No Romance In Hell

Demons #1

by Hyena Hell

Disappointed with her romantic prospects in Hell, a demon ascends to Earth's surface on a quest for loving tenderness from human men. Disappointment, disintegration, and hilarity ensue in this brimstone-infused roasting of modern romance.

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

24 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2020

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

How much do you wanna bet Hyena Hell is not her real name?

No Romance in Hell is a Silver Sprocket comic, issue #1, about a woman just wants love (okay, no, sex) on her own terms. She's in Hell, and none of the guys there are right for her and if they are wrong and say something stupid to her, she destroys them. Until she meets a giant guy torturing sinners with a sharp stick, who rejects her. The guy looks quite a bit like a more muscled Zippy the Pinhead, by Bill Griffith. THIS is the guy for her!

So she goes back to Earth and tries a version of Tinder called Burner, but every guy is an idiot, her response to which is incinerating each and every one of them.

So she goes back to Hell and the guy has a change of "heart" and they get it on, tumbling over a cliff to crash in ecstasy. What does she want? NOT to meet his Mom and Dad, I'll just say that. NOT to be wooed with flowers. It reminded me of a Bonnie Raitt song, "Love Me Like a Man," where she sings, "I want a MAN to love me, not some fool to ask me why."

So, the takeaway: IS there romance in (Hyena) Hell? Not really, no, that's not really her jam.

Madcap alt-comix, in the Tijuana Bibles/Crumb tradition.

[StrictlySequential · Rating 3 out of 5]

Warning: this is a stapled 5.75" x 8.75" leaflet

It's humourous with passable art but I hate staples! They disappear in boxes never to be seen again so I stick to the spines and this will soon be on sale in my ebay store. If it was at least a high four stars title or by a creator that I deify then I would consider putting it with the others that I've put awkwardly put on my shelves but this is average average.

[Riddhish Bhalodia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool little comic about demons and realism of dating on earth in 2021. Art is pretty dope.
3.5/5

[Bill Purkayastha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good introduction to one of the best indie comic series of all time. It is not the best, but that's part of why this series is so great; instead of running out of steam, it starts strong and gets better. And, not having to cater to the vagaries of any establishment comics publisher, Ms Hell could, and did, write and draw the story she wanted, as long as she wanted.

What's it about?

Bug is a lady demon in Hell, who is not particularly interested in being a lady demon in Hell. What she wants is romance, but the handsome demon she's interested in, Grog, has better things to do than find her anything but an annoyance. Sick and tired of being ignored, Big storms off to Earth to find love among the human species.

And it goes downhill for her from there.

This is an absolute blast. Bug is adorable from her first appearance and gets progressively better in subsequent issues. Other characters, like Grog, don't get much attention in this first issue, but don't worry, they will, they will.

Warning: artwork in this series is very NSFW. Also, violence, lots and lots of violence.

[Peter Derk · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to say, not a great plan on this demon's part. If I wasn't having luck with dating, let's just say, let's take that WILD trip into fiction, that ASININE assumption, that wholly ridiculous starting point—if for some reason I wasn't slaying ass all over the Earth realm like some kind of, er, guy who does that a lot, and if someone was like, "How about taking a shot at literal hell demon women," I...well, I'd probably give it a go, but when it didn't work, at all, I couldn't pretend to be surprised. Although I guess you DO have an advantage in telling yourself, "Hey, it's not me, it's THEM. They're demons and like doing demon stuff, which is evil stuff by definition. THAT'S why nobody wants to go on a lake in a swan boat with me so I have to do it alone and keep scooting between the to sides to peddle the boat right and not just go in circles, a fitting physical metaphor for dating if I've ever heard one!

[Rick Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

A demon in hell struggles with similar dating issues experienced by women in the real world. The humor is pretty solid throughout, but for a brief comic like this there wasn't much else going on. I like Hyena Hell's loose cartooning style - it feels pretty evocative of earlier pioneers in the underground comix movement like Crumb and S. Clay Wilson. I've heard later entries are better, so I'll definitely check those out at some point.

[Kumar K · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the bit where she goes on a ton of dates and incinerates all the guys who say anything slightly wrong. So, in the end, she just hooks up with a random dude, and she's still not satisfied. This is a cartoonish depiction of what a girl who's out to have good sex has to go through. No romance in this, I expected that: she is a demon. But no dissection of what makes guys "tick" and care about you, either? I was disappointed.

[Sundry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wicked fun. Amazing art.

[Axolotl · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was kinda funny, with cool enough art that I wanna buy the second one. Also the cover looks really cool!

[Jon McMahon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some cool art & a few decent jokes, but quite thin.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's cute and I enjoyed seeing the douchebags get fried with laser eyes. I may read follow up issues but I don't think I'll bother to keep my hard copy because it probably won't get a re-read.

[Lucy Kirby · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short read but with some cutting humor.

[Jeri Goins · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little graphic about demons and dating. Hell is other people, you know!

[Ed Erwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plenty of room for improvement, but a nice start.

[Lena Downey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my vibe . it was only 24 pages and was a bonus borrow for the end of Oct via hoopla. Art is neat . Not a fan of the story but it was done well .

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

A female demon comes to Earth to find a man for sex. It's not bad. Nor is it great. It's all around fine.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

What could be worse than being stuck in Hell forever? Apparently, trying to find romance on Earth.

[The_J · Rating 2 out of 5]

What an odd little disturbing little Walk-About out of Hell. Interesting art to some. Of limited amusement, but enough for some I would suppose

[M.i. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short but sweet. A hilarious story about romance.

[Mélo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

Punk alt-style comic about dating being the worst and it was pretty funny honestly.

[Rachael Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the raw black and white style of this. The humor was crass in a good way. It was a simple story but very enjoyable to read through.