Possessions, Vol. 1: Unclean Getaway

Possessions #1

by Ray Fawkes

Meet Gurgazon the Unclean, the cuddliest little pit demon ever trapped in the Llewellyn-Vane House for Captured Spirits and Ghostly Curiosities This pit demon may look just like a cute little 5-year-old girl, but it isn't interested in playing checkers with other ghosts. The Gurgazon is determined to escape Will the house contain it? Or will the world of peace and friendly bunnies come to an end as the Gurgazon exacts its revenge?

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Horror, Humor, Young Adult, Ghosts, Demons

88 pages, Paperback

First published March 24, 2010

About the author

Ray Fawkes is the critically-acclaimed author of the comics and graphic novels Underwinter, Intersect, One Soul, The People Inside, The Spectral Engine, Possessions, and Junction True, as well as Batman: Eternal, Constantine, Justice League Dark, and Gotham by Midnight (DC), Wolverines (Marvel), Black Hammer '45 (Dark Horse), Jackpot! (AfterShock) and more. He is an Eisner, Harvey, and Shuster award nominee and a YALSA award winner.

Ray has been making comics for over 20 years, starting with and continuing the tradition of DIY fiction as well as working for many major comics publishers in the U.S. and Canada.

Reviews

[T · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m glad I️ read this, very amusing I’d read more.

[Sumit Singla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't quite know what to make of Possessions. It uses fairly simple art in black and white and green to tell the tale of Gurgazon the Unclean, who is a pit demon in the shape of a little girl. Her single minded focus is to escape her prison, and there is a lot of tantrum-throwing, and a LOT of puking involved. Also, Gurgazon prefers to refer to herself in the third person, which makes her a lot less intimidating as a demon.

Quite gross, actually! However, there is a bit of quirky humour involved at times, and I guess my curiosity has been aroused enough to make me want to pick up the next volume and discover what happens to Gurgazon.

But overall, I wouldn't say you need to go out of your way to procure a copy of Possessions and read it pronto.

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read several of Fawkes's works for adults, which can be quite dark, so I had some reservations about how dark this graphic novel for young readers might be. I was pleasantly surprised that Fawkes injected so much humor and feeling into this first volume. I highly recommend this as a good "scary" (yet also funny) title for younger readers and look forward to reading more from the series.

[Jeff Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Possessions is a cutesy horror series that is intended for children. Gurgazon is a “pit demon” who is captured and brought to a house for paranormal entities. Instead of making nice with her fellow supernatural beings, Gurgazon just wants to be nasty, destructive, and to escape.

I’ve only ever read one other comic by Fawkes and that was One Soul. This series is so totally different from that. It aims for cuteness and humor. The art matches the tone. Interestingly, each volume is monochromatic, this one done up in shades of green.

This is fine for what it is. I’m sure my daughter would like it. For me, though, it didn’t blow my socks off.

[Leo100 · Rating 5 out of 5]

My personal favorite book of all time. Its about Gurgazon, an evil pit demon who looks like and sort of is a five year old girl. That does not make her any less evil or sadistic. She is trapped at a house for ghosts which means her plans for the destruction of the world have to wait. She meets some ghosts who are also trapped in this house so they all try to escape but they have a mysterious butler who seems to always know if they are trying to escape and how. Its a really fun series and I highly recommend checking it out. there are lots of funny moments and the plot is very creative.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ray Fawkes is an undiscovered treasure of the comics world. This is the opening of an apocalyptic epic of slapstick proportions, introducing Gurgazon the Unclean, and how she falls into the clutches of the Llewelyn-Vane House collection, and we meet her new friends and Mr. Thorne. Zany horror ensues as she attempts escape!

[Diana-christie Biancardi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really funny!!

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fast read “graphic short story” (not a graphic novel).fun and funny with a kind of a “Ransom of Red Chief” tone it was enjoyable.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

There would be SO MUCH to say about the many many reasons I ADORED this book. Oh. My. Gawd. The hysterical jokes and fantastic characters...

The plot is simple enough- Mrs. Llewellyn-Vane collects /spirits/... sort of. Her mansion and property are one giant prison for them, and she delights in sending out her seemingly ommnicient butler, Mr. Thorne, to the aquisition of them, whenever she knows of one that can be aquired.

In this book, he has brought home a little girl who declares herself (posessed of course) "Gurgazon The Unclean"... there's no little girl anymore, don't you know, only THE MIGHTY GURGAZON!!! ...the other spirits are enamoured or outright annoyed by this beastly demon, and the tale focuses on her attempts to escape the manor.

I am deeply regretful that our library only has this first book- it was SO amusing, I plan to try and convince them to aquire the rest of the set. Barring that, I will totally buy them myself, and gift them to someone I know who just positively, absolutely, NEEDS this in her library. ;)

This book is WELL worth reading for horror fans of any age, and those in the goth subculture will find it especially amusing- even the 'baby bats' who are still growing into it. ;)

[Fantasy Literature · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking for a fun, unique, well-written book for your 8-12 year old, you should seek out a copy of Possessions by Ray Fawkes. It’s horror fiction for kids in the same way that Scooby-Doo is technically horror fiction: It’s just so much fun, there’s nothing to be frightened of. Basically, the main character looks like a five- to six-year old girl, but she’s actually a pit demon known as “Gurgazon the Unclean.”

Gurgazon is captured by Mr. Thorne, a butler-like servant who maintains for his elderly employer the Llewellyn-Vane House for Captured Spirits and Ghostly Curiosities. The main narrative is simple: Gurgazon tries again and again to escape and is constantly frustrated by Mr. Thorne who seems to anticipate perfectly every ... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...

[Kayt O'Bibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

It looks like a five-year-old girl and will eat you alive if given the chance. I think that's a valid reason for reading.

This was short (very! Under 100 pages), and fairly simple: Gurgazon the Unclean is captured to be part of the Llewellyn-Vane House for Captured Spirits and Ghostly Curiosities (read: the sweet old lady's private collection of ghosties), and rages around at the injustice of it all, which is hard to take in when it's a 5-year-old.

The art took me a bit to get used to: it's very thick, kinda unsteady (in a deliberate way), but it works well. This is entirely appropriate for younger kids, but adults will enjoy Gurgazon's schemes as well.

[Kim Herrington · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny comic about the newest addition to a collection of Captured Spirits & Ghostly Curiosities, Gurgazon, a pit demon. Gurgazon takes great pleasure in being horrifying, but she's not horrifying enough to escape the collection. No matter how hard she tries the butler Thorne, reminiscent of Lurch from The Addams Family, is there to prevent her from escape. But then she comes up with the best plan yet. Will she get out?

This comic is cleverly written and drawn: Gurgazon is a cute little demon, a precocious little girl. A good choice for middle grades readers who like scary tempered with fun.

[Candice M (tinylibrarian) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super-fun, and someone-who-shall-not-be-named likes to claim that the main character is very similar to me when I am in a bad mood. Hmph. While I really enjoyed it and some of the titles I've nominated this year do tend to be on the younger side of teen/tweens, I'm not convinced that it is really a title for teens. I will ask the experts (my teens/tweens) at my Free Comic Book Day program on Saturday and see what the wise ones say.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's cute, but other than the escape attempts, I'm still not sure there's a story. Gurgazon, a demon who has taken either the form or the body of a small child, is captured and put into a collection of supernatural beings. Gurgazon is not happy with this. Gurgazon wants to escape. Gurgazon speaks in the third person entirely too much.
The juxtaposition of cuteness and evil works okay, but I'm waiting to see if there's any more to it in the second book.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

A dark little story about a 5 year old girl who is possessed by a pit demon determined to destroy the world. Unfortunately, she has been taken to a special home for spirits, entities and demons that has been made especially to keep creatures like her from escaping into the world. This book made me laugh out loud more than a couple times and would be an appealing read for the 9-12 year old set. The first in a series.

[Christiane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Heart-warming story of Gurgazon the Unclean, a demon who looks like a cute little girl, and her attempt to escape the Llewellyn-Vane House for Captured Spirits and Ghostly Curiosities. Be warned there's a bit of ickiness, enhanced by the comics black, white, and light green color scheme, but I think that bothered me more than it would bother kids reading this.

[Derek Handley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun twisted comic book. It's inventive, silly, gleefully drawn and well constructed. The only thing holding me back from giving it four stars is that it's an origin book: it sets up the world and the characters, but not a lot actually happens.

Definitely a book worth getting.

[Linda Atkinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will not be letting in any pit demons; energy WAY to high. But bet that won't bother any kids
;-)Witty and graphic in black, white, and green hues and spews. Will recommend this graphic novel for 7+

[Deborah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick, fun read about a little girl possessed by a pit demon who is captured to be part of an old woman's collection. The other members have been trapped for years, but Gurgazon has some fresh ideas of escape.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this enough to buy the second book, which is saying something. The art is simple and pleasing. Not terribly much in the way of actual plot, but I like the setup and am interested to see where this eventually might lead if it decides to go anywhere. :)

[May · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was such a weird one. It was cute, and would probably appeal to a younger audience more than it did to me, but it was just odd. I am interested, though, to see how it continues into the second book.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this morbidly adorable. It's funny, and I would love to read the next book. Its not a very serious book to read, but I found it a nice break from all the dramatic young adult books that I have been reading.

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This grew on me as I read it. The illustrations are well-suited to the story. A quick, fun read.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really fun little book about a little girl possessed by a demon and living in a house full of other spirits. No real story here though.

[Kerry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rather cute.

[Drea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review at: http://bookblather.net/?p=4417

Does contain spoliers as I cover book one and two

[Marjorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know what the fuck I just read. what a weird little graphic novel with a green vomit spewing main beastie who speaks in third person. reminds me of the exorcist.

[ImADinosaur · Rating 2 out of 5]

cute. juvenile.