Something is Killing the Children vol 1 by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera
I was not a Comics reader growing up. My love of superheroes came from Superfriends and Spider-man and His Amazing Friends. It wasn’t until I got to college that I was handed Watchmen and Batman Year One and the Dark Knight Returns. So I learned from the beginning of my comics reading some of the wonderful things the medium could do, even though I don’t hav an instinctual sense of of how to read a page developed from childhood. Sometimes I can’t tell if I’m supposed to go right or go down a page. I am not a very visual person - I will often go through a comic focusing solely on the speech bubbles and almost ignoring the art, which means that I can miss things and have to go back. I usually notice the art if it is bad, or confusing, or hilarious, but that’s about it.

I first remember encountering James Tynion IV in the backup stories he did in Batman in the new 52 era. I enjoyed what he did, and then I got the joy of listening to him on panels at New York Comic Con and on a Flame Con soda special episode of Jay and Miles Xplain the X-men. I quickly realized that this was a writer I wanted to seek out and read more of. I really enjoyed his time on Detective Comics - I loved that he used the opportunity to turn it into a real team book for members of the Bat family that don't always get the spotlight, especially Spoiler, who is a personal favorite of mine. His character development of Clayface was also excellent.

Thanks to my local library system, I dived into his creator owned work. I adore Backstagers - it has the right amount of whimsy in its depiction of horror, and the characters are so lovingly crafted that they almost step off the page. I enjoyed his The Woods far more than I would’ve imagined - I am not usually a horror comic type of person, but the interpersonal drama kept me coming back even when the monstrous situations terrified me.

Something is Killing the Children has that same feel as The Woods. The simple plot summary I could give does it a disservice. “Children are going missing and turning up dead, and mysterious girl shows up in town to fight the monster” sounds like it could be cookie cutter or paint by numbers, but it feels like so much more than that.In a few strokes, Tynion creates characters who feel alive and real and plunks them down in a horrible situation.

The story feels to me in the same family as a merging of some of the best elements of Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Stranger Things - not to say that it feels derivative, but just that my personal frame of reference for comparison is probably rather limited. The monster is appropriately terrifying and the overarching mysteries are set up well. It reminds me a lot also of Clean Room by Gail Simone, another comic I had to read with the lights on.

I know from reading all of the Woods that Tynion knows how to plan for the long game. This volume contains issues 1-5, which is enough to set up a much larger world than the small town with missing kids that it starts out as. I look forward to learning more of the creepy telepathic stuffed animal monster hunting organization. Can’t wait for volume 2! Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!

I feel like I should come right out and say, I'm not a huge reader of graphic novels and that very well could have impacted my reading experience. I thought the concept of this was really good but the execution in the first issue fell a little short.

It felt very info-dumpy and you could argue "well it's a first issue duh", but there's a major difference between showing and telling in a novel and the fact that this is a graphic novel makes it way more apparent. I know first issues, even the first few issues of a series are usually for setting up the world and the story and characters etc, but I just thought this could have been done with a bit more finesse.

I didn't feel especially connected to the story or characters, though I found both intriguing, and the art style was interesting. The color story did in terms of propelling the spooky atmosphere.

I think this could definitely work really well for a slightly younger reader, like a teenager, it just happened not to work for me sadly.

This was fun!! I won't say it's horror, per se, but it was still exciting! I loved the illustrations and how the story went. Fast paced and mysterious. The end was a big cliffhanger and I'd love to read more!! Overall, a quick easy to read graphic novel!

As the name of the comic suggests, kids are being killed and some kids also go missing. The story follows a boy survivor and a mysterious blond haired girl who seems to know more than she's sharing.

I just loved this comic. Right from the start, this comic had me in suspense. The dialogue was executed really well and I found myself eager to turn each page and continue reading. The story didn't reveal too much too quickly and had me in suspense the whole way through.

The artwork was fantastic and included some really great full page panels. I really felt like I connected with the characters which doesn't always happen for me when reading comics.

I think this is my new favourite comic and it's probably the best comic of this genre that I've read since reading Locke and Key which is saying a lot. I can't wait to read more of this series.

Wow, what an interesting story! I’m so intrigued. The Stranger Things vibes were awesome. I heard this was getting an adaptation some time soon and I can definitely picture this story with great visuals. I can’t wait to read the next volumes!

Read in April 2020. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for granting me an advanced copy!

Something is Killing the Children Vol 1 was a thrilling graphic novel that drew you in with intensely rich artwork! The premise tugs at deep seated fears of what lurks in the dark, deep in the forest and what could happen to unsuspecting children - especially those in Archer's Peak! Erica Slaughter, monster killer, is the unapologetic, slightly reluctant but proficient heroine that arrives to Archer's Peak to eliminate a monster only to unearth a sinister underbelly. The graphic novel was a a page turner and I looking forward to the next instalments with Erica Slaughter!

Rated 4/5 stars. I felt the homophobic referencing detracted from the story and may be offensive to readers.

Interesting story and I really like Erica's character. The art style is really gritty and unique to me as well, and was stylistically interesting which I think helped the story a lot. I'll be watching for volume two!

I found this comic to be very intriguing. It's a bit of a mystery as to what is killing the children in this town and then a strange woman shows up. I liked the characters a lot. Erica Slaughter was bad ass and as a woman born the same year as her (if her fake ID is believable), I related to her. She was mysterious and fearless. I enjoyed the art style in this comic and the plot itself. It reminded me a bit of Stranger Things. If you like horror mixed with monsters, then this is one you should definitely check out. The ending left many things unresolved and revealed new information, making me want to get my hands on the next volume. I NEED to figure out what is going on with that stupid octopus!

With a solid start, this comic easily captures the reader's attention. The script convinces me, it has attractive but not very innovative ideas from what is seen in this first volume, although it leaves many questions open, the end is an open door to many more possibilities. I am eager to see where all this is going.

Full review published in my blog (April 27): https://tintanocturna.blogspot.com/2020/04/comic-something-is-killing-children-vol.html

The children of Archer’s Peak are disappearing... and a mysterious monster hunter named Erica Slaughter is the only person who can help. Why? Because she and the children are the only ones who can see the monsters. A secret society, shadows only those who believe can see.. I can’t wait to see how the story continues and hopefully learn more about Erica’s backstory! The graphics were also really cool!

I fell into this graphic novel headfirst! I loved how it jumped right into the action. I was annoyed by the black & white because it’s hard to read, but I found out the issues are in color so maybe it was just my ARC from netgalley that has no color.

Didn’t love all the cussing. I realize it’s an action heavy story and stuff is going down, but I personally don’t need so much swearing.

It’s definitely a story that keeps you wanting more. I didn’t think I would be engrossed so quickly but I was. Character backgrounds are smoothly introduced and believable. Artwork is excellent. I can’t wait to read more, and I hope the plot doesn’t get bogged down with multiple issues. At some point the story naturally has to end, but of course, not yet!

I will re-read this volume to prep for the next one. Highly recommended for people who like a moderate amount of scare with no demons.

This is a great graphic novel for fans of Stranger Things. Its very creepy and the artwork does a great job of conveying the tone of the book. Children keep going missing in Archer's Peak, but then a new girl arrives who is determined to put an end to the disappearances,

This graphic novel has an interesting concept and story line to it! It kept my attention the entire time I was reading it. Basically the entire course of the graphic novel you are trying to find out what is killing all the children who went missing. Once you start reading it you don’t want to stop until you get to the end because it is so intense you want to find out who or what is killing these children. I feel like if you aren’t big on graphic novels but you like a good murder mystery this is a graphic novel for you to read! I really enjoyed it all the way through and I definitely can’t wait to have the next volume!

Aaah, this is too short. I don't usually read graphic novels but this one's cover is nice and so I thought the content must be equally good. I wasn't wrong. The concept of this novel is so intriguing, dark, and fascinating. It's so atmospheric which is my absolute favorite. I highly enjoyed every part of it that I know I'll read the next issue soon.

The art is really good too and I'm surprised that this graphic novel is not widely known. It deserves more readers.

*I received this book in exchange for a review from Netgalley*

This was a super short read. I liked the artwork and I liked the overall story. I think I would have enjoyed it more in a physical copy, as I had some issues trying to read it on my computer.

Awesome, visceral, terrifying, punky and totally graphic. I loved the art style and the feminist monster hunting protagonist. A lot of the scenes are not for the faint of heart, and it genuinely scared me.

So I had such high hopes for this one. A creepy killing mystical force snatching children all across town? Yes please. It wasn’t the storyline that let me down but the art style of this graphic novel. The style was all dark greys and black making the panels not only not nice to look at but really hard to see. I couldn’t decipher character from character and was squinting trying to read the text bubbles. The story was intriguing but the art style stood in the way of it’s success. Hopefully the finished copy has a better appearance!

I recently got a Netgalley account and this was one of the first ARCs I received.
I really liked this graphic novel. Somehow, on my first read, the text bubbles were missing. The story worked without those, too, so the art is damn expressive. It was better with the full story though.
Horror, monsters only children can see, and a talking stuffed Octopus. I can see myself picking up this and the next book when it is released at my comic book store.

This was a fun and action-packed story one in which I will definitely have to keep up with. I rated this 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads, and recommend this to any horror fans. Or fans of Stranger Things. I do suggest reading this in physical format as the ebook was somewhat problematic with the splash pages. But the art was great and really made the story more enjoyable.

Funny, snarky monster hunting. What more could you possibly want?

For a first volume this does the job it sets out to do, it sets the scene and builds up a connection between the reader and characters. We don't get much plot development but I can see this building up gradually over the next few installments.

The art is also pleasantly aesthetic, and fits well with the overall tone of the writing. I can be quite picky with my graphic novel art style, so this is high praise from me.

I enjoyed it.