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The Kitchen #1-8
The Kitchen
New York City, late 1970s. Times Square is a haven for sex and drugs. The city teeters on the verge of bankruptcy, while blackouts can strike at any moment. This is the world of THE KITCHEN.
The Irish gangs of Hell's Kitchen rule the neighborhood, bringing terror to the streets and doing the dirty work for the Italian Mafia. Jimmy Brennan and his crew were the hardest bastards in the Kitchen, but after they're all put in prison, their wives—Kath, Raven and Angie—decide to keep running their rackets. And once they get a taste of the fast life and easy money, it won't be easy to stop.
THE KITCHEN takes one of the most popular genres in entertainment and, like The Sopranos, reimagines it for a new generation to present a classic gangster story told from a fresh point of view.
Written by talented newcomer Ollie Masters with stunning art by Ming Doyle (Mara) and killer covers by Becky Cloonan (GOTHAM ACADEMY, Killjoys, DEMO), THE KITCHEN is not to be missed.
Collects THE KITCHEN #1-8.
The Irish gangs of Hell's Kitchen rule the neighborhood, bringing terror to the streets and doing the dirty work for the Italian Mafia. Jimmy Brennan and his crew were the hardest bastards in the Kitchen, but after they're all put in prison, their wives—Kath, Raven and Angie—decide to keep running their rackets. And once they get a taste of the fast life and easy money, it won't be easy to stop.
THE KITCHEN takes one of the most popular genres in entertainment and, like The Sopranos, reimagines it for a new generation to present a classic gangster story told from a fresh point of view.
Written by talented newcomer Ollie Masters with stunning art by Ming Doyle (Mara) and killer covers by Becky Cloonan (GOTHAM ACADEMY, Killjoys, DEMO), THE KITCHEN is not to be missed.
Collects THE KITCHEN #1-8.
176 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2015
23 people are currently reading
591 people want to read
About the author
Ollie Masters
72 books15 followersOriginally from Kent, Ollie now lives in Brighton. He studied Film, Radio and Television at Canterbury Christchurch University while pursuing a career in writing. First in the comics/graphic novel industry with works including THE KITCHEN and SNOW BLIND, then in TV and film. He’s currently writing an episode of the Paramount+ adaptation of SEXY BEAST.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 183 reviews
March 15, 2020
I'm not sure how many of you abuse use your library like I do, but I'm in mine quite a bit. Enough that some of my librarians feel comfortable checking books out to me.
Books that I didn't actually walk up to the desk to get.
Yeah.
Oh, hey! I just finished this one! You'll love it! Here ya go.
BEEP. <---that was the sound of this graphic novel going on my card
Thanks, Danielle!
*waves*
I hate to admit it, but she was right. I did end up enjoying The Kitchen.
It's a story about 3 ladies who take over running the family business for their mob(ish) husbands when the men get sent to the pokey. As criminals do...
Now, it's not exactly a heartwarming tale of love and redemption, but fans of those gritty crime stories might enjoy this one. Normally, I wouldn't lump myself into that group, but I'll make an exception for this story because
A) it's a story told with pictures
and
B) it's a SHORT story told with pictures
Are you noticing a theme here?
Right.
Anyhoo, it starts off with our gals just trying to make ends meet while their fellas are in jail but quickly turns into...more.
Its seems that the three of them are kinda good at this sort of thing. Maybe even better than their boys. So, what happens when the men come home? Do they go back to grocery shopping & doing laundry?
Um. No.
Books that I didn't actually walk up to the desk to get.
Yeah.
Oh, hey! I just finished this one! You'll love it! Here ya go.
BEEP. <---that was the sound of this graphic novel going on my card
Thanks, Danielle!
*waves*
I hate to admit it, but she was right. I did end up enjoying The Kitchen.
It's a story about 3 ladies who take over running the family business for their mob(ish) husbands when the men get sent to the pokey. As criminals do...
Now, it's not exactly a heartwarming tale of love and redemption, but fans of those gritty crime stories might enjoy this one. Normally, I wouldn't lump myself into that group, but I'll make an exception for this story because
A) it's a story told with pictures
and
B) it's a SHORT story told with pictures
Are you noticing a theme here?
Right.
Anyhoo, it starts off with our gals just trying to make ends meet while their fellas are in jail but quickly turns into...more.
Its seems that the three of them are kinda good at this sort of thing. Maybe even better than their boys. So, what happens when the men come home? Do they go back to grocery shopping & doing laundry?
Um. No.
August 9, 2019
It was never going to be a temporary thing. They were never going back to their normal lives.
This isn't really my thing. You know, the mob. Gangs. Murdering people and dismembering them and throwing them in the river. I'm not really into this scene. Mob movies and mob books bore me.
I'm not buying into this brand of feminism, it's kind of pissing me off. For one thing, this book was written by a man. OK. So keep that in mind. Two, ... it promotes the idea that killing others and being able to enact violence brings the women in this book onto the level of men. I'm doubtful that this is a level that they should even be on.
I'm not saying women are full of light and goodness and it's icky that they sully their hands with violence. Instead I'm saying, "Is this what you are aspiring to?" In this book, men do awful things. Then the women say, "You know what? I want money, too. So I am going to start doing awful things." This isn't empowering. Sure, there are flashes of empowerment here and there, like when Raven threatens her husband, and he leaves. Then Tony comes and says, "I won' let him hurt you." and Raven says, "I don't need you to fuckin' save me, Tony." And you know it's 100% true. They are not dependent on men, and they are making names for themselves and earning a reputation for themselves.
Unfortunately, this involves killing loved ones, brutally murdering and torturing people, etc. etc. etc. Women's "strength" is represented by being as violent, horrible, abusive, and brutal as the men around them are.
It's kind of like in STUBER where Kumail Nanjiani goes to a male strip club and the female who runs the club is verbally abusive to the strippers, saying things to them like "No one is going to want to see a big dick if it is attached to a flabby, disgusting sack of fat." She also turns on Kumail when he comes to the male dancer's defense, accusing him of mansplaining and being a disgusting macho sexist. This is exactly what I'm talking about. A woman is running a male strip club, and thinks this is empowering. She can abuse and degrade men both verbally and physically and that makes her 'powerful.' She is 'only doing what men have been getting away with for centuries.' But just like I am filled with disgust when I see a man treat women this way, I am filled with disgust when I see women treat men this way. It's disgusting no matter who is doing it. It's not 'reclaiming power' or 'being a strong woman.' It's just being a piece of shit. The filmmaker was making a point, but I'm not sure Masters is self-aware enough to be making this point. Is he? Is the message of the book: "Well, every single person is a piece of shit, so you might as well become a piece of shit in order to get your piece of the pie?"
I balk at the idea that these three women come into their own power by murdering people and torturing them and extorting money from business owners etc. Instead of becoming powerful, I see them as becoming weak.
I know what Masters is saying: these women were property of their husbands. They weren't allowed to earn. They weren't considered people by their husbands or by other men (mobsters). By murdering and torturing people, they become their own agents. The men around them start treating them like human beings with agency instead of possessions. That's what the book is trying to say. But the reality is very ugly and not truly empowering IMO.
TL;DR - Who knows how the movie will turn out? I'm doubtful now that I've read the book. I doubt it will be anything great if it is based on this book. Just depressing and sick. Some people compare this to WIDOWS, but WIDOWS (for all its violence) is a stronger, more powerful idea.
NAMES IN THIS BOOK:
This isn't really my thing. You know, the mob. Gangs. Murdering people and dismembering them and throwing them in the river. I'm not really into this scene. Mob movies and mob books bore me.
I'm not buying into this brand of feminism, it's kind of pissing me off. For one thing, this book was written by a man. OK. So keep that in mind. Two, ... it promotes the idea that killing others and being able to enact violence brings the women in this book onto the level of men. I'm doubtful that this is a level that they should even be on.
I'm not saying women are full of light and goodness and it's icky that they sully their hands with violence. Instead I'm saying, "Is this what you are aspiring to?" In this book, men do awful things. Then the women say, "You know what? I want money, too. So I am going to start doing awful things." This isn't empowering. Sure, there are flashes of empowerment here and there, like when Raven threatens her husband, and he leaves. Then Tony comes and says, "I won' let him hurt you." and Raven says, "I don't need you to fuckin' save me, Tony." And you know it's 100% true. They are not dependent on men, and they are making names for themselves and earning a reputation for themselves.
Unfortunately, this involves killing loved ones, brutally murdering and torturing people, etc. etc. etc. Women's "strength" is represented by being as violent, horrible, abusive, and brutal as the men around them are.
It's kind of like in STUBER where Kumail Nanjiani goes to a male strip club and the female who runs the club is verbally abusive to the strippers, saying things to them like "No one is going to want to see a big dick if it is attached to a flabby, disgusting sack of fat." She also turns on Kumail when he comes to the male dancer's defense, accusing him of mansplaining and being a disgusting macho sexist. This is exactly what I'm talking about. A woman is running a male strip club, and thinks this is empowering. She can abuse and degrade men both verbally and physically and that makes her 'powerful.' She is 'only doing what men have been getting away with for centuries.' But just like I am filled with disgust when I see a man treat women this way, I am filled with disgust when I see women treat men this way. It's disgusting no matter who is doing it. It's not 'reclaiming power' or 'being a strong woman.' It's just being a piece of shit. The filmmaker was making a point, but I'm not sure Masters is self-aware enough to be making this point. Is he? Is the message of the book: "Well, every single person is a piece of shit, so you might as well become a piece of shit in order to get your piece of the pie?"
I balk at the idea that these three women come into their own power by murdering people and torturing them and extorting money from business owners etc. Instead of becoming powerful, I see them as becoming weak.
I know what Masters is saying: these women were property of their husbands. They weren't allowed to earn. They weren't considered people by their husbands or by other men (mobsters). By murdering and torturing people, they become their own agents. The men around them start treating them like human beings with agency instead of possessions. That's what the book is trying to say. But the reality is very ugly and not truly empowering IMO.
TL;DR - Who knows how the movie will turn out? I'm doubtful now that I've read the book. I doubt it will be anything great if it is based on this book. Just depressing and sick. Some people compare this to WIDOWS, but WIDOWS (for all its violence) is a stronger, more powerful idea.
NAMES IN THIS BOOK:
March 31, 2016
Hell’s Kitchen, the 1970s: Irish and Italian mobsters, dirty streets, crime, money, power (you can practically hear Gimme Shelter fading in)… now imagine the mobsters have vaginas! Whaaaaaaaaaa… Mind. Blown.
Yup, The Kitchen (and its tagline - A Woman’s Work Is Never Done - both flippin’ the script on patriarchy!) is all about lady gangsters. And that’s the whole concept. Besides that it’s a competent, if generic, mob story with little in the way of originality going for it.
Our trio start out as hopeless debt collectors, nervously making cash pickups while their husbands are in the slammer, eventually becoming crime lynchpins themselves. It’s the standard rise and fall arc that’s a staple of gangster stories though I will say I wasn’t bored reading it – the female angle works to hold the interest up to an extent.
There’s some decent character work on at least one of the women (Raven) while the other two remain more or less forgettable wallflowers. The other characters though? The very definition of cookie cutter characters: the hooker with a heart of gold; the male love interest (who at least isn’t a cop, working that star-crossed lovers angle); the fat Italian mob boss who’s actually introduced eating a plate of pasta. Gee. Neric. No cop characters at all though - where the hell were the cops anyway? Were there just none in Noo Yawk City in the ‘70s? It felt lazy of writer Ollie Masters to leave out/ignore this element entirely in a crime story.
Artist Ming Doyle draws some good pages that Jordie Bellaire colours well. Becky Cloonan’s covers are pretty good too. If I don’t sound too enthused about the art it’s because, like Master’s script, it’s just not doing anything very exciting, but, also like the script, it wasn’t bad.
I’d recommend The Kitchen if all you’re after is a perfectly acceptable, if unmemorable, ‘70s mob story, but what would’ve been better is if the creative team had done something more original with the concept than simply substituting male protagonists for female.
Yup, The Kitchen (and its tagline - A Woman’s Work Is Never Done - both flippin’ the script on patriarchy!) is all about lady gangsters. And that’s the whole concept. Besides that it’s a competent, if generic, mob story with little in the way of originality going for it.
Our trio start out as hopeless debt collectors, nervously making cash pickups while their husbands are in the slammer, eventually becoming crime lynchpins themselves. It’s the standard rise and fall arc that’s a staple of gangster stories though I will say I wasn’t bored reading it – the female angle works to hold the interest up to an extent.
There’s some decent character work on at least one of the women (Raven) while the other two remain more or less forgettable wallflowers. The other characters though? The very definition of cookie cutter characters: the hooker with a heart of gold; the male love interest (who at least isn’t a cop, working that star-crossed lovers angle); the fat Italian mob boss who’s actually introduced eating a plate of pasta. Gee. Neric. No cop characters at all though - where the hell were the cops anyway? Were there just none in Noo Yawk City in the ‘70s? It felt lazy of writer Ollie Masters to leave out/ignore this element entirely in a crime story.
Artist Ming Doyle draws some good pages that Jordie Bellaire colours well. Becky Cloonan’s covers are pretty good too. If I don’t sound too enthused about the art it’s because, like Master’s script, it’s just not doing anything very exciting, but, also like the script, it wasn’t bad.
I’d recommend The Kitchen if all you’re after is a perfectly acceptable, if unmemorable, ‘70s mob story, but what would’ve been better is if the creative team had done something more original with the concept than simply substituting male protagonists for female.
June 2, 2019
This book is fantastic. It could easily have been storyboards for Scorsese's next movie. Set in 1970's era Hell's Kitchen, back when New York was still dirty and crime-ridden. Three wives are left to their own devices when their connected husbands are sent to the pokey. They decide to continue the family protection racket and discover they are quite good at it. When their husbands get out of prison the last thing they want to do is go back to being housewives.
April 27, 2020
I will start by saying that I have not seen the movie adaptation of The Kitchen. I've heard it's mediocre at best. Which is disappointing because I really enjoyed the book. But since I haven't seen the movie please don't ask me to compare them or answer any questions about it!
The Kitchen is a classic mobster story. It follows all of the standard tropes, pacing, and story structure. It just happens to follow three women running the show instead of three men.
These three women are married to three head mobsters in Hell's Kitchen. The head mobster husbands are all arrested and suddenly removed from their territory. The wives then step in to run the show.
It starts simple with one of the wives making rounds around the city to collect debts in her husband's place. She has no other source of income after all.
From there the three wives begin collecting debts and then quickly become bosses themselves. They know how to get things done and they are not afraid to get their hands dirty.
I enjoyed the progression of their characters and found it relatively believable. How they evolve individually as well as as a group is quite entertaining to see.
Even more interesting is how they behave once their husbands all return from jail. The most telling moments in the book are what they do once the men return to take everything they've earned.
By the end of the book their characters have changed a lot and made a whole different world from themselves. And as with any classic mobster movie, once they reach the top there comes a time when they must fall.
The Kitchen is feminist in the smartest ways. It doesn't just shove women into a story in which they don't belong. It doesn't paint female faces onto otherwise male characters. And it never puts the women lower than the men or in a position that they have to choose between being strong women or being traditionally feminine.
They continue to wear makeup and heels like they always have. Because they choose to. But they also step up and take control, because they choose to. They fight real bad guys, not the bad guys' wives.
They know what they want and do what they need to to get it. They're incredibly strong but also flawed, just as all humans can be. It's a multi-dimensional story for multi-dimensional readers.
As a bonus it has an actual ending! Many comic books or graphic novels don't. It's a complaint I've made time and again. The Kitchen is a contained story and well worth a read.
It's only a few issues long and can be read in a single sitting if desired. I definitely recommend this book and from what I hear it's better than the movie so if you've seen the film and since hesitated to read the book please give it a shot.
for more reviews and content please visit my blog amanjareads.com
The Kitchen is a classic mobster story. It follows all of the standard tropes, pacing, and story structure. It just happens to follow three women running the show instead of three men.
These three women are married to three head mobsters in Hell's Kitchen. The head mobster husbands are all arrested and suddenly removed from their territory. The wives then step in to run the show.
It starts simple with one of the wives making rounds around the city to collect debts in her husband's place. She has no other source of income after all.
From there the three wives begin collecting debts and then quickly become bosses themselves. They know how to get things done and they are not afraid to get their hands dirty.
I enjoyed the progression of their characters and found it relatively believable. How they evolve individually as well as as a group is quite entertaining to see.
Even more interesting is how they behave once their husbands all return from jail. The most telling moments in the book are what they do once the men return to take everything they've earned.
By the end of the book their characters have changed a lot and made a whole different world from themselves. And as with any classic mobster movie, once they reach the top there comes a time when they must fall.
The Kitchen is feminist in the smartest ways. It doesn't just shove women into a story in which they don't belong. It doesn't paint female faces onto otherwise male characters. And it never puts the women lower than the men or in a position that they have to choose between being strong women or being traditionally feminine.
They continue to wear makeup and heels like they always have. Because they choose to. But they also step up and take control, because they choose to. They fight real bad guys, not the bad guys' wives.
They know what they want and do what they need to to get it. They're incredibly strong but also flawed, just as all humans can be. It's a multi-dimensional story for multi-dimensional readers.
As a bonus it has an actual ending! Many comic books or graphic novels don't. It's a complaint I've made time and again. The Kitchen is a contained story and well worth a read.
It's only a few issues long and can be read in a single sitting if desired. I definitely recommend this book and from what I hear it's better than the movie so if you've seen the film and since hesitated to read the book please give it a shot.
for more reviews and content please visit my blog amanjareads.com
November 12, 2018
This is the story about three wives who take over for their mobster boyfriends. Funny enough there's a movie out now called "Widows" that has a similar idea but more about robbing banks. This is basically Irish/Italian mobster storylines.
So when these wives all team up they begin to take over their husbands business. Collecting, putting the fear in advisories, and building a empire. However, the deeper they get into the mob life the worse it gets. They drift apart, some becoming more evil than others, till the point where everyone is out for themselves.
Good: The storyline is actually pretty good despite doing similar stories of the past. The way each character changes is pretty neat, and the body count is super high so lots of surprise deaths. I also enjoyed the ending as it was as dark as expected.
Bad: The art is okayish. Some moments are great but the sketchy art sometimes makes action moments hard to follow. I also thought it felt a bit rushed in the last issue, probably needed one extra issue.
Overall enjoyable, a surprise actually, and something a bit different. A 3.5 out of 5.
So when these wives all team up they begin to take over their husbands business. Collecting, putting the fear in advisories, and building a empire. However, the deeper they get into the mob life the worse it gets. They drift apart, some becoming more evil than others, till the point where everyone is out for themselves.
Good: The storyline is actually pretty good despite doing similar stories of the past. The way each character changes is pretty neat, and the body count is super high so lots of surprise deaths. I also enjoyed the ending as it was as dark as expected.
Bad: The art is okayish. Some moments are great but the sketchy art sometimes makes action moments hard to follow. I also thought it felt a bit rushed in the last issue, probably needed one extra issue.
Overall enjoyable, a surprise actually, and something a bit different. A 3.5 out of 5.
August 18, 2019
I was unaware of this graphic novel until I saw the trailer for the new movie. The film doesn't look worth a trip to the theaters, but I'll probably check it out when its available on streaming or DVD. In the meantime, I thought I'd try the book.
It's a bit of a choppy and barely sketched out mess really, the sort of thing a movie producer might option solely for the concept and then have the screenwriter totally revamp. I see on IMDB that most of the main characters' names were changed, for instance. In its present version its a humorless and bleak story of death and betrayals, betrayals and death. I'm interested to see how the tone changes in the movie when Melissa McCarthy and Tiffany Haddish are injected.
It's a bit of a choppy and barely sketched out mess really, the sort of thing a movie producer might option solely for the concept and then have the screenwriter totally revamp. I see on IMDB that most of the main characters' names were changed, for instance. In its present version its a humorless and bleak story of death and betrayals, betrayals and death. I'm interested to see how the tone changes in the movie when Melissa McCarthy and Tiffany Haddish are injected.
October 18, 2018
It's definitely the Seventies, all style and flash, and Charlie's Angels are running a crew out of Hell's Kitchen. But, those Angels were never this hard and tough and ruthless. It's a twisted Mafia story with three ladies taking over their husbands' loan sharing and protection rackets. Tough, nasty, and vicious.
June 18, 2019
5 STARS
Reseña pendiente...
"I did what needed to be done. They're gonna remember my name after I die. Not my dad's, not Johnny's or Jimmy's. MINE.
I made my mark on, the fuckin' world."
Reseña pendiente...
July 6, 2022
Glorified mob violence with women. The story is pretty entertaining, in a grisly way, but I don’t think that making women act like the worst kind of murdering psychopaths is somehow a feminist thing. These women act like the men in the mob movies. It is unrealistic and I find it even discrediting women - really, is that all the finesse you can muster? Not boring but it is bleak, gory and uninspired.
August 2, 2024
Foi um bom quadrinho de Máfia, que quebra o roteiro e o protagonismo noir dos homens mafiosos. Nessa trama, após os maridos serem presos, suas esposas precisam sobreviver, e tomam a iniciativa com pequenos trabalhos dentro dos negócios de seus maridos.
Conforme a trama avança, os serviços vão aumentando, e elas não fazem apenas coletas pelo bairro de Hells Kitchen, mas se envolvem com atividades mais sérias e perigosas, no entanto, percebem que mesmo diante do perigo, elas se saem bem e tem execuções incríveis, conseguindo gerir os negócios melhor que seus maridos.
É interessante ver que conforme elas se tornam importantes em Hells Kitchen, ela começam a ter antagonistas, e isso as leva a comentarem atos extremos, que servem como reviravoltas na HQ.
A minha ressalva e o que faz com que eu não tenha dado uma nota maior para esse gibi, é porque sua narrativa é muito corrida, com ações que ocorrem de maneira rápida ou até mesmo sem grandes aprofundamentos. Apesar da história ser focada em 3 personagens principais, parece que você não consegue criar afeição o suficiente para ter maior envolvimento emocional.
Contudo, gostei dessa história no que tange colocar mulheres como foco na trama noir, sendo o fio condutor da máfia de forma bem sucedida.
Conforme a trama avança, os serviços vão aumentando, e elas não fazem apenas coletas pelo bairro de Hells Kitchen, mas se envolvem com atividades mais sérias e perigosas, no entanto, percebem que mesmo diante do perigo, elas se saem bem e tem execuções incríveis, conseguindo gerir os negócios melhor que seus maridos.
É interessante ver que conforme elas se tornam importantes em Hells Kitchen, ela começam a ter antagonistas, e isso as leva a comentarem atos extremos, que servem como reviravoltas na HQ.
A minha ressalva e o que faz com que eu não tenha dado uma nota maior para esse gibi, é porque sua narrativa é muito corrida, com ações que ocorrem de maneira rápida ou até mesmo sem grandes aprofundamentos. Apesar da história ser focada em 3 personagens principais, parece que você não consegue criar afeição o suficiente para ter maior envolvimento emocional.
Contudo, gostei dessa história no que tange colocar mulheres como foco na trama noir, sendo o fio condutor da máfia de forma bem sucedida.
March 30, 2022
Not a bad read. The story revolves around 3 mobbed up guys going to prison and leaving their wives to fend for themselves. When the wives step into their husbands roles and take over their illegal enterprises a new way of life presents itself to them.
An interesting idea that takes on the roles of women in the late 70's who have lived but not touched the world of crime.
Great character development is what makes this one work. Making for a good read that has it fair share of unexpected moments.
An interesting idea that takes on the roles of women in the late 70's who have lived but not touched the world of crime.
Great character development is what makes this one work. Making for a good read that has it fair share of unexpected moments.
January 10, 2019
The tension of the story seems legit. The main characters try to continue business as usual for their incarcerated husbands' turf in Hell's Kitchen, but solving each problem brings a greater obstacle. You just know something is going to blow up in their face eventually, but the trip is still entertaining. Spoiler: pretty much everybody dies at the end. It's beautiful how the author didn't leave any loose threads, so there likely won't be a sequel.
With her gangster husband behind bars, Kath gets Raven and Angie, also wives with imprisoned gangster husbands, to collect the protection money. While most businesses simply cut off some money off the top, one of them run by Franky refuses to pay altogether. Kath applies what she has learned from her husband and puts the owner in the hospital. What she doesn't know is that Franky is the brother of a made man. This causes all sorts of complications.
With her gangster husband behind bars, Kath gets Raven and Angie, also wives with imprisoned gangster husbands, to collect the protection money. While most businesses simply cut off some money off the top, one of them run by Franky refuses to pay altogether. Kath applies what she has learned from her husband and puts the owner in the hospital. What she doesn't know is that Franky is the brother of a made man. This causes all sorts of complications.
December 7, 2019
2.5
Wow this was brutal... i don’t think this was for me. I didn’t enjoy this a ton. It’s not the book’s fault and it’s by no means bad, but it was a little confusing in the beginning because you’re suddenly thrown into this story and since this is just one volume, it kind of takes you about half of it to get to know who’s who ( there’s too many names to keep track of). Also, the jumps from one scene to the next felt quite sudden for me and it took me out of the story because each time i’d be confused and had to figure out again what was happening. It felt like i just read the summary of a story, instead of a whole story and i think i would’ve loved it more if i got to spend more time getting to know each character and just following them more in depth. But other than that, it was for sure interesting.
Also i feel like i should mention that there is a lot of killing in here so if you’re sensitive to that kind of stuff then i would probably recommend you not read this, otherwise, if the story sounds interesting to you then go ahead.
Wow this was brutal... i don’t think this was for me. I didn’t enjoy this a ton. It’s not the book’s fault and it’s by no means bad, but it was a little confusing in the beginning because you’re suddenly thrown into this story and since this is just one volume, it kind of takes you about half of it to get to know who’s who ( there’s too many names to keep track of). Also, the jumps from one scene to the next felt quite sudden for me and it took me out of the story because each time i’d be confused and had to figure out again what was happening. It felt like i just read the summary of a story, instead of a whole story and i think i would’ve loved it more if i got to spend more time getting to know each character and just following them more in depth. But other than that, it was for sure interesting.
Also i feel like i should mention that there is a lot of killing in here so if you’re sensitive to that kind of stuff then i would probably recommend you not read this, otherwise, if the story sounds interesting to you then go ahead.
October 3, 2019
The Kitchen is a one-sentence idea stretched into a gloomy, grisly crime thriller. A trio of Irish mobsters are packed off to prison, so their wives take over the collections racket. Affairs escalate until the women are powerful mobsters in their own right. Cue endless scenes of bitching and backstabbing.
It's not uninteresting, it's just predictable. I suppose The Kitchen earns some strange points for being relentlessly bleak - there's no happy ending here, not even close. Crime does not pay, kids! The artwork's unnattractive, functional at best. I would have enjoyed a more nuanced tale, perhaps with some surprise twists or characters to care about.
It's not uninteresting, it's just predictable. I suppose The Kitchen earns some strange points for being relentlessly bleak - there's no happy ending here, not even close. Crime does not pay, kids! The artwork's unnattractive, functional at best. I would have enjoyed a more nuanced tale, perhaps with some surprise twists or characters to care about.
June 12, 2019
I had no idea the new trailer wirh Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish and Elizabeth Moss was based on a Vertigo miniseries!
It’s a dark, windy mafia story with different stakes and a 70s Hell Kitchen setting. The art and plot pints are pretty amazing and it’s a fun quick read that is kinda hellish in its violence and emotional destruction.
It’s a dark, windy mafia story with different stakes and a 70s Hell Kitchen setting. The art and plot pints are pretty amazing and it’s a fun quick read that is kinda hellish in its violence and emotional destruction.
December 22, 2023
Rosie the Riveter retold as Rosie the Mobster.
When three Hell's Kitchen gangsters go to prison, their wives take over their collection racket. Initially exhilarating, the life soon becomes complicated, treacherous, and bleak. Do they return to the kitchen when their husbands are released? Or should they fight to hang on to the relatively rewarding lives they've carved out for themselves?
It's a great story and Masters pulls no punches. The women adopt a necessarily violent lifestyle and each responds differently to the everyday duplicity and barbarity of their new profession. Each of their paths is unpredictable yet plausible.
It's a shame that the storytelling doesn't live up to the story. The narration is monotonous and obvious, telling the reader what we're seeing depicted in the panels.
The 70s setting visual design is nicely detailed, but beyond that the illustration is pedestrian. Action sequences feel static. The male mobsters are all kind of a confusing blur...Johnny, Jimmy, Tommy, Tony, even their names sound the same.
It's a decent read that could have been better.
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SECOND READ
I love the story beats, the plausibly different ways that The Life affects the three protagonists. Their determination to maintain their independence once they've experienced it. The astronomical costs of doing so.
Some of the panel transitions are awkward. Attempts at flashbacks and cuts to other locations are clumsy. It makes the book feel like an amateur production of an excellent story.
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THIRD READ
There's a great page early in the book, a panel introducing the husbands, men who impose themselves on the world, who take up space. And then it focuses on their wives in the background, and looking back we can see that they'd been almost invisible in the background of the previous panels, paralleling the way they'd been hidden in the background of their husbands' lives. Ming Doyle using the visual medium to maximum effect. The art often feels inexpert to me but this sequence was a solid win.
Bumping my rating from 3 to 4.
When three Hell's Kitchen gangsters go to prison, their wives take over their collection racket. Initially exhilarating, the life soon becomes complicated, treacherous, and bleak. Do they return to the kitchen when their husbands are released? Or should they fight to hang on to the relatively rewarding lives they've carved out for themselves?
It's a great story and Masters pulls no punches. The women adopt a necessarily violent lifestyle and each responds differently to the everyday duplicity and barbarity of their new profession. Each of their paths is unpredictable yet plausible.
It's a shame that the storytelling doesn't live up to the story. The narration is monotonous and obvious, telling the reader what we're seeing depicted in the panels.
The 70s setting visual design is nicely detailed, but beyond that the illustration is pedestrian. Action sequences feel static. The male mobsters are all kind of a confusing blur...Johnny, Jimmy, Tommy, Tony, even their names sound the same.
It's a decent read that could have been better.
-----------------------------------
SECOND READ
I love the story beats, the plausibly different ways that The Life affects the three protagonists. Their determination to maintain their independence once they've experienced it. The astronomical costs of doing so.
Some of the panel transitions are awkward. Attempts at flashbacks and cuts to other locations are clumsy. It makes the book feel like an amateur production of an excellent story.
-----------------------------------
THIRD READ
There's a great page early in the book, a panel introducing the husbands, men who impose themselves on the world, who take up space. And then it focuses on their wives in the background, and looking back we can see that they'd been almost invisible in the background of the previous panels, paralleling the way they'd been hidden in the background of their husbands' lives. Ming Doyle using the visual medium to maximum effect. The art often feels inexpert to me but this sequence was a solid win.
Bumping my rating from 3 to 4.
February 10, 2016
Okay. So the premise, is pretty good, mafia men are in jail, and their wives, take over. Sounds like a female progressive, Sopranos. Well its good premise, but this book falls short of that. The story does have good moments, but the dialogue and story feels more like desperate housewives then Sopranos. One pro is the artwork, I really enjoyed it, looked a lot like a tell tale game series. But ya in the ends this an okay read, it fell short when reaching for a gold and got a bronze.
July 22, 2019
With the movie coming out soon, I thought we could take a look back at one of the better comic books to come out through DC's Vertigo line. The Kitchen by Ollie Masters. It was first published back in 2014 and has always had something of a cult following. It is a violent crime drama about what happens when mobsters go to jail and how one group of wives decides to carry on.
"...Kath, with what I do, people gotta see you as someone not to fuck with. You gotta be untouchable. So if someone disrespects you, even if it's just a fuckin' joke about your shoes, you fuck 'em up so bad no one'll ever crack wise again. Because if you let someone crack wise aobut you and you don't do nothin' about it? People'll think you're weak..."
In Hell's Kitchen, New York, 1970's, the Irish gangs rule the neighborhood. Sex and drugs and crime on the street come through them. But when Jimmy Brennan and his crew are sent to prison, their wives decide to continue running their rackets. The numbers and the protection, Kath, Raven, and Angie take control. Only no one fears them like they feared Jimmy and his crew, so the girls learn fast how to earn respect on the streets.
Soon the girls own the streets of Hell's Kitchen and when the Jewish gangs and Italian gangs begin to see them as weak, the girls show them how strong they really are. But the true threat comes when Jimmy and his crew are released from prison. Can things go back to the way it was or will the girls keep what is now theirs on the streets of the Kitchen.
Masters creates a crime drama that is more than gangsters killing one another. More than the dynamics of dysfunctional marriages and dysfunctional families. It is more than a rallying cry for feminism. The movie wrap itself in those trapping but the source material, this comic book, is far more than that.
At its heart it is a story of survival and power and crime.
At its hear, it is a damn good book.
"...Kath, with what I do, people gotta see you as someone not to fuck with. You gotta be untouchable. So if someone disrespects you, even if it's just a fuckin' joke about your shoes, you fuck 'em up so bad no one'll ever crack wise again. Because if you let someone crack wise aobut you and you don't do nothin' about it? People'll think you're weak..."
In Hell's Kitchen, New York, 1970's, the Irish gangs rule the neighborhood. Sex and drugs and crime on the street come through them. But when Jimmy Brennan and his crew are sent to prison, their wives decide to continue running their rackets. The numbers and the protection, Kath, Raven, and Angie take control. Only no one fears them like they feared Jimmy and his crew, so the girls learn fast how to earn respect on the streets.
Soon the girls own the streets of Hell's Kitchen and when the Jewish gangs and Italian gangs begin to see them as weak, the girls show them how strong they really are. But the true threat comes when Jimmy and his crew are released from prison. Can things go back to the way it was or will the girls keep what is now theirs on the streets of the Kitchen.
Masters creates a crime drama that is more than gangsters killing one another. More than the dynamics of dysfunctional marriages and dysfunctional families. It is more than a rallying cry for feminism. The movie wrap itself in those trapping but the source material, this comic book, is far more than that.
At its heart it is a story of survival and power and crime.
At its hear, it is a damn good book.
January 7, 2023
I'm not usually one for gangster tales but this one was gripping.
The Kitchen features Kath, Raven and Angie, three wives of Irish mobsters in New York. When the men have been sent to prison for wild crimes and bad reputation, the women do their best to keep the money coming in by continuing their loan shark racket. However organised crime is never simple, especially when pride leads to a 'made man' being beaten into a coma.
It's a classic tale of three individuals being slowly corrupted through necessity, one of whom goes too far for the others. The graphic novel format certainly kept up my interest in this gritty 70's crime tale, a genre I normally don't enjoy. Masters' storytelling is a bit basic but has gripping momentum, revealing character through drastic action and professional execution. I certainly didn't see a couple of twists coming though, if I knew a little more about gangster stories perhaps I would.
Doyle's artwork perfectly captures the autumnal colour palette and stiff functionality of 70's crime drama and the change in each of the protagonists throughout the pages is subtle but very well done. At times this reminded me of Ed Brubaker's and Sean Phillips' collaborations.
All told, The Kitchen was a pleasant surprise for me. It's a gangster book that I will gladly keep on my shelves. I recommend it to fans of crime plots involving tainted innocence, turf wars and sisters doing it for themselves.
The Kitchen features Kath, Raven and Angie, three wives of Irish mobsters in New York. When the men have been sent to prison for wild crimes and bad reputation, the women do their best to keep the money coming in by continuing their loan shark racket. However organised crime is never simple, especially when pride leads to a 'made man' being beaten into a coma.
It's a classic tale of three individuals being slowly corrupted through necessity, one of whom goes too far for the others. The graphic novel format certainly kept up my interest in this gritty 70's crime tale, a genre I normally don't enjoy. Masters' storytelling is a bit basic but has gripping momentum, revealing character through drastic action and professional execution. I certainly didn't see a couple of twists coming though, if I knew a little more about gangster stories perhaps I would.
Doyle's artwork perfectly captures the autumnal colour palette and stiff functionality of 70's crime drama and the change in each of the protagonists throughout the pages is subtle but very well done. At times this reminded me of Ed Brubaker's and Sean Phillips' collaborations.
All told, The Kitchen was a pleasant surprise for me. It's a gangster book that I will gladly keep on my shelves. I recommend it to fans of crime plots involving tainted innocence, turf wars and sisters doing it for themselves.
January 17, 2019
This graphic novel follows 3 mob wives in 1970's Hell's Kitchen, NY whose husbands are sent to prison. They decide to take over their husbands' protection racket, first using their husbands' violent reputations to collect but quickly realizing they have to build their own.
There's a lot to unpack in here given the time period, feminism, and female rage. The subtle allegory on top of violent imagery is well done. The ending goes somewhere I didn't expect at all, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Beautiful artwork, but as the storyline devolves into more violence it becomes harder to tell the characters apart. While I think this was intentional, it made the plot a little hard to follow.
There's a lot to unpack in here given the time period, feminism, and female rage. The subtle allegory on top of violent imagery is well done. The ending goes somewhere I didn't expect at all, and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. Beautiful artwork, but as the storyline devolves into more violence it becomes harder to tell the characters apart. While I think this was intentional, it made the plot a little hard to follow.
August 12, 2019
Summer Reading Challenge 16/27
The book is better - “Read a book being adapted for TV or film this year”
Being a good little book nerd, I saw the movie poster for this film and immediately wanted to know if it was a book first! Happy days, it was. Graphic novels are still a relatively new genre for me but I was excited to see that The Kitchen was adapted from one. It was a great, quick read with great art and a very interesting, albeit, dark story. It reminds me of a darker version of the TV show Good Girls and I really enjoyed it. I’m definitely going to go see the movie now. I’m all in.
The book is better - “Read a book being adapted for TV or film this year”
Being a good little book nerd, I saw the movie poster for this film and immediately wanted to know if it was a book first! Happy days, it was. Graphic novels are still a relatively new genre for me but I was excited to see that The Kitchen was adapted from one. It was a great, quick read with great art and a very interesting, albeit, dark story. It reminds me of a darker version of the TV show Good Girls and I really enjoyed it. I’m definitely going to go see the movie now. I’m all in.
May 30, 2020
Uuuhhhmmmm I was not really a good audience for this book.
August 8, 2019
men stop writing about women’s issues challenge
November 26, 2021
In Hell's Kitchen in the 1970s three crooks are sent to prison for loansharking. Their wives, not knowing any other way to keep the money coming in take over the business. And they're good at it. So good in fact that it draws the attention of the big league mafioso.
I'm surprised it's taken me this long to get around to reading The Kitchen. It's been a subtle suggestion for my reading list from a fair few people since it was published in 2015. That said, I'm very glad I didn't postpone it any longer. This was an incredibly enjoyable read.
Ollie Masters delivers an organised crime plot with a twist (well, several really!), but one that's totally in-step with the familiar mob stories we all know. I got some serious Scarface and Goodfellas vibes from this which was perfectly fitting.
Ming Doyle's artwork here is fantastic in its entirety. The level of expression portrayed within Doyle's character's faces is not often seen and is instrumental in bringing emotions alive in this book.
If you're a fan of mob stories you'll adore this. It has all the familiar tropes, but with lots of twists, turns, violence and betrayal - exactly what you'd expect from a gangster book! Without a doubt this is definitely an understated gem.
I'm going to have to watch the movie now. I'm intrigued.
I'm surprised it's taken me this long to get around to reading The Kitchen. It's been a subtle suggestion for my reading list from a fair few people since it was published in 2015. That said, I'm very glad I didn't postpone it any longer. This was an incredibly enjoyable read.
Ollie Masters delivers an organised crime plot with a twist (well, several really!), but one that's totally in-step with the familiar mob stories we all know. I got some serious Scarface and Goodfellas vibes from this which was perfectly fitting.
Ming Doyle's artwork here is fantastic in its entirety. The level of expression portrayed within Doyle's character's faces is not often seen and is instrumental in bringing emotions alive in this book.
If you're a fan of mob stories you'll adore this. It has all the familiar tropes, but with lots of twists, turns, violence and betrayal - exactly what you'd expect from a gangster book! Without a doubt this is definitely an understated gem.
I'm going to have to watch the movie now. I'm intrigued.
November 13, 2019
What happens when a group of gangsters gets sent upriver, and their wives decide to take over the business to earn a living in their absence, only to realize they like being in control and aren’t ever going back.
Just as gritty as the movie that would come later, more so actually. I enjoyed this violent little gangster tale.
*Side Note: Loved the casting in the movie, preferred this ending for a certain character.
Just as gritty as the movie that would come later, more so actually. I enjoyed this violent little gangster tale.
*Side Note: Loved the casting in the movie, preferred this ending for a certain character.
October 18, 2019
When three Irish mobsters from Hell's Kitchen are sent to prison, their wives take over the family business without too much in the way of moral squeamishness.
I found the characters somewhat one dimensional in the way that they fell right into murder and mayhem. True, there was a little inner conflict in the beginning, but would these three women take on this amoral lifestyle so quickly?
I found the characters somewhat one dimensional in the way that they fell right into murder and mayhem. True, there was a little inner conflict in the beginning, but would these three women take on this amoral lifestyle so quickly?
December 28, 2017
This is a comic that I've been looking forward to reading for months. Overall I'm not disappointed, but I'm only giving it four instead of five stars because the ending was predictable. Yawwwwwn.
December 28, 2021
A sorry tale of a spiral of self-destruction. I probably won’t read it again (which would normally land it 3 stars) but there’s something about it that rises above the norm. Film was good too.
April 8, 2025
not gay :( also you can tell a man wrote this
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