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The Roberts
The Boston Strangler and the Zodiac Killer are alive and well living amongst the old and dying of the Shady Land Retirement Center. Surrounded by Bingo tournaments and tea times, these two, notorious serial killers quietly trade -war stories- about their golden years -- two seemingly parallel pasts filled with violence and victims. But, while friendly on the outside, they're both masters at deception. And when one of them comes clean with a secret, the other struggles internally about...murder! Featuring both critically acclaimed issues of The Roberts, complete with extras, this collection also includes correspondence between the author and serial killers Richard Rodriguez and Charles Manson!
- GenresGraphic NovelsCrime
144 pages, Paperback
First published May 11, 2009
20 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 31, 2025
A hidden gem - The Boston Strangler and the Zodiac Killer are now at the Shady Land Retirement Center - and that old alpha male competitiveness kicks in. Now only a 'kill off' can determine who is tops. Very original and creepy - underappreciated GN that should have a wider audience. Sure there is someone out there like this that we do not know about.
September 17, 2016
The Boston Strangler and the Zodiac Killer meet in a retirement home, and become twisted besties. SOLD.
December 22, 2011
This was an intriguing find for me (when someone dumped their graphic novel collection at Frugal Muse and I scored all those Deadpool trades.) The premise is that both the Boston Strangler and the Zodiac Killer (who were never caught) have reached 'retirement' age, and meet in the old folks home.
Coincidentally, they're both named Robert.
It makes for a very 'Odd Couple' "friendship"- because they are very different psychopaths: one being a loner, the other being a complete sociopath. The authors are VERY into their subject matter, having studied serial killers to a degree that makes me (an admitted fan of the genre) a little uncomfortable.
I'm a fan of the Midwest killers - growing up in Wisconsin myself- and there is a rather amusing bit where they basically come to the same conclusion I do - there's something in the water. (Well, I say: All the Beer & Cheese backs people up... but, same idea.)
I'd have given this 4 stars, but the art put me off. It's black and white ink & pencil - but rather than being stark, it's horribly busy, confusing and distracting. WAY too many lines- not enough shading/shadows. It's very... one dimensional. And while that can score you points for ambiance, it looks amateurish - like something that [sic] a psychotic 10th grade boy would do. (Hell, while it's a compliment to the author - several pages WERE used as background props on the BBC crime drama "Luther" to decorate a serial killer's wall. I read it in their blog.)
There are a lot of nice extras, because these guys DO love serial killers - they have their own correspondence with Richard Ramierez & Charlie Manson as extras. (I oculdn't make it through the Manson stuff - if they wanted to be helpful, they should have typed up transcripts because, yeah, Charlie can't write any more coherently than he can think.)
It's all worth a read if you like the genre, but don't be surprised if you get a headache looking at it.
Coincidentally, they're both named Robert.
It makes for a very 'Odd Couple' "friendship"- because they are very different psychopaths: one being a loner, the other being a complete sociopath. The authors are VERY into their subject matter, having studied serial killers to a degree that makes me (an admitted fan of the genre) a little uncomfortable.
I'm a fan of the Midwest killers - growing up in Wisconsin myself- and there is a rather amusing bit where they basically come to the same conclusion I do - there's something in the water. (Well, I say: All the Beer & Cheese backs people up... but, same idea.)
I'd have given this 4 stars, but the art put me off. It's black and white ink & pencil - but rather than being stark, it's horribly busy, confusing and distracting. WAY too many lines- not enough shading/shadows. It's very... one dimensional. And while that can score you points for ambiance, it looks amateurish - like something that [sic] a psychotic 10th grade boy would do. (Hell, while it's a compliment to the author - several pages WERE used as background props on the BBC crime drama "Luther" to decorate a serial killer's wall. I read it in their blog.)
There are a lot of nice extras, because these guys DO love serial killers - they have their own correspondence with Richard Ramierez & Charlie Manson as extras. (I oculdn't make it through the Manson stuff - if they wanted to be helpful, they should have typed up transcripts because, yeah, Charlie can't write any more coherently than he can think.)
It's all worth a read if you like the genre, but don't be surprised if you get a headache looking at it.
November 15, 2009
It sounds like the beginning of a joke: The Boston Strangler and the Zodiac Killer meet in an old folk's home... But it's anything but funny for the residents of Shady Lane Retirement Center, when a new resident shows up... and current residents start going down.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews