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Moon Lake
Moon Lake isn't just any normal body of water - it's a mysterious portal into the weird, drawing all manner of macabre mysteries to its shores. In the spirit of the classic horror tales from EC Comics, Moon Lake combines comedy, horror, and adventure into a fantastic anthology, where each story is centered on the strange happenings of Moon Lake.
Hardcover
First published November 9, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
September 29, 2020
I rarely, I mean rarely rate something one star. But this was just awful. It was crude, obscene, violent just to be violent, and I’m a bit irritated that it compares itself to Tales from the Crypt and other amazing stories. Those stories all had something in common that they had a lesson to learn, even when the evildoers didn’t get “punished” for their actions. But there didn’t seem to be any point to this.
This just seemed like an excuse to throw together a bunch of gross stories under the same cover. The only story that was worthwhile was the last one, but by that point, I was already completely over the whole disgusting thing. I’m talking, intimate scenes with animals, this dude eating aliens, and all kinds of stuff that I don’t really want to get into. I can take a good amount of violence and grossness, but hot dang, this was just uggghhhh!!!!
Sometimes the art can save even a bad story from being a one star read, but this isn’t one of them!! I was sorely disappointed in most of the art save for a few parts, including the last story, however, as I mentioned, I was so disgusted with the rest of it that the one story didn’t save the book. So as much as I hate to do this, it’s a one star read. I cannot recommend this and in fact recommend you stay away.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.
This just seemed like an excuse to throw together a bunch of gross stories under the same cover. The only story that was worthwhile was the last one, but by that point, I was already completely over the whole disgusting thing. I’m talking, intimate scenes with animals, this dude eating aliens, and all kinds of stuff that I don’t really want to get into. I can take a good amount of violence and grossness, but hot dang, this was just uggghhhh!!!!
Sometimes the art can save even a bad story from being a one star read, but this isn’t one of them!! I was sorely disappointed in most of the art save for a few parts, including the last story, however, as I mentioned, I was so disgusted with the rest of it that the one story didn’t save the book. So as much as I hate to do this, it’s a one star read. I cannot recommend this and in fact recommend you stay away.
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.
October 8, 2020
This was like a bad, schlocky, 80's horror film. Fogler mistakes being gross with being funny. The stories are over the top with more attention paid to beastiality jokes and topless women more than anything else. I like Dan Fogler the actor when he's reined in in things like Fantastic Beasts. But this is grossout Dan Fogler at his most boorish.
Received a review copy from Heavy Metal and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
Received a review copy from Heavy Metal and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
September 17, 2020
Some truly fantastic art, mired with bad writing and duff jokes. The book tries to marry horror with an 80s sense of humour, that feels outdated and naff.
(Received a review copy through NetGalley)
(Received a review copy through NetGalley)
July 15, 2020
Moon Lake Vol. 1 is an anthology horror comic curated by Dan Floger
This is an anthology of stories happening at Moon Lake, site of a lunar meteor crash ages ago, and since then a location prone to paranormal events.
The editor described this as Alfred Hitchcock Presents on Acid. Each story is indeed introduced by a plump dude but, I don’t think that show and acid is enough to describe the stories included here. You would have to add the most outrageous events of Elm St and Friday the 13th movies on top of the acid, and even then...
There is great line up of creatives in this book, and it’s amusing to see the first story being a period piece drawn in their era styles. Stories vary in humor, horror, gore, and even settings, as one happens on the moon itself. All of them are equally interesting and respecting the atmosphere of this anthology.
It might not be for everyone as it’s sometimes very outrageous, but, it might also be a riot to some. For me, it was mindless fun. You’ll be the judges.
Thanks to Heavy Metal, Diamond Books, and Netgalley for the ARC provided in exchange for this unbiased review.
This is an anthology of stories happening at Moon Lake, site of a lunar meteor crash ages ago, and since then a location prone to paranormal events.
The editor described this as Alfred Hitchcock Presents on Acid. Each story is indeed introduced by a plump dude but, I don’t think that show and acid is enough to describe the stories included here. You would have to add the most outrageous events of Elm St and Friday the 13th movies on top of the acid, and even then...
There is great line up of creatives in this book, and it’s amusing to see the first story being a period piece drawn in their era styles. Stories vary in humor, horror, gore, and even settings, as one happens on the moon itself. All of them are equally interesting and respecting the atmosphere of this anthology.
It might not be for everyone as it’s sometimes very outrageous, but, it might also be a riot to some. For me, it was mindless fun. You’ll be the judges.
Thanks to Heavy Metal, Diamond Books, and Netgalley for the ARC provided in exchange for this unbiased review.
September 4, 2020
Tries to straddle the line between horror and humor, but the horror is pretty tame (or is just graphic violence without any chills) and the humor is pretty juvenile. I like that each story had a different artist and style, and I like the attempts to play with tropes, but when you have a short volume and a lot of stories there's not a lot of room, so most of the stories seem cramped or superficial. And the frame story....it's not really transgressive. It's just dumb and crude.
**Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
**Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
July 13, 2020
They say never to judge a book by its cover, and in the case of MOON LAKE, I'd strongly agree. Twenty pages into this anthology comic and it was painfully clear the content couldn't possibly hold a candle to the cover art, which is plainly the best thing about this stupidly juvenile romp. MOON LAKE is filled with too much goofy idiocy for me, with its over the top scripting that features little in the way of horror. Instead of trying to generate pulpy scares, the writers here are more interested in crafting stupid fart jokes, jokes about the untrimmed bushes of women in the 1970s, and super-lame sex jokes (a camp counselor, named Tucker, declares this week before the kids arrive to be Fuck Week, complete with a musical number about how it's their week to fuck, and propositions one of the nubile counselors by asking if she's ready to get Tucked... get it? Eh? Eh? His name his Tucker and his pick up line revolves around tucking instead of fucking? Do you get it? Isn't that clever?!). The tastelessness doesn't stop there, though, as the book features some fakes movie posters for imaginary flicks like Vampire Space Sluts from Dimension XXX and The Creature from the African American Lagoon, whose tagline is "fear the fro," incase you need some bonus racism to go with your shitty, dated humor. I'm only slightly masochistic, so after killing off too many brain cells through the first twenty pages of garbage, I skimmed a bit more before tossing this in the DNF pile.
September 17, 2020
Some truly fantastic art, mired with bad writing and duff jokes. The book tries to marry horror with an 80s sense of humour, that feels outdated and naff.
(Received a review copy through NetGalley)
(Received a review copy through NetGalley)
August 3, 2020
Terrible, just terrible. This is apparently meant to be a fun parody of stuff like Tales From the Crypt or Alfred Hitchcock Presents, but the stories are just plain dumb and the stuff tying it all together (a farting moon man? what the what?) is even worse. I can't imagine how this ever got made in the first place.
July 27, 2020
I loved the title, the cover and when i seen Dan Fogler i was like um yes, then i started reading it and started wondering what on earth did i stumble across, there were some areas where i loved the art work but the story line really pulled me off of it.
September 19, 2020
'Moon Lake' by Dan Fogler with a variety of artists is a comic anthology series with stories about a strange place on our planet.
Our host is a robust man who lives on the moon and enjoys dining on the gray aliens that seem to be surrounding him endlessly. The stories are all only linked by geography, I think. One is crazed cheerleader on a gory murder spree after getting a day full of bad news. There are zombie dinosaurs in another story.
It's supposed to be gory and funny, and while it's gory enough, I didn't like the humor at all. It all feels like trying to hard. The art styles vary quite a bit, and I liked most of it, but this felt like a waste of time.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Heavy Metal, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
Our host is a robust man who lives on the moon and enjoys dining on the gray aliens that seem to be surrounding him endlessly. The stories are all only linked by geography, I think. One is crazed cheerleader on a gory murder spree after getting a day full of bad news. There are zombie dinosaurs in another story.
It's supposed to be gory and funny, and while it's gory enough, I didn't like the humor at all. It all feels like trying to hard. The art styles vary quite a bit, and I liked most of it, but this felt like a waste of time.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Heavy Metal, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
August 22, 2020
Horror is meant to push you out of your comfort zone. It's meant to be creepy and unsettling and often toes the line between exhilaration and plain fear. Sometimes horror skirts too close to your own fears; I will never forget the scene in The Basement where Cayleb Long's Craig is forced to swallow his own teeth.
So it's not the discomfort and sheer inappropriateness of Dan Fogler's Moon Lake that offended me. It reminded me of a subpar MAD magazine issue but whereas I subscribed to MAD for many years and am a big fan of Dan Fogler's, this just isn't very good.
I get the feeling a lot of people are buoyed by Dan's increasing popularity (or have been drinking the same Kool Aid as him) but this should not be receiving a reissue with a brand new cover.
I give Moon Lake a disappointing two out of five stars because some of the artwork is good but if you're a fan of Dan-and-horror, I'd recommend just viewing his The Walking Dead episodes again.
I received an advanced copy of the 2020 reissue of this graphic novel from Netgalley.
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So it's not the discomfort and sheer inappropriateness of Dan Fogler's Moon Lake that offended me. It reminded me of a subpar MAD magazine issue but whereas I subscribed to MAD for many years and am a big fan of Dan Fogler's, this just isn't very good.
I get the feeling a lot of people are buoyed by Dan's increasing popularity (or have been drinking the same Kool Aid as him) but this should not be receiving a reissue with a brand new cover.
I give Moon Lake a disappointing two out of five stars because some of the artwork is good but if you're a fan of Dan-and-horror, I'd recommend just viewing his The Walking Dead episodes again.
I received an advanced copy of the 2020 reissue of this graphic novel from Netgalley.
Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook
July 14, 2020
Unfunny trash – that does at least set out to be trash, if not the unfunny part. Annoying TF link pages split up a selection of highly disposable parodies of sci-fi, horror and other genre films and magazines. I did like the Timothy Treadwell/Grizzly Man skit, but even that, at six pages, is about four pages too long, and generally nothing elsewhere had much appeal at all. Even the Red Sonja-meets-Jean M Auel-meets-Cthulhu chapter fails, principally from being so boring, even if some of the artwork is (comparatively) wonderful. A big fail.
July 22, 2020
Možno to je tým že nie som cielovka, ale fakt sa mi nechce kukať, jak dojde ženská domov a nájde chlapa v pranieri, ktorého nakladá kozel, ktorého nakladá jej muž, za ktorým stoja týpci v červených hábitoch a dole sa válajú flašky a plyšáky. A to je úprimne ešte to menej hrozné, potom dojde na 6 neuveriteľne špatne vyzerajúcich stránok z vesmíru a ja ani neviem jak to mám opísať celé.. zbierka nevkusu, možno? Budem citovať Audrey Hepburn v Roman Holiday: "No, thank you." a uštedrím tomu 0,5/5, aj to len za dinošov na konci.
September 14, 2020
I thought people were being extra harsh about this anthology because it was written by a celebrity, but this is the literal worst graphic novel I've ever read. Possibly the worst published work in general. The writing was fucking terrible, unnecessarily crude and completely plotless, and I can't imagine that even a 12 year old boy would enjoy the stupid fart and sex jokes that were the entirety of this book.
*This is normally the part where I thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy, but it's been three weeks since I forced myself through this and I still feel victimized by this atrocity, so I can't make myself say thank you haha
*This is normally the part where I thank NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy, but it's been three weeks since I forced myself through this and I still feel victimized by this atrocity, so I can't make myself say thank you haha
October 3, 2020
2.5 stars. I hated two of these stories with a burning passion, but the others weren't so bad. This was a HOT MESS and is not a good representation of the horror genre. Review to come.
July 19, 2020
I got this as an advanced reading copy from Net Galley. The fact that it was given to me free did not affect my review.
Moon Lake is like a weird baby between Twilight Zone and Castle Rock. It takes place at the fictional Moon Lake. Think Camp Crystal Lake, but weirder. This graphic novel is basically a short story collection, but with pictures! Yay for pictures! There are a total of seven stories each with their own author and illustrator and each story has a horror theme. But this isn't a graphic novel for kids. Why, you may ask? Because there are things like nudity, sex, blood, gore, murder, and even bestiality. Yeah, not for kids. So what did I think of this? Here's my review.
This was.... interesting, to say the least. I definitely have a favorite tale and I definitely had some I didn't like as well. Black Bear Blues by Stef Hutchinson Illustrated by Jim Daly and Lizzy John and Moon Wars by Blake Leibel illustrated by John Finney and Kat Rocha stood out as the better of the tales. But some of them, like Camp Sasquatch by Tim Seeley illustrated by Robbie Rodriguez and Mark Englert and Desensitized Deirdre by R. H. Stavis illustrated by Jeffrey Zornow were so overtly grotesque that it left me cold.
The stories revolved around things like a werebear, an orgy gone wrong, a girl who goes on a murderous rampage, and the whole thing is told by a man who lives on the mood, growing fat from eating moon cheese which gives him excess gas.
Some of the tales came across as so tryhard that I felt like it was entirely disingenuous. It felt like the goal of each of those writers was to, first and foremost, do something shocking. I got the feeling that they focused so much on doing something over the top that they failed to write a good story. This graphic novel had more ups and downs than a roller-coaster in an earthquake and I'm sorry to say that the lowest lows out weighed the highest highs.
I wanted to like this a lot more than I did. A horror themed graphic novel taking place in a world that allows for wonderfully unique stories to be told sounds like a great idea. Plus Dan Fogler, an actor I quite like, helped put it together and even wrote for it as well, so that's just a bonus! But in the end, Moon River's good stories couldn't keep pace with the bad ones and it left me wanting something better.
Even though I didn't love this, I'm still thankful for NetGalley for allowing me to read this and if you're interested this comes out on
Moon Lake is like a weird baby between Twilight Zone and Castle Rock. It takes place at the fictional Moon Lake. Think Camp Crystal Lake, but weirder. This graphic novel is basically a short story collection, but with pictures! Yay for pictures! There are a total of seven stories each with their own author and illustrator and each story has a horror theme. But this isn't a graphic novel for kids. Why, you may ask? Because there are things like nudity, sex, blood, gore, murder, and even bestiality. Yeah, not for kids. So what did I think of this? Here's my review.
This was.... interesting, to say the least. I definitely have a favorite tale and I definitely had some I didn't like as well. Black Bear Blues by Stef Hutchinson Illustrated by Jim Daly and Lizzy John and Moon Wars by Blake Leibel illustrated by John Finney and Kat Rocha stood out as the better of the tales. But some of them, like Camp Sasquatch by Tim Seeley illustrated by Robbie Rodriguez and Mark Englert and Desensitized Deirdre by R. H. Stavis illustrated by Jeffrey Zornow were so overtly grotesque that it left me cold.
The stories revolved around things like a werebear, an orgy gone wrong, a girl who goes on a murderous rampage, and the whole thing is told by a man who lives on the mood, growing fat from eating moon cheese which gives him excess gas.
Some of the tales came across as so tryhard that I felt like it was entirely disingenuous. It felt like the goal of each of those writers was to, first and foremost, do something shocking. I got the feeling that they focused so much on doing something over the top that they failed to write a good story. This graphic novel had more ups and downs than a roller-coaster in an earthquake and I'm sorry to say that the lowest lows out weighed the highest highs.
I wanted to like this a lot more than I did. A horror themed graphic novel taking place in a world that allows for wonderfully unique stories to be told sounds like a great idea. Plus Dan Fogler, an actor I quite like, helped put it together and even wrote for it as well, so that's just a bonus! But in the end, Moon River's good stories couldn't keep pace with the bad ones and it left me wanting something better.
Even though I didn't love this, I'm still thankful for NetGalley for allowing me to read this and if you're interested this comes out on
August 11, 2020
This graphic novel is a collection of stories all based around the evil originating at Moon Lake. As with any collection, there are hits and misses, but I’m sad to say there are more misses than hits here. Tied together by our host, a very obese and flatulent Man in the Moon with an affinity for Moon Cheese. If violence and nudity offend your delicate nature, this book is certainly not for you. One big gripe is that the cover artwork really drew me in, but inside none of the artwork really matched up to the feel of the cover.
The introduction and interstitials are bright and funny, though by the end they get rather repetitive. There are a couple pages of classic style advertisements tossed in which are creative and funny. The highlight of the stories to me was Desensitized Deirdre, with a nice balance of the cutesy and the gross, with a rather decent story to tell. Camp Sasquatch had a classic comic style of art and a bit of an outlandish but fun story, with a camp full of horny counselors reminiscent of films from the 1980's. I didn’t love the art in Cave Girl, as it just wasn’t the usual bright & cartoony style I prefer, but the story brought the feeling of ancient lore to the collection. Miserable Me is the backstory of the Man in the Moon, our host/narrator, with the fun art, but again, since we get him here and between each story, he got to be a bit much.
The other stories were pretty light on plot. Black bear Blues was drawn well, but almost too short to get anywhere, which is the similar fate of Moon Wars. The art here was much more photo-realistic, almost like they added an effect to photos or film shots to create the story. His Final Escape felt very Victorian, the type of story you’d read in a penny pamphlet with art that would be right at home in some pastoral novel from 1870. It was an average story all around.
My least favorite part was the ending, The Moon Lake Scrolls. Presented like the notebook of some historian researching Moon Lake’s horrific history, it was too wordy for this outlet, especially with the overwhelming amount of boobs & violence we had up to this point. It is presented as an issue of National Geographic and it just felt out of place compared to the rest of the book. If more books in the series are released, I would be interested in checking them out to see how they compare, but I'd probably borrow it from a library.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy to review. This is my honest review of the book.
(Also reviewed on Litsy)
The introduction and interstitials are bright and funny, though by the end they get rather repetitive. There are a couple pages of classic style advertisements tossed in which are creative and funny. The highlight of the stories to me was Desensitized Deirdre, with a nice balance of the cutesy and the gross, with a rather decent story to tell. Camp Sasquatch had a classic comic style of art and a bit of an outlandish but fun story, with a camp full of horny counselors reminiscent of films from the 1980's. I didn’t love the art in Cave Girl, as it just wasn’t the usual bright & cartoony style I prefer, but the story brought the feeling of ancient lore to the collection. Miserable Me is the backstory of the Man in the Moon, our host/narrator, with the fun art, but again, since we get him here and between each story, he got to be a bit much.
The other stories were pretty light on plot. Black bear Blues was drawn well, but almost too short to get anywhere, which is the similar fate of Moon Wars. The art here was much more photo-realistic, almost like they added an effect to photos or film shots to create the story. His Final Escape felt very Victorian, the type of story you’d read in a penny pamphlet with art that would be right at home in some pastoral novel from 1870. It was an average story all around.
My least favorite part was the ending, The Moon Lake Scrolls. Presented like the notebook of some historian researching Moon Lake’s horrific history, it was too wordy for this outlet, especially with the overwhelming amount of boobs & violence we had up to this point. It is presented as an issue of National Geographic and it just felt out of place compared to the rest of the book. If more books in the series are released, I would be interested in checking them out to see how they compare, but I'd probably borrow it from a library.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy to review. This is my honest review of the book.
(Also reviewed on Litsy)
August 26, 2020
This graphic novel plays out like a twisted television show. Your host is a grotesque moon-cheese eating man with a propensity towards flatulence and alien slurping.
What ensues is a showcase of paranormal and conspiracy type "shows" surrounding Moon Lake. They range from the ridiculous 'Sleep Away Camp' sexcapades to urban legends and aliens.
Just a heads up. When I first started reading I was taken aback by the lewd and derogatory scenes in the first story. It took me a moment to realize this is a twisted spin on stereotypes, conspiracies and urban legends. It became that much more humorous and enjoyable remembering this tidbit.
Overall, I enjoyed this one. It had the flare of old school Crypt Keeper meets the outlandish. Though I may be at an age where this kind of humor is better suited to twenty-somethings. The cover art and illustrations inside are very well done. May favorite illustrations were represented in Cave Girl, His Final Escape and Desensitized Deirdre overall. Not recommended for young readers.
Content mention: visual sexual scenes, visual violence, sexually indecent commentary for younger readers
What ensues is a showcase of paranormal and conspiracy type "shows" surrounding Moon Lake. They range from the ridiculous 'Sleep Away Camp' sexcapades to urban legends and aliens.
Just a heads up. When I first started reading I was taken aback by the lewd and derogatory scenes in the first story. It took me a moment to realize this is a twisted spin on stereotypes, conspiracies and urban legends. It became that much more humorous and enjoyable remembering this tidbit.
Overall, I enjoyed this one. It had the flare of old school Crypt Keeper meets the outlandish. Though I may be at an age where this kind of humor is better suited to twenty-somethings. The cover art and illustrations inside are very well done. May favorite illustrations were represented in Cave Girl, His Final Escape and Desensitized Deirdre overall. Not recommended for young readers.
Content mention: visual sexual scenes, visual violence, sexually indecent commentary for younger readers
July 27, 2020
* I received a free copy of this book from the publisher on Net Galley in exchange for an honest review *
I really don’t like giving one-star reviews, because I take no pleasure in a book that failed to launch. The art is the best part of this book, but it’s not enough to make up for all the missteps. I think it was intended to be a Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow type horror anthology comic, and in terms of art, it succeeded more than it didn’t. However, the writing is bad. Really, really bad. There’s farting, dinosaurs, crude sex jokes, nudity, gross-outs and gore galore, but there’s no plot. Like, at ALL. Ultimately, I found myself just flipping through the pages wishing for it to be over. Again, I really hate leaving a 1-star review — especially when in theory, it had all the ingredients to make a great anthology. But bad writing is bad writing, & I wouldn’t want someone who paid money for this to be as disappointed as I was.
I really don’t like giving one-star reviews, because I take no pleasure in a book that failed to launch. The art is the best part of this book, but it’s not enough to make up for all the missteps. I think it was intended to be a Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow type horror anthology comic, and in terms of art, it succeeded more than it didn’t. However, the writing is bad. Really, really bad. There’s farting, dinosaurs, crude sex jokes, nudity, gross-outs and gore galore, but there’s no plot. Like, at ALL. Ultimately, I found myself just flipping through the pages wishing for it to be over. Again, I really hate leaving a 1-star review — especially when in theory, it had all the ingredients to make a great anthology. But bad writing is bad writing, & I wouldn’t want someone who paid money for this to be as disappointed as I was.
July 21, 2020
It's always nice to find stories with so many creative minds. Between the ultra details that can can give people chills and the more cartoony stuff it's nice to see stuff that can get a laugh out of people regardless. Obviously these series will get under some people's skin when it comes to taking the subjects too seriously. But who cares, this isn't about trying to make a point, it's about telling good stories. Nobody really wants to support any of the characters just see what creators bring to the table and get people's attention. Funnies, cave people, and a pulp at the end remind people why comics are so enjoyable in the first place. It's those interpretations that get people to act up.
December 15, 2020
I received a e-arc of Moon Lake in exchange for an honest review.
I really don't even know what to say about this comic... It's not that long but I found it really hard to even read it. The dialogue was pretty damn bad, it was really immature but really adult at the same time so it was just so disconnected at kept taking me out of the story. There was some pretty good art some better then others same and the same goes for the actual stories, it was just the writing I was really just not a fan.
I really don't even know what to say about this comic... It's not that long but I found it really hard to even read it. The dialogue was pretty damn bad, it was really immature but really adult at the same time so it was just so disconnected at kept taking me out of the story. There was some pretty good art some better then others same and the same goes for the actual stories, it was just the writing I was really just not a fan.
October 23, 2021
This was bad ... really bad and gross too. I didn't like anything and the art ... this comic just wasn't for me.
I got this as an advance reading copy from NetGalley.
I got this as an advance reading copy from NetGalley.
August 11, 2020
I really did not like this graphic novel as much as I thought I would.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.
October 8, 2020
** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **
Copy received through Netgalley
~
Moon Lake, by Dan Fogler
★☆☆☆☆
156 Pages
I chose this because of the cover and the blurb, but...dear God, WTF is this?
I'm sorry to say I read as far as the atrocious “Fuck Week” song which – shivers – precedes a kid's summer camp. That trash was then followed by *gag* monkey rape, gross indecency, dry heaving (me!) and running to DNF while gouging my eyes out.
And that was just the first 27 pages...of 107.
On top of all that – the story? Was there one? Maybe it got missed in the crass, juvenile attempt at humour. The art work? I was 100% all in when I saw the cover. I was expecting Shape of Water level creatures, with that stunning cover artwork throughout, and what I got was...some 1970 pre-teen's comic book with “pull-my-finger” and fart jokes that I'm supposed to...what? Roll over dying of laughter? At this? Nope. The artwork was a second-rate Archie comic, focusing on as much porn as they could fit into the pages.
If you can survive the Amazon Kindle sample without gagging or rolling your eyes, you deserve every page of what comes next. Enjoy.
If not, I suffered this, so now you don't have to. You're welcome.
And can you please pass the mind-disinfectant, so I forget I ever read this?
Copy received through Netgalley
~
Moon Lake, by Dan Fogler
★☆☆☆☆
156 Pages
I chose this because of the cover and the blurb, but...dear God, WTF is this?
I'm sorry to say I read as far as the atrocious “Fuck Week” song which – shivers – precedes a kid's summer camp. That trash was then followed by *gag* monkey rape, gross indecency, dry heaving (me!) and running to DNF while gouging my eyes out.
And that was just the first 27 pages...of 107.
On top of all that – the story? Was there one? Maybe it got missed in the crass, juvenile attempt at humour. The art work? I was 100% all in when I saw the cover. I was expecting Shape of Water level creatures, with that stunning cover artwork throughout, and what I got was...some 1970 pre-teen's comic book with “pull-my-finger” and fart jokes that I'm supposed to...what? Roll over dying of laughter? At this? Nope. The artwork was a second-rate Archie comic, focusing on as much porn as they could fit into the pages.
If you can survive the Amazon Kindle sample without gagging or rolling your eyes, you deserve every page of what comes next. Enjoy.
If not, I suffered this, so now you don't have to. You're welcome.
And can you please pass the mind-disinfectant, so I forget I ever read this?
September 29, 2022
Ever get hired to illustrate a comic and the script you're handed looks like it's been written by a fifth-grader with ADHD and a severe meth habit? Then it turns out the writer does have a drug habit. And not just drugs, but also booze, narcissism, and maple syrup. But the publisher accepted the script anyway because the writer is some rich brat from Canada who tosses around lots of money and has cool Hollywood friends?
So then, you try to illustrate this incoherent mess of a script called MOON WAR, right? And the publisher only gives a week to do it because why the hell not? And when you actually manage to finish art AND lettering in a week because you spent that week surviving off coffee and no-doze, this crazy Kanuk writer brat complains, "No! That's not what I want! Make the monsters look like Cloverfield! And why aren't the aliens naked?! The aliens need to be naked."
And you say, "But none of that's in the script."
And he says, "Well, it's gotta be changed. It's what I had in my head! And it's gotta be like that!"
And you say, "The deadline has passed. Files are already on their way to the printer, nothing can be done." And he throws a little rich boy tantrum?
Yeah. I know what that's like.
The writer's name is Blake Leibel. Look him up, he's an interesting guy. He's in prison now for murdering his girlfriend.
So then, you try to illustrate this incoherent mess of a script called MOON WAR, right? And the publisher only gives a week to do it because why the hell not? And when you actually manage to finish art AND lettering in a week because you spent that week surviving off coffee and no-doze, this crazy Kanuk writer brat complains, "No! That's not what I want! Make the monsters look like Cloverfield! And why aren't the aliens naked?! The aliens need to be naked."
And you say, "But none of that's in the script."
And he says, "Well, it's gotta be changed. It's what I had in my head! And it's gotta be like that!"
And you say, "The deadline has passed. Files are already on their way to the printer, nothing can be done." And he throws a little rich boy tantrum?
Yeah. I know what that's like.
The writer's name is Blake Leibel. Look him up, he's an interesting guy. He's in prison now for murdering his girlfriend.
October 31, 2020
Moon Lake: Midnight Munchies is an anthology in the style of classics like Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow. The framing story surrounds a guy who lives inside the moon with his alien companion, telling the stories of various inhabitants of a creepy town called Moon Lake.
I enjoyed parts of Moon Lake and would read further volumes. Although it wasn't "groundbreaking" or phenomenal, it was campy fun. The art is really good and the style varies from story to story, so it doesn't feel redundant, although sometimes the "humor" is just gross-out humor that isn't real all that funny. "His Final Escape!" is my favorite story in this collection. I think if more of the stories were like that, "Black Bear Blues" and "Moon Wars," this collection would have been far better. Instead, it seemed like the author went for more fart jokes and sexualization than was necessary.
Note: I received a free copy from NetGalley to review. I was not compensated in any other way and all thoughts and opinions are my own. Special thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the free copy.
I enjoyed parts of Moon Lake and would read further volumes. Although it wasn't "groundbreaking" or phenomenal, it was campy fun. The art is really good and the style varies from story to story, so it doesn't feel redundant, although sometimes the "humor" is just gross-out humor that isn't real all that funny. "His Final Escape!" is my favorite story in this collection. I think if more of the stories were like that, "Black Bear Blues" and "Moon Wars," this collection would have been far better. Instead, it seemed like the author went for more fart jokes and sexualization than was necessary.
Note: I received a free copy from NetGalley to review. I was not compensated in any other way and all thoughts and opinions are my own. Special thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for the free copy.
July 27, 2020
* I received a free copy of this book from the publisher on Net Galley in exchange for an honest review *
I really don’t like giving one-star reviews, because I take no pleasure in a book that failed to launch. The art is the best part of this book, but it’s not enough to make up for all the missteps. I think it was intended to be a Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow type horror anthology comic, and in terms of art, it succeeded more than it didn’t. However, the writing is bad. Really, really bad. There’s farting, dinosaurs, crude sex jokes, nudity, gross-outs and gore galore, but there’s no plot. Like, at ALL. Ultimately, I found myself just flipping through the pages wishing for it to be over. Again, I really hate leaving a 1-star review — especially when in theory, it had all the ingredients to make a great anthology. But bad writing is bad writing, & I wouldn’t want someone who paid money for this to be as disappointed as I was.
I really don’t like giving one-star reviews, because I take no pleasure in a book that failed to launch. The art is the best part of this book, but it’s not enough to make up for all the missteps. I think it was intended to be a Tales from the Crypt or Creepshow type horror anthology comic, and in terms of art, it succeeded more than it didn’t. However, the writing is bad. Really, really bad. There’s farting, dinosaurs, crude sex jokes, nudity, gross-outs and gore galore, but there’s no plot. Like, at ALL. Ultimately, I found myself just flipping through the pages wishing for it to be over. Again, I really hate leaving a 1-star review — especially when in theory, it had all the ingredients to make a great anthology. But bad writing is bad writing, & I wouldn’t want someone who paid money for this to be as disappointed as I was.
October 8, 2020
It's rare I give anything under 3 stars because I'm pretty easy to please. If I had a good time reading something, boom 3 stars. This...was not the case. I was drawn in by both the stellar cover art and Dan Fogler, should be a winning combination. I was really disappointed, I mean REALLY disappointed. The main issue is that the novel is all short stories, which would be fine, but in this case there's just not enough time to make the reader care about each tale. I can see where the effort was made to bring together classic 80's horror and humor but it just all felt rushed and crass. I'm all for horror and gore if there's a point to it, like making my skin crawl or adding to the horror of the scene. This all felt, like a 30-year-old man making a "pull my finger" joke, it was awkward and didn't hit the mark. That said, the idea for the graphic novel was good it just needed more polish to really be great.
July 22, 2020
I received this as an ARC to read for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Diamond Book Distributors for giving me access.
I am not one to DNF a book, but I couldn't continue on with this monstrosity of a graphic novel. The storyline was awful, wait no....there was NO storyline. Just a bunch of weird, messed up stories all thrown together with a farting moon man.
The only think worth while on this GN, was the art. Granted the art depicted some interesting scenes, the artist did a great job.
I am not one to DNF a book, but I couldn't continue on with this monstrosity of a graphic novel. The storyline was awful, wait no....there was NO storyline. Just a bunch of weird, messed up stories all thrown together with a farting moon man.
The only think worth while on this GN, was the art. Granted the art depicted some interesting scenes, the artist did a great job.
September 30, 2020
"Exits are at the front and the back of the book, anyone wishing to leave must do so now -- all others should call their mommies immediately, because the hysterically psychotic fun house ride is about to begin!" exclaims the author, Dan Fogler. This warning would be more appropriate if it stopped at "must do so now" as a last ditch attempt to deter any hopeful audience members.
The premise is an anthology of short comic stories tied together by a 'TV host' style appearance by a flatulent man on the moon. The art was really fun and exciting, but the stories were gross. I liked how the entire graphic novel had a 'camp' vibe but I didn't feel like I got much from this or that there were any stories I would be thinking about on the bus ride home a couple of months from now.
I won't lie, despite all of this I will probably read Vol. 2 when it comes to fruition out of curiosity for what Fogler et. al. cook up next.
Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and author for this advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest opinions. I respect your hard work and commitment to the reading community.
The premise is an anthology of short comic stories tied together by a 'TV host' style appearance by a flatulent man on the moon. The art was really fun and exciting, but the stories were gross. I liked how the entire graphic novel had a 'camp' vibe but I didn't feel like I got much from this or that there were any stories I would be thinking about on the bus ride home a couple of months from now.
I won't lie, despite all of this I will probably read Vol. 2 when it comes to fruition out of curiosity for what Fogler et. al. cook up next.
Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and author for this advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest opinions. I respect your hard work and commitment to the reading community.
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