I Read Comic Books discussion

What did you think of Beautiful Darkness? Was this your first translated to English comic? Have you read other comics like this that you'd recommend? Let us know your thoughts below!

Reminder: This discussion thread is FULL SPOILERS for Beautiful Darkness!

Waiting on my copy🥴😢

This was a seriously messed up book with these kids living in the shelter of a dead little girl's body. I wouldn't bill it as an anti-fairy tale, but more of an anti-Disney fairy tale. The original fairy tales were every bit as dark and brutal as this. I did enjoy the juxtaposition of the simple watercolors portraying some real atrocities. I loved the ending where Aurora finally gets fed up.

Finally got my copy!

Macabre. Unsettling. Gruesome. I loved it.

Allegories abound in this book- make of it what you will. Of this I am certain, you will leaf through it several times, reading even deeper meaning into the story each time you look carefully at the beautiful watercolor panels. If you like this twisted and dark fairy tale, then I would recommend Satania, written and illustrated by the same team.

For a longer review of the book, check out my blog post on it: https://graphicnovelty2.com/2016/03/1...

I thought this was just ok, with the potential to be great. It felt like watching a documentary and just flipping around to random scenes. The art was lovely though and it was an enjoyable read!

Both beautiful and haunting. Part of me wants to go back and read it again.

It's a really strong book! I'm still note sure if I pieced the whole story together, though. Like, what is the role of the man, for instance. Did he kill the girl? Or was he looking for her, but couldn't find her?

Inga wrote: "It's a really strong book! I'm still note sure if I pieced the whole story together, though. Like, what is the role of the man, for instance. Did he kill the girl? Or was he looking for her, but co..."

I've always wondered myself, although with the tone of the book, I assume he killed her.

Jamie wrote: "Both beautiful and haunting. Part of me wants to go back and read it again."

I have to agree Jamie, beautiful but disturbing. Going back to reread because I feel I misse something. Beautiful art yet deeply disturbing. Hope to have a second read thru by the end of the month.

Mike wrote: "What did you think of Beautiful Darkness?

I'm not sure yet. Still getting my head around it. But anyway, I'm glad to have found this group. Other comics groups that I've found here haven't been very active.

Was this your first translated to English comic?"

Heck no. Readin' em all the time. Most recently the first 3 volumes of The Arab of the Future.

It isn't even my first by Fabien Vehlmann, since I've read Last Days of an Immortal, though for some reason I neglected to rate it here. I'll have to pick it up again.

〰️Beth〰️ wrote: "I have to agree Jamie, beautiful but disturbing. Going back to reread because I feel I misse something. "

I didn't feel like there was really more to get.

Chad wrote: "〰️Beth〰️ wrote: "I have to agree Jamie, beautiful but disturbing. Going back to reread because I feel I misse something. "

I didn't feel like there was really more to get."
I just feel ai missed something. I don’t think I did, but maybe that is what disturbed me the most.

It turns out that I have also read a 3rd book by Vehlmann, Satania, and also forgot to rate it. That is unusual. I obsessively log here everything I read so I won't forget it. I guess there is something about his work that makes it hard for me to decide on a rating. There are bits I like, but I never quite know what to think overall.

Anyway, this one is my favorite of the 3 and I will re-read it.

The overall feeling I get from it is the idea that we are all alone in a universe that just doesn't care about individuals. Pretty similar to the "cosmic horror" of "Weird" writers like Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith, but set in a more familiar Earth-like setting rather than outer space. Maybe it is just that I've been reading that sort of thing lately (with other groups) and thus have it on my mind. If I'd been reading surrealist works recently, maybe that is the label I would have latched on to rather than "Weird".

I put my review here.

I'm glad I read it and glad I finally found a Vehlmann work that I like.

This book was so disturbing. I was expecting it, but didn't think it would affect me. The art and story was very good. I wish we learned more about what was going on, but I don't think it would work if we did.

Mind blowing and terrifying. Gorgeous art work, and a terrible undercurrent of evil in the storytelling. It's very confrontational.

Nancy wrote: "Inga wrote: "It's a really strong book! I'm still note sure if I pieced the whole story together, though. Like, what is the role of the man, for instance. Did he kill the girl? Or was he looking fo..."

Yeah, I think you're right. I also watched a review on youtube, and the reviewer pointed out some clues (like the broken doll in his house, or the fact that the cabin is so close to the place where the dead girl lied).

Sorry, work got crazy and I only just finished this yesterday! It was only ok!
The art was great and really evocative and I went back to look at several pages again after finishing. The story itself, while interesting, was really clunky in execution. I found myself wondering if it was a translation issue or just underwhelming dialogue... I dunno.
This was creepy and weird in all the right ways, but it couldn't live up to it's own aspirations. I was really kind of disappointed by large parts of it even if the ending was good. It felt like someone wanted to do a dialogue-less book, but chickened out at the last moment and put the bare minimum amount of text in.