The Last Delivery

by Evan Dahm

An anonymous parcel delivery boy arrives at a sprawling, chaotic mansion, in search of The Resident, who must sign for the package he bears, but this isn’t nearly as simple a task as it should be. The mansion hosts an endless, frenzied party, and the partygoers impede his every step. As the quest takes him further into the dripping, black bowels of the labyrinthine house, his mission galvanizes into his single purpose for existence, and his determination to find The Resident may well prove his undoing. A phantasmagoric dark fantasy unlike anything you’ve ever explored before, from the wild imagination behind RICE BOY and THE HARROWING OF HELL.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Horror, Comics, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Adult

140 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2024

About the author

Evan Dahm is an artist who is currently living in New York City.

Reviews

[Sarah Cavar]

This is genuinely the best graphic novel I have ever read. Bringing the demented horror and intrigue of the OG Alice and wonderland story — or, perhaps, Baum’s books of Oz — to an endlessly genre-breaking fantastical world, dahm’s imagination is endless and his artistic skill is unbeatable.

Our narrator, a humble delivery worker, falls into a bread-and-circuses nightmare world of excess and wealth, meanwhile observing with hilarious candor and naiveté the absurdity of his captors and the stuntedness of their circus performers. This is the first comic that has visually and viscerally unsettled me, yet it has in equal measure made me laugh and flip and awe through the truly stunning art. I absolutely need to buy more of dahm’s work, asap.

[Lukasz]

4.5/5

It's unlike anything I've read this year. A phantasmagoric dark fantasy, sometimes absurd, sometimes brutal, always unpredictable.

[mel]

The delivery boy needs a signature from the resident for a package. One would assume that this is not a difficult task. As it turns out, it’s not easy to learn who and where the resident actually is. What first appears to be an easy and quick task turns into a mission.

The Last Delivery is a bit different from the dark fantasy graphic novels we are used to. The main character often encounters absurd situations in this big house, but his persistence always prevails.

This graphic novel will be available in April. Thanks to Iron Circus Comics for the advance copy and this opportunity!

[Netanella]

Oh man, I was rooting for the little delivery man the entire time! Every time he got kicked down, he would reach into his uniform pocket and whip out a new delivery cap. For anyone in the delivery business, this graphic novel must be a personal nightmare of confusion and anxiety.

I thought this was a great story, and I certainly did not expect the ending, and the contents of the package. Kudos to the author!

[Corrie]

Poor little guy

[Maura Breth]

What a curious find! It was a little spooky, and the art style was very intriguing and unexpected! Not my favorite graphic novel I’ve read so far, but it was a cool short story to pick up!

[Andrew]

Thanks to NetGalley, Evan Dahm, and Iron Circus for the advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

I'm of two minds for this one. For one, the art was beautiful, and some of the characters were very well defined and fun to follow on the page. For the art alone I'd rate this highly.

For the other, the environment struck me as nonsense, and every time we followed the deliverer anywhere, I was just as confused and disoriented as he was. While the plot is simple ("Get a package to the house's resident and get a signature"), following it was somehow exceptionally difficult.

I'll absolutely recommend this to the right reader, I'll just have to spend some time figuring out exactly who that reader is.

[Cassidy]

I don’t really know what to make of The Last Delivery by Evan Dahm. I chose it because it looked cute. The main character is indeed cute and just a precious soul, but what they experience is genuinely horrendous. Little buddy is just trying to deliver a package, but the house of the recipient is “fun house” of chaos and cruelty with real Hotel California vibes. It feels heavily allegorical, and I suppose it’s not hiding much considering its title.

The artwork is beautifully striking, but the story is nightmarishly heartbreaking. That doesn’t mean it isn’t good; it’s just not for me.

Thanks to Iron Circus Comics and NetGalley for this ARC! The Last Delivery by Evan Dahm comes out on June 11, 2024.

[cc]

Evan Dahm is one of my favorite fantasy writers, comics or not. I could stay in his bizarre worlds (especially Overside) forever.

[Dan]

my thoughts on what may become a classic graphic novel - https://youtu.be/_QFLsOr7sy8

[Dana]

It's hard to rate The Last Delivery on a scale from one to five. To me, it kinda defies numerical ratings.

Our main character, a cute turtle (?) delivery guy, wants (or rather needs) to deliver a package to the resident of a house ominously marked with an X, and nothing more. Finding the resident in the impossibly big space within the building proves difficult, no less because there's a huge party going on and the partygoers are not necessarily helpful. As we are thrust deeper into the house, we accompany the delivery guy on his surreal journey to fulfill his duty, peeling back layers of excess and exploitation, hedonism and horror, to arrive at a core that shakes ours. The art fits this whirlwind of indulgence and violence incredibly well, the characters are expressive as hell, and the plethora of beautiful and visceral moments are visually rendered so well that you can't help but suffer along with the main character.

Fair word of warning, if you want your comic books to have a concise story or hate being left with unanswered questions, I would advise you not to pick up The Last Delivery. Its made up of different "stations" on the main character's attempt to deliver that damned package, sometimes with seemingly jarring transitions or little cohesion. Nothing is fully explained, the imagery can be ambiguous, the characters behave infuriatingly, and the ending will most certainly seem unsatisfying - which to me is one of the best parts of The Last Delivery as I read it as a heavy criticism of falling prey to a dominant ideology that eviscerates you until there's nothing left, and a satisfying ending would have detracted from its message imo. Still, I think you need to be open to a kinda weird, crazy experience that might leave you feeling uncomfortable and icky. I personally love surreal plots, so this was right up my alley; if you're into this type of shit too, DEFINITELY read The Last Delivery! I loved it and might even raise my rating to five stars after one or two rereads that will hopefully help me get a better grasp on what Evan Dahm ultimately wants to say.

Definite recommendation for people into weird abstract nightmare shit, definite word of warning for people who aren't.

- ARC provided by NetGalley -

[Jill]

What was that???? I loved the art style but this really didn't come together for me.

[Ags]

Gorgeous, and super fast read. Feels like a fever dream. I'm sure I need a philosopher to unpack this for me. For now, I'm thinking it's about getting a PhD.

HAHAHAHA JUST JOKING

Maybe.

Would love to hear how others interpret this - and I imagine that many folks could map this allegory onto their careers, or perhaps their religious/spiritual pursuits.

[Klue]

Provided by NetGalley and Letter Better Publishing Services.

This is a wonderful graphic novel. Shakespearean in its tragedy, the contrast of old English, modern English, and made-up words create a sense of ancient timelessness.
The simple single-colored backgrounds pull the reader's focus to the emotions and details of the characters. The underlying conversation about defining yourself by your occupation is brought out by the simple debauchery of it all.
I feel connected to our unnamed protagonist on a spiritual level. I've worked in retail and customer service for a long time, and this tale weaves in the idea that entitled people often don't consider employees as fellow humans. We are simply nameless, faceless beacons who exist solely to serve.
I also like that the protagonist looks like a turtle.

[Angela]

This was fine. I guess I was expecting more to the actual plot but it felt like it was more about the art. It just felt like for each new room was a new rude person but not for any real purpose to the story.

[Adam Fisher]

This is what it feels like to be a sober introvert and hang out with drunk extroverted people. Lol

Review posted on X @AdamReadsComics for Iron Circus Comics

[Shu Wei Chin]

3.5 stars

A twisted and brutal phantasmagoria delivered via sublime art. Pastels, dusky colours and earthy tones contrasted with pencil shading to complement the dark nature of the story, can you tell I am obsessed?


This book invoked such a sense of unease and dread as we follow an unnamed delivery creature, one so cute and pure you immediately want to protect it, in its harrowing journey just trying to deliver a goddamned parcel. It is a claustrophobic, unpredictable acid trip that I oddly enjoyed. However, the ending fell a little flat for me. I understand that the ambiguity and abruptness are the point, but after seeing all the brutality of the journey I wished that there was some closure for our little guy. Some sort of comeuppance or escape from the tyranny of the Resident.

Thank you to NetGalley, Iron Circus Comics and the author for this advance reader copy. I leave this review voluntarily.

[Gabriel Noel]

ARC given by NetGalley for Honest Review

An incredible read! The Last Delivery follows and anonymous delivery boy who must find the resident of the household to sign for their package but comes face to face with a debaucherously bacchanalian party that puts him in real danger. There are so many ways to interpret this story; whether it's a look at possibly what purgatory feels like or a comment on the "always working" culture that we are seeing around the world lately. It's dynamic and well illustrated. There's not a ton of dialogue so the art does the work of moving the story. The dialogue that is present is Shakespearian-like that feels eerily out of place (in a good way.) Those looking for some psychological and mental exercise will enjoy the twists and turns of this graphic novel.

[Starr ❇✌❇]

3.5

It's hard to rate this one! It was a little disturbing, with the horrific things this poor, u suspecting delivery man is forced into, but also compelling. It gave me similar feelings to how utterly freaked out I used to feel as a kid watching the Wild Gang in Labyrinth trying to tear Sarah's head off- actually, there's something vaguely Henson horror about the whole thing. However, as much as this feels allegorical, it's hard for me to turn it into a solid one, so it's hard to rate how well it makes it's point.

[Ed Erwin]

Tragic!

I can't do any better than this review: “One of our greatest living fantasy cartoonists conjures up a nightmarish mixture of Carroll and Peake, Poe and Calvino, a Kafkaesque vision of futility, stupidity, and cruelty bubbling in a crucible of endless, meaningless wealth. Astonishing.” — GRETCHEN FELKER-MARTIN (Manhunt, Cuckoo)

[Nicole]

I'll be honest...I don't have a clue what I just read. I really like the art but this was just bizarre. I didn't find the plot even remotely interesting. 4 stars for the art...2 stars for the story...averaging it out to 3 stars. Not something I see myself ever recommending.

[Amanda]

Not sure I totally get the ending/main point but I loved the art and the chaotic characters and setting a lot. The color palette, the weird way some of the characters talk, and just the overall character design were the best.

[Yared]

Look, it's perfect. Evan Dahm is the greatest cartoonist in existence and it's not even a competition.

[Reyna]

Incredibly unsettling and exactly as long as it needs to be. Protect that small boy !!!

[Hannah Brooks]

Unpredictable, hilarious, grotesque! A sweet, simple delivery man is just trying to get to the resident of a home so he can get a signature for a package, but is essentially thrust into a circuitous, irreverent hell.

[Jessica]

This was a dark and wild ride. Would like to go again.

[Jamie Miller]

DEAR GOD just let my sweet turtle deliver his freaking PACKAGE!

Inspired world building. Never seen anything quite so stylistically itself. Eric Dahm is clearly a polished storyteller and illustrator. Wonderful attention to detail (body language storytelling, the relevance of hats, etc.) Use of color was choice.

[Gianna]

little man gets BRUISED and BEATEN and BATTERED while trying to deliver his itty bitty box oh dear

[Anna Burkett]

Loved the art, but not for me. Too sad.

[AJ]

beautifully drawn graphic novel about cruelty, futility, and fuckin useless, decadent wealth.