Wormwood T01 - Gentleman zombie

Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse #1-4

by Ben Templesmith, Alex-Nikolavitch Racunica (Traduction)

Wormwood est un asticot pensant, chapp d'une dimension infernale, qui parle anglais (avec un fort accent), boit de la bire (en grande quantit), fume (beaucoup) et qui, accessoirement, habite des cadavres. Aid de Monsieur Pendulum et de la strip-teaseuse Medusa, il passe son temps sauver le monde d'invasions dmoniaques et de prfrence tentaculaires. Frre dgnr d'Hellboy et du Goon, publis chez le mme diteur, Wormwood offre l'occasion son crateur, Ben Templesmith, de donner libre cours son humour dbrid. L'auteur de 30 Jours de nuit et de Fell se rvle parfaitement l'aise dans le double-rle de scnariste et dessinateur de cette srie iconoclaste et djante.

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

136 pages, Hardcover

First published March 14, 2007

About the author

Illustrator and writer of graphic novels / comics.
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Photograph of author by Peow Yeong: October 16 2011 at the 2011 New York Comic Convention in Manhattan.

Reviews

[Char · Rating 4 out of 5]

I came across three volumes of this series in my favorite used book store, and I was psyched!

This first volume introduces us to Wormwood, (who is really a worm in a corpse's eye, and the corpse can change), a ghost/cop named Trotsky and an entire array of weird and wild characters. What fun!

I loved the art work which was apparently done by the author and the world-building is a hoot!

I'm glad that I came across this series, which is 3 volumes total, I believe. I look forward to reading the next one, hopefully this weekend!

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kinda like the Nightside books + the movie Species 2 + lotsa obscenities.

Not quite nonsensical enough to be Bizarro, but leaning thataway.

[ᴥ Irena ᴥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meet Wormwood, a trans-dimensional demigod worm, who frequently saves the world from supernatural threats.

Wormwood hires a bodyguard. Phoebe Phoenix is great. At the same time we see a very violent birth of an alien-looking creature. The ghost of a dead cop Trotsky informs Wormwood of those murders.

The second part of the story starts with a man buying some kind of pills from a weird looking, er, person to help him be more memorable with the ladies.

Trotsky, Wormwood, Phoebe, and Mr Pendulum are having a meeting while waiting for Nybras, grand publicist of the pleasures of the Infernal Court who just got back from a walk with his leprechaun. The leprechaun seems to be really interested in Mr Pendulum. Hilarious. This time they have a real lead.

Insane as he is, Wormwood experiments with the pills. On himself. It takes him a step closer to the truth and solving the murders.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderfully bizarre and hilarious book. I love the bold colors he uses and the distinctive look of each character.

The thing about Ben Templesmith's style is that even when you know something gross is happening, you aren't really grossed out because you're kind of shielded from it by the art. Wormwood and his sidekick Pendulum have to fight lots of things with tentacles, and there's blood aplenty, just like in the 30 Days of Night books. But it all comes out looking great.

As much as it appeals to me visually, I like the humor even more. Lines like, "You can't go spawning these things out of innocent human wombs without their permission. It's just not done. Gives them a rather bad case of instant death, it does," make me giggle.

Definitely will go looking for more.

Update on 12/15/14: I did go looking for more and hated the second volume so much I didn't finish it. Wish I'd stopped with volume 1.

[Paul Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wormwood is a worm who inhabits and controls a corpse from the lofty viewpoint of his eye socket, his body suffers serious injury at times but the sentient worm remains unharmed and is able to change bodies. He gets his head blown off and his body ripped in half in a later issue but its quite funny to see him staple the top half of his head back on.
The taster or issue 0 sees Wormwood and his metallic clockwork companion Pendulum in a strip bar, Pendulum complains from time to time about his role as a drinking buddy with no alcoholic consumption ability and also about having no genitals to speak of. The strip bar is in fact run by Wormwoods ex girlfriend and guards a major interdimensional gateway to other realms, the problem being that things with large tentacles keep sneaking through the gate and ruining the atmosphere.
Issue 1 finds him recruiting a PA who doubles as a bodyguard as another tentacled monster attempts to destroy the world and Wormwood once again must save the day.

I'm a big fan of Ben Templesmiths work and he doesn't disappoint with Wormwood, who is a dark character with a wry sarcastic wit and the artwork is as fantastic as ever. This is not your vivid, sharp superhero type artwork but a more gruesome, crazy and blood spattered style and I'd buy it just for the artwork. Thankfully the characters and the story are equally as mad.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best part of this was the art and the dialogue. The storyline was just okay.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

A worm detective that occupies the body of a corpse, drinks beer and works out of a strip club. There is nothing else to be said.

Templesmith is just that kind of creative genius that manages to pair his subject matter, characters and narrative just so perfectly with his art. My world fell away from the moment I read the first page - Templesmith pulled me in so hard and I could not put this down until I was done. It's reminds me of my childhood Saturday mornings when I would sit and watch cartoons. For each half hour installment, I would live in that world, love the characters, fear their foes and not move an inch the entire time that I watched. Life did not exist outside of He-Man and Shera until the TV was turned off. That's what I did with this, from the moment I turned the first page. I felt like a kid again. Except the jokes were dirtier this time.

[Kerianne Crocker · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this. I'm a huge fan of Hellboy and The Goon and all other comics weird and dark. However, this one just fell short for me. There was little explaination for anything, even though in the second issue Wormwood hires on a new protege so storytelling wise you have an excuse to explain whatever you want. There seems to be rules to this universe but you don't find them out until the author feels like telling you (if ever). I felt that he was trying to hard to be funny and clever and instead it was juvenile and unnecessarily vague. The art was pretty good but overall a big let down.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I mean, alright, look-- this book only really focuses on all things parasites, combusting animals, tits, dicks, and alcohol. And truthfully, that only gets you so far. After about 50 pages, you can't help but wonder if Templesmith has convinced himself that, with enough photoshop filters, anything can look edgy.
On the other hand, it's fucking entertaining. Ultimately, it's a snarky, campy, ultra-violent comic book-- and just that. No pretenses; it doesn't try to be avante-garde or stimulate philosophical discussion-- it's just gross. I feel like Templesmith would have been good friends with the creators of Tank Girl, as it reads in the same vein. Also, as I read this strictly on the metro during rush hour, I couldn't help but giggle at the disgusted/scandalized/perversely interested looks I got from those next to me. Yeah, lady in a pantsuit, this is totally an illustration of a goddamn alien exploding from the torso of some dude mid coitus. HA.

Plus, Harlan Ellison, official asshole of science fiction, likes it. I won't disagree.

[Bambi]

Really disappointed by the silliness of this book. I didn't go into thinking I'd actually take it seriously, but I thought there'd be even one page where I felt like the story had been worth telling.

The misogyny stands out from page 1 and doesn't get any better from there. Every side character who is a woman in this book is half naked and/or dying, and the only main woman is apparently named Phoebe but I only know this because I searched for the information on Google. She wasn't introduced with a name, and if I'm not mistaken, is never referred to by one in the entire book (I convinced myself initially that I had just forgotten, due to a lack of repetition, but upon repeatedly leafing through the book again, I've found absolutely NO mention of her having a name).

Templesmith also draws Medusa and Mistress Koultier as TWINS, and it WILL take you a page or two to realize that they're supposed to be different (side)characters. The singular difference between them is one has tattoos.

I won't even go into how bizarre and objectively offensive the Leprechaun subplot was, I'm ... just baffled by the thought-process behind that. Just weird, pointless, and adds nothing to the book.

All in all, ridiculous and not at all amusing (apart from the explicitly-worm-related bits, that shit is charming as hell and I really wish Ben had simply stuck to Wormy being the center of everything, with far less superficial side-character distractions, because you can tell he's the only character Ben genuinely loves here).

The visual design for Wormwood is great, and the art is lovely at points, I will give him that.

Would not recommend.

[Siren · Rating 5 out of 5]

If someone was to peer into my mind to figure out what my perfect comic would be, this would be the result I think. The art was gorgeous, the humour was just my type of dry, the characters were lovable in their un-lovableness. Had a good time.

[Ayesha (Seokjin's Version) ☾ · Rating 3 out of 5]

That was so bizarre and random but like in a good way?

[nks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Artwork: 5
Story: 3.5 (It had its awesome moments.)

[Branden · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is rare (in fact, this is the only time) that I can say I read a book based on the authors suggestion. This is the case with Wormword, Gentleman Corpse Volume 1. As a twitter user I have found that there are a ton of comic artists that are actually willing to talk with their fans instead of staying distant. This is refreshing, and a great way to get insight from the inside of the comic world. One day I decided to tweet Templesmith and ask him what he considered to be his greatest work - his "masterpiece" - at this point in his career. He replied with "Probably Wormwood Gentlemen Corpse Vol 1 at this point". I figured if the man was nice enough to respond to me that I could return the favor and give Wormwood a try. I can see why Templesmith is proud of this work: it's great!

The reason to read this graphic novel is mainly for the fantastic artwork - which, I must admit, I am becoming a bit obsessed with, between this graphic novel and 30 Days of Night - but that isn't to take away from the great characters Templesmith has created. Wormwood, the gentlemen corpse, is actually a talking worm that takes over different bodies (though he mainly sticks to the corpse). Wormwood is a detective of sorts, trying to keep the other-worldly evils out of this realm and where they belong. He has a sidekick who is a ZZ Top look-a-like that acts as his bodyguard, and loves using his shotgun. Along the way we also meet a ghost detective who is trying to solve a case, and comes to Wormwood for help. There is a ton of blood and gore throughout the novel, as well as very adult situations, but Templesmith has a wonderful sense of humor, and is able to build characters that are deeper than the potty-humor they sometimes spew.

I thoroughly enjoyed Wormwood, Gentlemen Corpse Volume 1, and anyone who likes Templesmith's artwork, or wants something completely different than most other books, this is a great option. It won't change anyones life, but it will entertain the hell out of them. Great read.

Quickie Review: BUY IT

4 out of 5 stars

[jess sanford · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story elements (plot, characters, dialogue, etc.) are very solid, often brilliantly funny yet never quite 'comical' to the point of being, in a sense, comfortable (which is a great thing, a hard thing to manage).

The art is absolutely on another level -- worth 50 more stars and then some. As cliche as it is to say, it really must be seen to be properly experienced or even remotely understood.

Wormwood very much feels like a kind of bastard child (stated in the most complimentary sense) between Neil Gaiman's Sandman series and Transmetropolitan by Warren Ellis. I mean this in both aesthetic and literary senses. There seems to be a certain black, dry wit that these guys (Gaiman, Ellis, Templesmith) manage to pull off that is rare; it almost feels like a kind of grotesque (again, this is admirable), evolved version of what most people think of when thinking of 'British humo(u)r'.

That all said, this is a gorgeous and absolutely visceral graphic novel. I'd never hope or think that the likes of Gaiman and Ellis are 'done' in this genre, far from it, but if Templesmith represents something of a new generation, we're in good (decaying) hands.

I'm admittedly naive about how the graphic novel industry works, but these seems like a series just begging to get picked up by a major brand, specifically DC's Vertigo imprint.

[Helmut · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wurmstichig
Zombies, Tentakel, Würmer und Maschinenwesen. Sie sind alle unter uns, nur sehen wir sie nicht. Durch einen kleinen Zaubertrick kann der paranormale Ermittler Wormwood, ein Wurm, der eine Leiche bewohnt, ganz normal durch unsere Welt streifen und verhindern, dass sie von von der Apokalypse besessenen Tentaklophilen zerstört wird.

Wer Comics wie Hellboy und Hellblazer, Pulp-Helden wie John Thunstone oder grundsätzlich lovecraftsche Geschichten mag, sollte hier dringend zugreifen. Zeichnerisch total abgefahren, voller ekliger Details und schmieriger Kolorierung bleibt auch der Humor nicht auf der Strecke - ohne zu spoilern, dieser Sammelband hat das verrückteste Ende, das ich je in einem Comic gelesen habe. Schon allein auf Grund dieses absurden Endes müsste man es lesen.

Da schon Folgebände erschienen sind, werde ich mir diese auch ganz gewiss zu Gemüte führen.

[Ethan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The titular Wormwood is a supernatural maggot detective who possesses a rotting corpse. He speaks and peaks out of the corpse's empty eye socket. He solves supernatural mysteries, has a team of oddballs to help him do it, and is generally crude and too direct.

It's a fantastic premise and concept, and this first issue basically is proof of concept. Visually it's a total treat; it's unique unto itself, featuring novel creature and character designs, a unique art style, and did I mention the sweet creatures (that feel more than a little inspired by Alien, which is always bonus points for me)?

The characters do feel a little stock, at least in this first collection. Wormwood is gruff and always right, even though he's an ass. He's got a clockwork companion who's always complaining about being clockwork/not having 'bits'. There's a ghost cop who appears at the end, and a Liz Sherman parallel in female character with mysterious magical powers. None of them are particularly unique or well developed, which makes the parallel to Hellboy very easy to draw.

Fortunately the tone sets it apart, as it's much more humorous and uses humor to play with the established format.

Where does that leave us? Interesting tone, fascinating aesthetic design, but overall generic writing.

[Toastkat · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't like it. Not because it was too bloody or too horrific, but because it was trying too hard. It was trying too hard to impress me, to horrify me, to haunt me. Neil Gaiman does a much better job with thimble full of blood at most. This? This reminded me of Clive Barker's "Abarat" where, once again, all I could think about was how hard it was trying and how much it was failing to get under my skin. With every turn of the page, I could hear a specter over my shoulder going, "Ooooh, a corpse haunted by a sentient maggot. SpOOOoookyyyy!" Nah. It's not. It's not edgy, it's not haunting, it isn't spooky, and it didn't make me stop and think afterwards the way better comic books have in the past. Which is sad, because there are neat ideas here. It's just a shame they were executed poorly.

[Jeff T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

What's not to like about stories from the life of an ancient, interdimensional worm who wears corpse body suits, drinks beer at a strip club bar run by his ex-gf--who operates the club as a front for the portal she guards (in exchange for immortality) along with her ferocious, anima-projectile full-body dragon tattoo--while he (Wormwood) periodically/inevitably saves the world--along with the clockwork drinking buddy/sidearm he assembled (sans bits & the ability to drink)--from heavily tentacled, shapeshifting beasties, written with dry meta-dialogue and illustrated with lurid, quasi-figurative, color-warped glee by ben templesmith, who worked on 30 Days of Night and Fell?

[Nancy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wonder if this is what is inside all boys' minds: exploding maggots, hideous tentacled killer-beasts, and bored playboy bunny-ish women in torn t-shirts. The weird thing is, I liked looking at Wormwood, Gentleman Corpse. Another weird thing is that Art Garfunkel (who is what I had in my girl-mind for years) drew a picture of Wormwood, and it's in the back, with Ben Templesmith's and other peoples' full-page drawings. (Which might be the best part of the book for me.)

[Donald Armfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was F'N outstanding. A mash-up genre busting comic. With talking corpses, clockwork humanoids, demons, magic And so much more. This graphic novel packs a mean punch.

The Wormwood character is a trip. Laughs I'm sure you'll have just from his dialogue.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you like like your graphic novels with tentacles, sex, and violence, this might be for you. Very bizarre humor and not for the kiddies, shades of Brian Lumley!

[Katharine (Ventureadlaxre) · Rating 5 out of 5]

The dialogue and plot can't e beat. He sure wins at random, which only makes you crave more and more.

[Zane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great art. Story is good enough. The main character is a corpse reanimated and controlled by a small demonic worm. Nuff said.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now this was more than a pleasant surprise. Amazing, on every level, the art, the writing, the humor. Love the leprechaun. And it's rather gross, in a completely fitting way.

[Giorgos TSOP · Rating 4 out of 5]

a good read with very aggresive black humor!

[Melissa Milazzo · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's not great literature, but it's dashing good fun. Really, how can you not like a book that introduces you to your protagonist by boasting "He once gave Nefertiti the clap"?

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovecraftian comedy. If you can believe that as a genre. So good.

[Suki St Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lotsa tentacles in here! Is it just my imagination, or does the worm-animated corpse bear at least a passing resemblance to Mr Lovecraft?

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wormwood, as a character, is an odd one. And I don't just mean the fact that he's a sentient maggot riding around in an animated corpse. I mean, as a protagonist, he's...not terribly proactive. He's witty, and intelligent, and knowledgeable about all sorts of occult and arcane things, but 90% of what he does amounts to just talking a good game. His companions are the ones that actually do things, most of the time, and if the writing were just a little less engaging than it is, I'd find that bothersome.

As it stands, Wormwood is a quirky urban fantasy series, full of droll humor, a wide variety of characters, and some interesting threats. Granted, one of those threats is dealt with in a very...perfunctory fashion, but the journey to get to that point is at least suitably interesting.

While it was enjoyable, however, I'm not quite champing at the bit to pick up the next volume of Wormwood. It's still an interesting series, but there are others that I find more compelling. Also, the art is hit or miss--it's definitely stylized, and for the most part I like it, but I could see it being a bit off-putting, with its muddy colors, and liberties taken with character models. Give Wormwood a shot, if you like the idea of a protagonist who's a lower-key version of Harry Dresden; you might like it.