Nocturnals: The Dark Forever

Nocturnals #2

by Dan Brereton

The Nocturnals return to Pacific City to find their home steeped in dread. A dark star has appeared in the night sky, and the walking dead are roaming the streets, looking for victims to recruit to their army of unholy flesh! It makes for a strange homecoming for the heroic Nocturnals, who've been wandering the world on separate quests. As the one-man demolition squad, Firelion, and the troubled and dangerous Starfish roll into town, they begin to free their neighborhood of the creeping death while searching for the evil that is causing corpses to rise. Could it have something to do with the ancient, underground cavern that Doc Horror has been exploring? Does the nefarious secret lie behind the massive door he found buried in the rocks below the surface? It's all-out terror and hard-boiled action, with the precocious Halloween Girl, the deadly Gunwitch, the enigmatic Polychrome, and the devious Raccoon! Cloaked in shadow, the Nocturnals protect us in the dead of night, when no one else would dare. Fully painted by Dan Brereton, the Eisner-nominated writer/artist of GIANTKILLER and JLA: SEVEN CASKETS.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Horror, Fiction, Comic Book, Graphic Novels Comics, Fantasy

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Daniel Alan "Dan" Brereton is a Comic book storyteller, 5-time Eisner not-winner. Responsible for The Nocturnals and a lot of comics.

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading Nocturnals: A Midnight Companion for the Mutants & Masterminds RPG, I decided that I wanted to see what a Nocturnals book was really like. I drove by a local comic book shop and browsed through their collection. I settled on The Dark Forever and picked it up.

The story, art and dialogue is certainly fantastic. It is quirky and in a world of its own. The Brereton's paint style is both dark and refreshing, bringing to life the world of the Nocturnals. I definitely enjoy the art.

The story is entertaining. This one draws more heavily upon the horror, pulp and Lovecraft aspects of the story. The science fiction feel is not as prevalent, but it is not really missed either. The story has advanced for the characters as well, putting Eve in boarding school, Bandit is working for Don Lupo, and Starfish, Komodo and Phaestus have been off on their own treks. The overall story ends up being rather personal for the characters, building on the established instead of leaving things the same in the end.

I would definitely recommend this graphic novel for someone looking for something different in the realm of comic books as well as the fan of pulp and Lovecraftian Mythos.

[Michelle Morrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, if I wrote a comic would it be this one? Nah ... maybe ... .

Reread 2019: Like it even better this time around, now that I have their backgrounds and back story set. Still ADORE the art, every panel is a painting and just can't get enough of the gothy goodness.

[Magnus Frederiksen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gillar när man slängs in i en historia så här. Udda karaktärer i en värld som liknar den vi lever i. Men som att de lever i en parallellvärld. Människor existerar. Men vi träffar dem inte här i denna historia. Det finns ett självförtroende i kreatörerna som får mig att läsa vidare. Tack vare den enkla historien ”åh vilken spännande tunnel, låt oss gå in” och den otroligt vackra stilen så köper jag att jag inte känner karaktärerna. De växer fram.
Det är också roligt att se hur klassiskt mänskliga beteenden blir ”finare” när det är andra varelser som uttrycker dem. Hade karaktärerna varit vanliga Svensson hade det känts cheezy. ”Usch gulliga familjebeteenden”.
Men nu är det inte det. Men summasummarum, en mysig historia om en familj som möter faran och kommer samman och inser värdet av en familj allt paketerat i en snygg lite gullig skräck estetik.

[Sam (comics) · Rating 3 out of 5]

really cool art, plot is a little rushed, but cool character design might be worth it

[D.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a wonderful return to the Nocturnals gang after Black Planet, and we see the characters have been up to their own lives in the time between. Evening's older, and returning from her strange boarding school; Starfish and Komodo have been travelling, and she leaves to return home; Procyon's been taking over Pacific City since the events of the earlier book; and strange things have been going on all over town.
Brereton's writing is as snappy and entertaining and involving as ever, and rather than going the crime-drama route again we're given a clearly Lovecraftian old-creatures-within-the-earth plot. It notches in perfectly with the Nocturnals world, and gives a tantalising hint that there may be more to Starfish than even she knows. His art is as fresh, colourful and unique as ever.
The Dark Forever is a wonderful entry to a fun, strange and delightful to behold saga.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Barely gets 4 stars, but really deserves 3. Most of the stories are amateur, when it comes to story and dialogue. This might seem harsh, but what compensates is some amazing painted art. Part I hate the most in this book is a black and white story from another artist about vampires. Just awful. But I really got into the last story that looks like it was done with pencil, ink and watercolor. I'm a sucker for nice art, and Brereton is one of the best, not enough people know about him because it takes so long for him to do a fully painted story.