Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
134th out of 554 books
—
1,747 voters
Bizenghast Volume 1 (Bizenghast #1)
Not every lost soul is a lost cause.
When a young girl moves to the forgotten town of Bizenghast, she uncovers a terrifying collection of lost souls that leads her to the brink of insanity. One thing becomes painfully clear: The residents of Bizenghast are just dying to come home.
A finalist in TOKYOPOP's Rising Stars of Manga competition, Marty Legrow has crafted an unforge...more
When a young girl moves to the forgotten town of Bizenghast, she uncovers a terrifying collection of lost souls that leads her to the brink of insanity. One thing becomes painfully clear: The residents of Bizenghast are just dying to come home.
A finalist in TOKYOPOP's Rising Stars of Manga competition, Marty Legrow has crafted an unforge...more
Paperback, 184 pages
Published
August 9th 2005
by TokyoPop
(first published 2005)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
1,939)
I don't know if I revealed this little tidbit in my earlier posts, but I am a fan of Gothic fashion and art, and I love stories that play with the psyche. Since this book looked like it would combine the two elements (needless to say, a winning combination), I eagerly picked up 1-8 of the series. I plan to cover all of them.
Bizenghast is about a girl named Dinah living in the Victorian (?) era. Her careiver believes she is mad, and it is hinted that she might be institutionalized. It is mentione...more
Bizenghast is about a girl named Dinah living in the Victorian (?) era. Her careiver believes she is mad, and it is hinted that she might be institutionalized. It is mentione...more
Dinah is a troubled young girl who has lost her parents in a tragic accident and lives with her aunt in a former-school-renovated-into-a-house. She claims to see ghosts and insists that her cuts and bruises from them. The only time she doesn't seem to see them, or manage to ignore them, is when she's with Vincent, a boy she is close to and deeply cares for. But even he could not stop her from getting into incontrollable fits that suggests she is suffering from a serious mental or psychological p...more
So I picked this one up at random. My daughter brought it home from school and of course left it where I could find it. The cover was obviously the first thing that caught my eye. (It is the cover after all) But look at it, it is amazing! I was really drawn into how the only color is the eyes. The title alone really caught my attention too!
Even after reading the summery on the back I still wasn't sure exactly what to expect. Something creepy? Dark maybe? But hopefully something interesting. I w...more
Even after reading the summery on the back I still wasn't sure exactly what to expect. Something creepy? Dark maybe? But hopefully something interesting. I w...more
Dinah is psychologically disturbed. She sees ghosts and has fits that look like they could be epilepsy. After her parents are killed in a car accident, she moves into an old boarding school building with her aunt. I'm not really clear on this, but there's also a boy named Vincent who might be her boyfriend and might just be her friend, and even though she's clearly moved, she's still close enough for him to bike to her in a short time. The two of them sneak out of the house for a walk in the woo...more
Nov 21, 2011
Liang
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
fans of the supernatural, horror, and those who love gothic style art
It's been a little while since I read this series, but I'll give a review a go.
First off, I really liked it overall. The story is interesting and different and Ms LeGrow's art style matches the atmosphere wonderfully. I must admit, I first picked it up for the art, which is a big strong point for the series. Ms LeGrow has a wonderful ability to set the atmosphere with her attention to visual details. Sometimes a manga's art can overwhelm or distract, but LeGrow did a very good job balancing visu...more
First off, I really liked it overall. The story is interesting and different and Ms LeGrow's art style matches the atmosphere wonderfully. I must admit, I first picked it up for the art, which is a big strong point for the series. Ms LeGrow has a wonderful ability to set the atmosphere with her attention to visual details. Sometimes a manga's art can overwhelm or distract, but LeGrow did a very good job balancing visu...more
This is the first in a series of manga about a young woman and young man who are forced to clear out a mausoleum of its ghosts. I don't really think there's a lot of plot here - it reminded me of stories I put together as a tween and teen that were really just excuses for me to draw cool costumes and scenes and which I then kind of put into "order" and made a story around. The author takes part in costume-cons and makes costumes based on her Bizenghast drawings.
This is not saying I don't like it...more
This is not saying I don't like it...more
If I remember correctly, i learned about the creator of this series from an NPR piece. She has a regular gig as a party princess. It probably mentioned the disparity between that and her graphic novel series. Yup. This is not a party princess book!
Apparently I don't enjoy gothic tales or empty-eyed manga looking characters, because I didn't enjoy this much. The artwork is inconsistent. Some spreads are lush and detailed, others are sparse. Perhaps that's standard for manga, but it threw me off....more
Apparently I don't enjoy gothic tales or empty-eyed manga looking characters, because I didn't enjoy this much. The artwork is inconsistent. Some spreads are lush and detailed, others are sparse. Perhaps that's standard for manga, but it threw me off....more
The book's cover has a girl with a violin for a torso; it's a wonder I didn't check this book out earlier.
As I read this book, I was reminded of that movie Brother's Grimm that came out in '05 in that it read like a macabre fairytale mixed with the basic objectives of a video game. With cross-hatched landscapes and characters with china-doll eyes, the surreal quality of the story was easily reflected during the protagonists' journey. The artwork has a peculiarly attractive to it, so much differ...more
As I read this book, I was reminded of that movie Brother's Grimm that came out in '05 in that it read like a macabre fairytale mixed with the basic objectives of a video game. With cross-hatched landscapes and characters with china-doll eyes, the surreal quality of the story was easily reflected during the protagonists' journey. The artwork has a peculiarly attractive to it, so much differ...more
Okay this book sounded amazing when I read about it, and not to say it was terrible, but I was pretty disappointed.
First off, the drawings in my opinion didn't impress me at all. Sure, the author's a good artist, but I have some 14-year-old friends that draw manga better than her. Just saying. The way I am, the drawings kind of distracted me.
Also, the plot wasn't even that great. It went along way too fast and seemed to skip for some reason. Things happened too quickly. That was distracting, too...more
First off, the drawings in my opinion didn't impress me at all. Sure, the author's a good artist, but I have some 14-year-old friends that draw manga better than her. Just saying. The way I am, the drawings kind of distracted me.
Also, the plot wasn't even that great. It went along way too fast and seemed to skip for some reason. Things happened too quickly. That was distracting, too...more
M. Alice LeGrow's art is very pretty on the surface. Then again, I'm sort of attracted to that dark, gothic look that she is going for in Bizenghast. Her drawings, however, fall apart when she has to draw more than a few pages; her submission in Tokyopop's Rising Stars of Manga competition looked much better, likely because she had more time to perfect each panel's layout and art. Her characters look awkward at times and stiff almost all of the time. Her backgrounds range from very detailed and...more
This was a pretty pleasant surprise. Dinah loses her parents, and as a result has to move with relatives in the New England town of Bizenghast. The doctors think the young girl may not be well, maybe due to the trauma of loss, but things are not as simple as that. And the town itself is not what it seems to be. Apparently, there is this cemetery that appears and disappears, and it has trapped souls in it. And Dinah is given the task of freeing them. With the help of her friend Vincent, she sets...more
I've been wanting to read this series for years. So I finally got around to it.
I'm not really sure what to think. The story is really interesting and intriguing, but at times, the art looks like a 4th grader did it. It is not uncommon for the art in the first few volumes in any manga or graphic novel series to look like beginners work and as the series goes on, it gets better. I hope that happens with this series. Because sometimes, the author/artist draws very beautifully, as seen below in this...more
I'm not really sure what to think. The story is really interesting and intriguing, but at times, the art looks like a 4th grader did it. It is not uncommon for the art in the first few volumes in any manga or graphic novel series to look like beginners work and as the series goes on, it gets better. I hope that happens with this series. Because sometimes, the author/artist draws very beautifully, as seen below in this...more
i was really surprised, i liked it more than i thought i would. the artwork isn't constitant, it becomes apparent with profiles (they don't appear to remain the same through out the book). the level of artwork also doesn't feel like it remains constant for the characters themselves. a perfect example would be that cat. nevermind that the character dinah and vincent get increasingly more simplistic, but the cat looks like it was suppose to be comic relief, and instead it feels like it was rushed...more
This was a pretty good manga. The art is pretty awesome, unique for sure, and the story idea is quite interesting as well.
The only reason I give it 3 stars, however, is because it's an easy read. When I read this story, I feel that it's too fast paced and meant for someone with a short attention span, like a younger child or something. It's really fun to read, but I don't get to know much about the characters. I enjoyed it though...it's just not quite at my reading level.
I suggest it as a story...more
The only reason I give it 3 stars, however, is because it's an easy read. When I read this story, I feel that it's too fast paced and meant for someone with a short attention span, like a younger child or something. It's really fun to read, but I don't get to know much about the characters. I enjoyed it though...it's just not quite at my reading level.
I suggest it as a story...more
A fantastic way to spend a rainy (or sunny) afternoon, this series is entertaining, catches your interest and occaisonally has you cursing the author (Particularly around book 4 or 5, when you get there you'll know why).
It's perfect if you're a guy or a gilr because it caters to both genders in this sereis and there's something for most readers.
It is a fantasy story with some creeepy elements mixed in. This sereies is also perfect if you are or identify with goth or Emo culture, and if you just...more
It's perfect if you're a guy or a gilr because it caters to both genders in this sereis and there's something for most readers.
It is a fantasy story with some creeepy elements mixed in. This sereies is also perfect if you are or identify with goth or Emo culture, and if you just...more
Usually when I agonize over whether or not to pick up a book, it becomes one of my favorite books/series. This is the exception, apparently. I can't tell you how often I've considered this book, only to walk away. The artwork, which is what was drawing me in, is lovely. I'd love to take one of the panels and turn it into a piece of framed art for my room. The story, on the other hand, did nothing for me. It felt like a handful of ideas rolled together without the fresh take that such things need...more
I picked this up because it was super cheap on Amazon. I'm not generally one for anime style comics, or anime syle ones written by Americans, but this sounded interesting enough I thought I'd give it a try. The ideas for it were kinda neat, a young girl who lives next to a graveyard and has to free the trapped souls, it was supposed to be a nice spooky adventure but the individual plots and the dialogue were really weak. It had a lot of potential but there was just no characterisation at all. Th...more
I've seen this book a million times in the bookstore and never picked it up. The artwork is very unique and sometimes spotty and inconsistent, but the story is strangely hypnotizing. Dinah and Vincent accidentally uncover a forgotten cemetery, haunted by a variety of lost souls which they must help set to rest. The individual "episodes" are pretty formulaic, but the overall story grows slowly and eventually hooked me. I will definitely be picking up more volumes soon.
This manga had a steampunkish feel to me!
What I liked about it most was that it literally takes you to another world; a world that's creepy,odd, yet so much the same as the world we live in. The main character, though odd (surprise, surprise), has a heart that you come to get close to and root for in every way!
This book won my heart!
What I liked about it most was that it literally takes you to another world; a world that's creepy,odd, yet so much the same as the world we live in. The main character, though odd (surprise, surprise), has a heart that you come to get close to and root for in every way!
This book won my heart!
I was disappointed. Two different people referred me to this book, so I had high hopes (maybe too high). I didn't care for the short chapters. Each segment felt almost disjointed. I would recommend this graphic novel to anyone who likes fantasy and mystery. I however do not care for the mystery element.
When sickly orphan Dinah and her best friend trespass in a mysterious mausoleum, the supernatural guardians tell her she must help the troubled souls stored there to pass on peacefully, or suffer a horrible punishment.
Much of the story consists of episodes with different souls in their individual dream realms. Given the centrality of this action I was disappointed that the sub-stories weren't longer and more developed. I would have liked to see more intellectual and emotional challenges for the...more
Much of the story consists of episodes with different souls in their individual dream realms. Given the centrality of this action I was disappointed that the sub-stories weren't longer and more developed. I would have liked to see more intellectual and emotional challenges for the...more
A doe-eyed but haunted teenage girl and her kind-hearted male friend stumble upon a mysterious graveyard in the middle of the woods, where they are threatened into solving riddles involving the unrestful spirits that dwell there.
Beautiful artwork, dreamlike scenery, morbid plot...what more could a girl ask for?
Beautiful artwork, dreamlike scenery, morbid plot...what more could a girl ask for?
Somewhat decent, but after the great reviews I saw on Amazon I was very disappointed. The art is nice, though you shouldn't expect to find the same quality as the cover art throughout. The plot reminded me of a video game, revolving around the characters following clues, doing a bit of simple puzzle solving and object finding in order to free souls. Of course, unlike a video game, you don't get to have interactive fun controlling the characters and following the clues yourself. You just watch th...more
I've been reading hie series from since it first came out until the final volume was released on-demand.
While some of the earlier art and story lines in Bizenghast aren't quite as good as the final volumes, it's clear that LeGrow puts quality in her art and writing above all things.
While some of the earlier art and story lines in Bizenghast aren't quite as good as the final volumes, it's clear that LeGrow puts quality in her art and writing above all things.
This was an interesting read. I'm not sure if I liked it or not, though much of the art work was beautiful --in the high style of manga -- & it would be gorgeous in color.
But I'm just not sure about the story. I will read volume 2 to see if it gives me any more insight.
But I'm just not sure about the story. I will read volume 2 to see if it gives me any more insight.
The story's alright, sort of typical strange and beautiful gothiness. It's part of what will probably be a long-ish series, and I don't really want to commit that much money to the whole thing. But the artwork is really beautiful, and it's worth buying a volume or two.
You know, having read it a second time, it's not as good as I remember. I remember really liking the art, but reading it now, I'm going, "Dang, this art is quirky, and is her head on backwards there?" The clothes are pretty bizarre too. I live in a pretty diverse community, but I've never seen anyone dressed like that outside an anime convention. And the panel layout juts makes me cringe. There are large blocks of text that aren't broken up. And when I say large, I mean "takes up half the page."...more
I did not sleep well after reading this one. Blessed with beautiful art, this atmospheric graphic novel has fantastically creepy stories and weird characters. Best of all the protagonist seems real to me; she has flaws and faults, and is gloriously messed up.
This is a review for the entire series (8 volumes). The art and dialogue start off pretty rough, but they quickly find their stride. While I'm kind of confused about some things, the series overall is phenomenal. I only wish it had been longer.
The art, the dreamlike quality, the touch of horror to keep things from being too sappy, all great. Dinah though... I can't stand her. This gets 4 stars partly on the basis of hope (that she becomes less annoying as the series progresses).
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
M. Alice LeGrow is a female manga-influenced alternate comic book artist best known for her original English-language manga series Bizenghast. From the Savannah College of Art and Design, she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Sequential Art.
As a young girl, Mary Alice LeGrow was not interested in comics since she grew up in Weisbaden, Germany where comics were not readily available. In her freshma...more
More about M. Alice LeGrow...
As a young girl, Mary Alice LeGrow was not interested in comics since she grew up in Weisbaden, Germany where comics were not readily available. In her freshma...more
Share This Book
2 trivia questions
More quizzes & trivia...
Apr 05, 2010 03:32pm