The Thrilling Adventure Hour: A Spirited Romance

The Thrilling Adventure Hour

by Ben Acker

Based on the popular Hollywood stage show and podcast, The Thrilling Adventure A Spirited Romance follows fan-favorite characters Frank and Sadie Doyle in “Beyond Belief”.

It’s time to send the little ones to dreamland and set your radio’s dial to “spooky.” Steel yourself for mysterious suspense in…BEYOND BELIEF!

Meet Frank and Sadie Doyle, toast of the upper crust. Headliners on the society pages. And, oh yes, they see ghosts. Trading quips and tossing back cocktails, the Doyles take what they want and hoodwink their clientele for the rest. Ghosts, vampires, werewolves, mummies, even diabolical gingerbread men are nothing but obstacles in the way of the liquor cabinet for our fast-talking, hard-drinking sleuths.

Written by the creators of the wildly popular Hollywood stage show and podcast, Ben Acker and Ben Blacker ( Deadpool, Star Wars Adventures ), and illustrated by Phil Hester ( Batman Beyond ), The Thrilling Adventure A Spirited Romance is a rip-roaring adventure that harkens back to the heyday of old-time radio entertainment.

Collects The Thrilling Adventure Hour Beyond Belief #0 - #4

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

112 pages, Paperback

Published October 16, 2018

About the author

Aka: Benjamin Acker

Reviews

[Kyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure how enjoyable this would be to somebody who wasn't reading it in Paul F. Tompkins's and Paget Brewsters's voices but it was nice to have the origin of Frank and Sadie Doyle (and Donna and Dave Henderson). And being able to see and not just hear the action is an interesting twist on things.

[Glyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a big fan of the podcast; pretty sure this is niche enough to only appeal to their established audience. Don’t get me wrong - the writing is witty, the art is... serviceable, and Frank and Sadie’s charisma carry onto the page. But such a huge element of what makes Beyond Belief so damn good, is the performance given by Paul F Tompkins and Paget Brewster. I’ve spent enough time listening to the podcast that their voices echoed in my head as I read. But it just isn’t the same. Man I miss this show. I’ll probably check out the Sparks Nevada comic because I’m curious to see the art, but I’m not sure if I want to read the other Beyond Belief comic... Oh who am I I kidding, I’ll probably read it because I love the characters and setting so much.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG! I just happened to stumble upon this comic at the library and had no idea The Thrilling Adventure Hour had such a history! (After I Googled it and found out about the show and podcast and everything.) I had never heard of it.

So hilarious! And so much fun! For some reason - even though i read the back - I forgot they were going to be monster hunters. Which made it even more fun!

And something that I hope I can say about myself sometime in the future:

We are astute despite being tootled.

And sometimes the best quotes are best out of context.

Your purse monster must be mistaken.

I’ll definitely check out the other graphic novels.

[Ryan Fohl · Rating 4 out of 5]

As good as the show. I can hear Paul F Tompkins and Paget Brewster’s voices and comic timing. It’s written by the same team. But the extra bonus is some dynamic visuals. Who knew Frank could move so much? Lots of hilarious dialogue. I found some bits confusing, but I also found the radio show to be a bit confusing at times. I miss the spooky music, but the art and color are great. I like the imaginary friend of an imaginary friend. And Sadie’s enthusiasm for dolls.

What I learned: It was love at first sight. *clink*

[Michael Moe · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a clever, fun, witty, utterly delightful read! Frank and Sadie Doyle are the Nick and Nora Charles of ghostbusting. I particularly enjoyed the way they get together in the first episode--may be my favorite "meet-cute" ever--if you can consider a seance-gone-wrong a meet-cute (and why not? I say. If you don't believe me, check it out for yourself.) I wasn't aware of The Thrilling Adventure Hour stage show and podcast before this, but now I will definitely be checking them out.

[Bill Coffin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun story of two upper-crust and slightly blotto ghost hunters who love each other as much as they love a good highball. The whole thing has a light touch to it and makes for fun reading, even if he final act gets a little in the way of itself. I did not know this came from a stage show or podcast before reading, so rest assured, those are not prerequisites.

[Terry]

I stumbled upon this book and am unfamiliar with the podcast. On its own terms, this was a pleasant, quick romp through four episodes from Frank and Sadie meeting to solving urbane monster issues. The two have a lovely, Bogie-and-Bacall-esque banter. There are some scary monsters, but it is all in good fun and will be resolved over cocktails.

[Shylo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the characters and story but the art style didn’t really work for me. I found the lettering hard to follow and the pictures felt fuzzy rather than a stylistic choice. I’ve started the second one and am enjoying it much more so far.

[Lukas Holmes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty great job by Acker to capture the voices of Saide and Frank. Really impressive and loving adaptation.

[Eujean2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I miss hearing their voices, but Beyond Belief translates pretty well to the comic format.

[Mindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reminds me so much of the thin man movies. Quick and funny banter. It made me laugh out loud many times.

[Ashley Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the cutest thing I have ever read. Frank an Sadie are the best couple!
Must read for any thrilling adventure hour fan.

[Warren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recommended for fans of the show.

[Danna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book although some times it was confusing but otherwise it was great. It was pretty funny and thrilling!

[Keimy Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore Sadie and Frank Doyle, it was fun getting more stories starring them.

[Randall Andrews]

It was alright, wasn't my favorite book, loved the art style though, Phil Hester does an amazing job with the pencils in this book and Eric Gapster and Ande Parks do amazing work with the inking for the book also.

[Ian Banks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great fun: while it lacks the familiarity of the stage show/ podcast it's a great romp through a lot of horror tropes and cliches, which is what we love to see the Doyles doing.