The blurb mentions True Detective. I can totally see why. The story goes back and forth into time: from 1989 to the present day and back again. There's a religious cult thing going on, murder, and some fucked up dysfunctional people who are trying to solve the pieces to the puzzle while struggling with their own demons.

Travis Crowe is one of those people, and also happens to be the protagonist of the story; a tortured soul who was orphaned at a very young age and has gone from foster home to foster ever since. His heart is definitely in the right place. He even carries his dog to work with him when the pooch is too lazy to walk himself. Authority is one thing Travis struggles with, though, anger management another one. When he gets angry due to injustice, he turns into sort of a Punisher and goes full out. With his fists, that is.

After Travis headbutts his boss into the hospital, he needs to go to counselling to work on his anger issues.There just happens to be a special Orphan Counselling group right around the corner (coincidence or not?!), which he joins. And then shit starts hitting the fan. Big time.

Now before this is starting to sound like your everyday kind of thriller setup: it isn't. The flashbacks to 1989 are what make this story one heck of a creep fest. I really don't want to give too much away, so I'm just going to stick to a few keywords here: demonic cult, orphans, bloody rituals, conspiracies. I finished the book in one go, while I normally like to spread my graphic novels out over at least two reading sessions. I just couldn't stop reading this time...the mystery, the crime, the eerie villains. This is the perfect read for the upcoming October month. 

Because this is a graphic novel and the artwork is obviously very important, I'm afraid I'm going to have to deduct a whole brownie here. If it had been smoother and more to my taste, it would've gotten the full five brownies easily. The second volume is coming out on the 18th of October and it's going to be in my pre-order basket for sure. Definitely recommended!

***The graphic violence makes it less suitable for the faint of heart and peeps under the age of sixteen.***

femto's review against another edition

4.0

Una historia bastante intrigante, me acuerdo estar pendiente mes a mes por el siguietne capitulo, el dibujo es muy bueno, quizas es la mala constumbre ya que tampoco es muy sofisticado, pero es bastante apreciable, los protagonistas y los giros eran congruentes y el aire de misterio era lo bastante bueno como para que siempre haya algo que contarse.

Quizas hubiera sifo bueno que avanzara mas rapido, pero todo parece irrgular en este, nisiquiera si saldran mas capitulos ya que no los he encontrado, en fin, personajes guiados por la ira son de mis favoritos asi que no me perderia no que debe estar por venir.

jmanchester0's review against another edition

3.0

Dark.

And I'm not sure if it's my cup of tea. I like my darkness to be a little less realistic. A little more supernatural. There may be a touch of that here, but I can't tell if that's all in his head.

It's an interesting story - a cult leader is believed to be dead, but comes back 25 years later to claim his many children.

The story is good, the art is well-done and fitting. I'd recommend it if you like this kind of story. But I didn't like it well enough to follow up with the next volume.

Thanks to NetGalley, Diamond, and Image Comics for a copy in return for an honest review.

cjordahl's review against another edition

3.0

3+? I didn't love it but I like enough to want to read the next one.

vahyso's review

4.0

Free from Netgalley in an exchange for an honest review.
So, this is the first graphic novel I've read in years. I loved the art style, and the plot is really intriguing. My only complaint is I had trouble telling some of the characters apart, but that's probably on me. Huge cliffhanger but I'm definitely curious where this story is going.

woowottreads's review

3.0

Not bad, not bad. Fairly typical male main character, but the cult stuff could be interesting. I shall continue for now.