Machine Gun Kelly's Hotel Diablo

by Machine Gun Kelly, Eliot Rahal, Ryan Cady

Machine Gun Kelly revisit his 2019 album Hotel Diablo as he makes his debut in the world of comics!

Between Heaven and Hell lies a waystation for the soul--a place where your deeds in life are the keys to your eternity in the afterlife--at the Hotel Diablo. And it's Lydia Lopez's first night behind the front desk. Every guest's got a story to tell and a lesson to learn...
Co-written by film and music superstar Machine Gun Kelly with Eliot Rahal (Archie Comics) and Ryan Cady (DC Comics). Art by Martin Morazzo (Ice Cream Man) and a host of talented illustrators.

Full Creator List:

ILLUSTRATORS: Martin Morazzo; Victor Ibañez; Nelson Blake II; Amilcar Pinna; Rachel Smartt; Roberta Ingranata

WRITERS: Machine Gun Kelly, Eliot Rahal & Ryan Cady

EDITOR: Chris Robinson

COVER ARTISTS: Martin Morazzo & Aladdin Collar

PRINT ARTISTS: Jenna Cha; Trevor Henderson; Leslie Hung

 

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Horror, Graphic Novels Comics, Music

124 pages, Paperback

First published September 28, 2021

Reviews

[Heather]

This is one of those graphic novels that I could absolutely see becoming a TV series. It’s just the right amount of dark and unexplained. It also has one-off characters with stories that could each be a focus of an episode.

[maisie ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a quick, easy, and fun read! I didn’t know what to expect going into this, but I was thoroughly entertained. I enjoyed how this comic includes multiple mini stories. My favorite was hands down the first one, Lidia’s First Day. It was a really strong start and had such a good message. The illustrations were really eye-catching and detailed. There’s some dark themes, but I was very intrigued. The ending was cool and mysterious. Once I started, I couldn’t put it down and read it in one sitting. MGK, the writers, and the illustrators did a great job on this.

[Daniela Tavares · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hotel Diablo is something else , not what I was expecting but in a way i kind was… I don’t know but a had a great time with it!
Great work from the artists involved.
I’m hoping to see more comics from Machine Gun Kelly aka Colson Baker 🖤

[Eliza Howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really cool concept but perhaps comic books aren't for me

[Rachel Christoffersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This man can do everything! Rap, sing, play instruments, create graphic novels. MGK's Hotel Diablo was a dark and twisted tale, just as his album was. I loved every minute of it. Hooked from the very first page.

[Kylee · Rating 5 out of 5]

so fun! here’s to hoping netflix picks this up as an original series!! i hope mgk continues this story line and creates more in this vein of graphic novels!!! 🖤

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was delightfully disturbing and I hope there will be more or perhaps a screen adaptation.

[Xan Rooyen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I honestly wasn't sure what to expect from the mind of MGK other than some extreme weirdness, but this collection of stories stitched together beneath the main story arc of Lidia, a lowly employee at the titular Hotel Diablo, was full of surprises. I'm sure it helped that MGK worked with some veteran writers to develop his ideas.

The stories are full of nuance and allegory and are a lot more compassionate in their examination of the human condition than I was expecting. The first story in particular was really quite moving. But my favourite has to be Gethsemane, especially because of the art in this one--both the art referenced and the art of the actual panels.

The last story showed just how open this world could be and the potential for so many different tales to be told. I really hope this becomes a series.

[Will Atkinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was kind of expecting a side quest horror story comic from MGK but this was a lot deeper and darker than that, which definitely relates to the dark lyrics of some of the songs on the Hotel Diablo album. It was a quick thought-provoking read with amazing artwork with small details to keep an eye out for. I also thought the variety of characters and their interesting stories made it hard to put down.

[Matthew Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology of stories was really good! I especially enjoyed the art by Morazzo and maybe I’m only comparing this to Ice Cream Man because of him, but this might as well have been a spin-off or a one-shot issue of ICM, one of the best and one of my favorite horror and anthology comics. I enjoyed this more than I expected to!

[Somer Strain · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this as a Christmas gift to myself because I love Machine Gun Kelly. It did not disappoint! The artwork is beautiful, the idea behind the setting is intriguing, and the issues faced by the characters are real. I read it twice through from start to finish, and I appreciated it even more the second time!

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the metaphor that they wanted to tell us.
The way each of the characters deals with their problem differently is expressed very good. Also, solving problems sometimes isn't even on the 'good' side (for example the girl who kills everyone hehehe).
I would also like to comment how GOOD the art is. WOW!

[Alexandra LoPresti · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love that it follows multiple guests versus just one. Each one had their own little twist. Good shit, MGK!

[Jeffrey Pollard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was exactly what I expected from the mind of my recent favorite artist. The comedic and twisted mind came together to bring multiple stories with such detail and wonderful art alike.

I really enjoyed the storylines within this work. MGK and the other editors/authors did a great job with the process of this book and bringing it to life. My favorite story was Noah’s as it brought some different aspects into play.

Very glad I got the signed copy!

[Mis Kia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Graphics and art are very good. The theme is very accurate to MGK and it really felt like exploring the different facets of hotel diablo just like his album. The stories however felt flat, not much build up so the strange events didn't surprise as much as they could have. Overall a very good first try from them.

[FannyWiola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick and enjoyable enough. The storylines - except for the framing device - are kinda expected, I wish there was a bit more uniqueness to them. But what is there is pretty well done. Art is decent, if a bit uneven, particularly in the faces.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This really felt like a fanfic of the hotel in Altered Carbon.

There were some cool narratives and a handful of panels I really enjoyed but it was kind of simplistic.

[Kara Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review for Hotel Diablo

Perfect for spooky season time. The pictures are Exquisite. The stories are wonderful and love how each character got something out of the hotel just like each song from the album can be relatable to different people.

“They’ll never see who you really are because everyone around you is sad. And sometimes sad people… They don’t know how to be sad. So they get angry instead. And angry people… Well… They don’t like it when someone tries to do something else. Because that means they could have done something else, and instead of lifting you up they put you down because they want you to be like them.” My favorite quote from this comic.

“I’m not a ghost. But all things grow weary in time… Ghosts, especially.”- 2nd favorite quote from this comic.

“God”, as you so crudely name it, is not something for us to understand, Ms. Lopez.” Third favorite quote from this comic.

“Love is a curse. A spell that makes you weak.” Fourth favorite quote.

“Do not let fear destroy your heart, my dear wife” 5th favorite quote.

Damn a mom sacrificing herself for child.

A women at odds with herself.

A religious man with a dark secret.

A good hearted a man with a really dark terrible bad mistake eating away at him.

A women on her path for...revenge...?

A women who is .... dead?.... but she doesn’t know she died? .....

What more could you ask for in a book? I highly recommend reading this one.

There are six stories in all, named appropriately with corresponding rooms with in the hotel.

Each story reviewed respectfully

Lidia’s first day- 5 stars

The Starlet Sweet- 4.35 stars I didn’t know where it was going

The Survivor’s Suite- 5 stars 2nd favorite story

The Victim Suite-5 stars first favorite story

The Gethsemane Suite- 3.5 stars
White religious affiliated man… Enough said

The Last Suite- 5 stars that’s how to end a story

Overall 4.8 stars rounded up to five though because there is only one story I didn’t like that much in the pictures were just beautiful.

[Lillian Gaskill]

I am not rating this book, because I’m not really sure how to. This is the second graphic novel I’ve read (first being one I had to read in college that I did not like). So this is the first graphic novel I’ve picked up on my own to read. I wasn’t sure what to expect. I liked the idea of the story and the whole concept. I was confused at first because it seemed all over the place, until I saw at the end there was different authors who worked on different “scenes” in the novel. Meaning to me it was more like multiple mini stories within one hotel. I think if I knew that going into this, I would’ve felt like it wasn’t as chaotic. Overall I really liked it and thought it was cool for MGK to come up with this concept.

[Anna-Leigh Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to admit, I'm not a big comic fan. I've never been able to get into them all that much, probably something to do with the combination of graphics and words that my brain just doesn't seem to grasp that easily. An important thing to know about me, though, is that I'm a huge fan of Machine Gun Kelly. That's why I bought this book and gave it a read. The illustrations are breathtaking. The story was a little confusing for me. It left me wanting something but I'm not sure what exactly.

[AllyBrianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Besides manga, it's been forever since I've picked up a graphic novel. This new one, Hotel Diablo didn't disappoint. I only hope there is more! It felt like watching a series where there could be endless episodes of stories and I love that about it. Because of that, I love how it can switch up fast. It leaves room to have characters you root for and ones you're okay with letting go of. It's dark and twisted with a story plot that keeps me wanting more.

[Courtney]

i’m not gonna rate this because i haven’t read a graphic novel since i was a child and read those Bone books. y’all remember that???

anyways i picked this up because i love Colson🫶 and i had a good time. it was dark and strange but was a cool concept and had some good messages. it kept me interested and i easily read it in one sitting. will be checking out some more graphic novels they are deffs a nice lil change✨

[Emma Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

This graphic novel was nothing like I expected, but it was excellent. I liked the moral dilemmas and the illustrations were exquisite, it was really thought out and written really well, I hope he continues the story or it gets picked up by Netflix.

The hotel Diablo is a place between heaven and hell and each guest makes a choice.

[Estibaliz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice collection of stories, spooky but also touching, with the Hotel Diablo as the main connector: a hotel where you don't stay, you can only visit, but your visit is going to be oh so meaningful and one of a kind...

I didn't always love the art, but it was pretty good in average, and this quick read kept me mighty entertained.

[Youri Luijkenaar · Rating 5 out of 5]

At the beginning it’s everything except chronological. That makes it interesting. Throughout the story you’ll read some sins that take part of the story. The illustrations are amazing.
Beside that I’m a great fan of “Machine Gun Kelly’s” (See: Colson Baker) music, I will read this book a second time.

[Pam Bales · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saw Machine Gun Kelly on Jimmy Fallon and decided to check out his graphic novel. It's an interesting "read." I found a couple of the stories a little harder to follow than I expected, but the graphics and idea of the plot is very good.

[Kristin Lansdown · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this! It was a quick and fun read that told the stories of multiple guests checking into Hotel Diablo. Unexpected in some parts, horror in some, while heartfelt in others. I would love more stories set in this hotel.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book.
I love it so much.
Beautiful work.
Hotel Diablo is my fav album.
You are great talented writer Colson Baker & you do great music.
There is always to find something interesting in your works & let be inspired by new thoughts.
Great job bro.

[Mee Too · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was better than expected although i feel like they stole maxwell prince’s art style ( which is a weird style to steal) it would be like stealing from the dollar general instead of macys.

Anyways good job mr machine gun and keep em coming.

3.1✨

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️