The End of the Fucking World

The End of the Fucking World #1-7

by Charles Forsman

Fantagraphics is proud to publish this first-ever hardcover edition of TEotFW in conjunction with the 2017 television drama on UK’s Channel 4 (with distribution via U.S. streaming to follow soon thereafter). Originally released to critical and public acclaim in 2013, Charles Forsman’s graphic novel debut follows James and Alyssa, two teenagers living a seemingly typical teen experience as they face the fear of coming adulthood. Forsman tells their story through each character’s perspective, jumping between points of view with each chapter. But quickly, this somewhat familiar teenage experience takes a more nihilistic turn as James’s character exhibits a rapidly forming sociopathy that threatens both of their futures. He harbors violent fantasies and begins to act on them, while Alyssa remains as willfully ignorant for as long as she can, blinded by young love.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fiction, Young Adult, Graphic Novels Comics, Crime, Contemporary

176 pages, Paperback

First published August 3, 2013

About the author

Charles Forsman was born in Pennsylvania in 1982. He is arguably the most acclaimed talent to come out of the Center for Cartoon Studies, a school founded in 2004 by graphic novelist James Sturm and educator Michelle Ollie in White River Junction, VT. Forsman graduated in 2008 and is a two-time Ignatz Award-winner for his self-published minicomic, Snake Oil. He lives in Hancock, MA, where he runs Oily Comics. - See more at: http://www.fantagraphics.com/index.ph...

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/10/24: Reread with Spring 24 YAL class, and appreciated by many. Many in the class also read I am Not Okay With This, also by Forman, and appreciated (if not exactly "liked") it, too.

8/31/21: Reread for my summer comics class: The class either read this and/or read another Forsman book, I Am Not Okay With This, but those that read it appreciated the vibe, the portrait of an alienated psychopath boy and the lost girl who hangs with him though she knows she shouldn't.

Update late April 2021: As I read this with my Spring 2020 growing up class. No, I have not yet seen any of the tv series episodes, but I still might.

I might have said this is an "anti-romance" but the class noted that there are exchanges of love between the two, in spite of all the violence they engage in.

Original review, 6/15/20, somewhat edited: Y'all younguns probably knew the acronym TEOTFW was The End of the Fucking World. Cute. Like the YA novel TTYL. But not really. I had this on my TBR (see what I am doing here? so hip with my use of acronyms!) list for a long time, had tried and failed to get it through my library system and forgotten altogether what it was about. At first glance it looks a bit like the simply and sketchily drawn diary comics I had just read, Jeffery Brown, and Charles Schultz-influenced. A stripped-down, no-nonsense coming-of-age story about two disaffected and almost completely unlikable teens, James and Alyssa.

Then it turns dark. Bonnie and Clyde/Badlands/Natural Born Killers territory, but without much of the warmth/humor/love story of those precedents for this tale. Criminal road trip. It's a short version of the above, a story of a sociopath and a somewhat younger, more vulnerable girl, operating out of widening contexts of malaise/sadness/badlands. The Killer in Me (Thompson) noir psychopath territory. Alternating between the boy's and girl's perspectives, ending sadly with Alyssa's perspective. More brutally realist than those movies, in one sense, in that the kids are so sadly inarticulate and listless and clueless, but finally there remains a bit of pathos for Alyssa, one victim of James. And as one student reminds me, his last words in this story are in fact "I love you" so that is something to consider. This was unsettling and powerful and nasty and not exactly likable and yet admirable for its unromanticized achievement, a depiction of some teen types that rarely get memorialized in any way. Forsman's first graphic novel, and a good one.

On second reading I liked it a little less, not sure what it contributes to the sub-genre of psychopath lit. Except maybe this is convincingly under-class white bread America, soul-less, rudderless youth, though maybe Alyssa, in their visit to the father she hasn't seen in ten years, creates a little sympathy, and her following James in spite of his being such a jerk creates more sympathy for her. I read it for free through Hoopla.

On third reading I liked it a little more, again! It made me want to watch all those killers-on-the -road movies as a study of disaffected American violent culture. Not fun, okay, but maybe useful.

[Fabian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Impressive gonzo violence comes in such a sweet lethal package!! This gives a wicked jolt of invigorating life energy to squiggles and shapes and letters on white paper.

This is a true pictorial achievement.

The Netflix show looks promising...

[Jan Philipzig · Rating 4 out of 5]

TEotFW reads like an updated, rougher version of Terrence Malick's 1974 masterpiece Badlands. While Malick's movie is narrated by a teenage girl who runs away with a charming but violent young greaser, Charles Forsman's comic book alternates the perspectives of its two young runaway protagonists. In both cases the narration is at the same time strikingly honest and fatally inept, and in both cases the female teenager turns a blind eye on the increasingly antisocial and brutal behavior of her male partner. Yet the beauty and poetry Malick finds in the lives of his anti-heroes is almost completely absent from Forsman's cold and ugly world.

Forsman's artwork is clearly influenced by early newspaper strips such as Gasoline Alley and Thimble Theatre, but has a cruder, grittier, more basic edge that reminds me of contemporary alternative cartoonist Jeffrey Brown. The artwork perfectly matches the protagonists' bleak lives and abrasive, unsophisticated mindsets.

[Scott · Rating 1 out of 5]

The End of the F***ing World? More like I'm glad I got to the end of this f***ing book. Centered on a protagonist who has all the charm of a wino who spent the night in a dumpster - only two pages into it and he's admitting that he killed dozens of small animals as a young teen; the bedwetting and the setting of fires must've been depicted elsewhere to complete the traditional homicidal triad - this seemed like another of one those edgy in attempt but instead tiresome in presentation 21st-century updates on the oft-used 'Bonnie & Clyde' criminal mythos. (Their world is not offering them much, so they offer it the middle finger. Yawn.) The charmless James and Alyssa characters are apparently damaged products of their horrible families / environment, but it was a bit unsettling, disturbing and then ultimately joyless to watch them carry out their escalating illegal activity. I've got an idea - I'd like them to be punished for the twelve minutes of reading time they stole from me this morning!

[Scarlet Cameo · Rating 3 out of 5]

English review at the bottom

Todo cómic esta compuesto por dos aspectos: historia y dibujo, y en este caso ambos tienen mucho potencial que en realidad nunca llega a ser explotado.

Vamos primero por la historia (y personajes). Dos adolescentes escapan de casa y terminan siendo víctimas de la Ley de Murphy aderezada con sangre y satanismo. Si bien mi "resumen" es bastante escueto, representa bien lo que pasa en el cómic y hasta suena interesante ¿Qué es lo que sale mal? La falta de desarrollo, tanto de historia como de personajes. Los capítulos (?) son bastante cortos y en cada cuadro hay una mínima parte de historia, pero conocemos a los personajes de manera taaan superficial que no llega a importarnos lo que les suceda, por más intenso o atrapante que pueda ser lo que realmente nos narra. No puedo decir que sea malo, solo que no es tan interesante como me esperaba.

Ahora bien, el dibujo. El dibujo es muy básico, funciona por que la falta de color y las expresiones un estáticas dan un toque grunge al arte, es decir queda bien para una historia tan poco desarrollada, entonces ¿Cuál es el problema? Que me recuerda bastante a la ilustración que se utiliza en Peanuts, de hecho siento que si estuvieran coloreadas serían los personajes de Peanuts en su versión adolescente disfuncional.

Mi decepción con este libro es que se siente como que falta algo, nunca explota el potencial que promete, falla en realmente atrapar al lector y permitirse proyectar la historia o conectar con los personajes.

No quiero compararla con el show de Netflix peeeero, debo decirlo...el show lo hizo mejor y la razón es que, a pesar de ser muy corto, desarrolla los personajes, les da facetas y nos permite realmente conocerlos, cambia algunos aspectos de la historia para que sea más "verosímil" lo que sucede y como todo es descubierto, engancha y da una narración muy buena, además de que promete lo suficiente para que quieras saber más.

En conclusión: se lee súper rápido, te va a dar un momento de entretenimiento pero, si viste y amaste el show, vas a quedar decepcionado.



___________________________________________________________

Every comic is composed of two aspects: history and drawing, and in this case both have a lot of potential that never gets exploited.

Let's go first through the story (and characters). Two teenagers escape from home and end up being victims of Murphy's Law seasoned with blood and satanism. Although my "summary" is quite brief, it represents accurate what happens in the comic and even sounds interesting so, What goes wrong? The lack of development, in both aspects. The chapters (?) are quite short and there's a minimum part of the story in every panel, but we know the characters so superficially that we don't care what happens to them, no matter how intense or captivating the success may be. I cannot say it's bad, just that it's not as interesting as I expected.

Now, the drawing. The drawing is very basic, the lack of color and static expressions works because gives a touch of grunge to the art, I mean. is good for a story with so little developed, so, What's the problem? That reminds me a lot of the illustration used in Peanuts , in fact I feel that if they were colored would be the Peanuts characters in their dysfunctional teenage version.

My disappointment with this book is that it feels like something is missing, never exploits the potential that promises me and fails to catch the reader, disdn't project the story or let us connect with the characters.

I don't want to compare it with the Netflix show buuut, I must say it... the show did it better and the reason is that, despite being very short, it develops the characters, gives them angles and allows us to really know them, it changes some aspects of the story to make more "plausible" what happens and how everything is discovered, hooks and gives a very good narration, also promises enough to make you wish to know more.

In conclusion: it reads super fast, will give you a moment of good entertainment but, if you saw and love the show, you will be disappointed.

[Tawfek · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't remember who made this joke before, but i wanted to say the title is misleading lmao
Nonetheless this comic didn't disappoint at all
Such beautiful and simple story
Read it all overnight and it made me feel something not sure what it is
is it the better understanding of people like James in the world who don't really understand human relations?
Is it sadness for his death?
Is it a warm feeling for the love they shared for each others and their beautiful journey?
Not really sure i am just glad i read this finally

[Zainab · Rating 2 out of 5]

If I ever come across kids this rude and ill-mannered then help me God I will strangle them.

[Dianna ☾midnight reads☽ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you seen the Netflix show The End of the F***ing World? If not, then you should definitely check it out. I loved that show. It was based on this graphic novel about two murderous cinnamon rolls, James and Alyssa and their seemingly innocent and simple teenage life.



It quickly turned somewhat morbid as James realized he's a sociopath and acts on his violent fantasies. Blinded by young love, Alyssa remained ignorant as long as she can. Their story somewhat reminded me of Bonnie and Clyde and the art inside is reminiscent of the drawings in the Peanuts comics by Charles Schulz. This is a quick and enjoyable read I highly recommend!

[Sam Quixote · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all - amazing title! Second of all - AMAZING BOOK!

The End of the Fucking World (or TEOTFW) is about two teenagers, James and Alyssa, who decide to run away from home together. Their journey starts out somewhat romantic then becomes increasingly more desperate and tragic until they become like the modern Bonnie and Clyde.

I read Charles Forsman’s Celebrated Summer a couple months ago and loved its quietly devastating intensity in such a relatively short comic about a couple of friends whose friendship dissolves over the summer and they never see each other again afterwards. But that doesn’t prepare you for how chilling TEOTFW is, which is a much, much darker read!

Told in 8 page chapters (these were originally published separately as micro comics) with alternating viewpoints of our two protagonists, we see the same story from two perspectives. James, who we learn early on displays sociopathic tendencies and only gets worse as the story continues, and Alyssa, the girl who falls for him and does her best to turn a blind eye to his disturbing behaviour.

The story explores the two characters’ loneliness from their remote families to their small town, and the despair they feel at their encroaching adulthood as well as their frustration and fear at their aimlessness and the unknowns of the future. James and Alyssa’s actions slowly become more foreign, at least to most of us, but Forsman reminds us of their humanity and their youth in scenes like when Alyssa meets her estranged father for the first time in 10 years - suddenly, she’s just a kid wanting to be with her dad. Other times, like the title, express the kind of heightened drama teenagers feel - what could be more fitting for a pair of desolate teenagers than to star in a book entitled The End of the Fucking World?

On a surface level it could be read as a crime drama as the two start out stealing things like cars and breaking into houses to James turning to much more destructive acts. It’s a twisted love story between two people who don’t really understand what love is, having never experienced it before, but feel something - maybe the only thing they’ve ever felt - between them, and Forsman questions whether James, who is clearly a sociopath, is able to find redemption in the end.

Forsman draws the book in the style of Peanuts, almost like he’s bitterly chuckling at the juxtaposition of the subject matter to the cutesiness of his characters’ appearance. It makes the one panel, where he draws James more realistically for the only time in the book, all the more powerful and shocking an image when you see those eyes.

I hesitate to call a book so bleak “wonderful” but it is enormously entertaining and artistic at the same time - and, yes, that is wonderful. I rifled through this, not because it’s short, but because Forsman told a great story and told it well - he genuinely knows how to build the tension in a comic so perfectly that you’re breathlessly turning the pages by the end, wondering just how it’ll play out. And it surprises you too, in the best possible way.

Both the story and the characters have stayed with me days after putting the book down - it really is an immersive and unforgettable experience. If you adore comics that tell a great story and pack real emotion in them, The End of the Fucking World is a howl of raw fury at an uncaring and empty world from a truly original creator.

[Carmen · Rating 3 out of 5]

My head is still spinning round. These teenagers, these youngsters are miles away from me, from my life. I had a happy adolescence-if such a thing exists-I thought I had problems but the truth is I inhabited a bubble, maybe I still do. The great thing of art like this is that it forces you out of your bubble and makes you see that people experience life in different ways, that sometimes isolation hurts people and it makes them crave for violence as a weird sort of retaliation...that everybody can have lights and shadows and they battle and they win or lose depending on their social environment ...
I don't know if I like it. I know it makes you think, it is disturbing, it leaves you restless...therefore it is good

[Roberto · Rating 3 out of 5]

The dark side of the life

Sono in libreria, giro tra gli scaffali. Mi colpisce questo libretto di piccolo formato, dalla copertina nera rigida dal titolo "particolare". Non capisco bene di cosa tratti, quindi apro la prima pagina e inizio a leggere. E bang, ciò che leggo è esattamente l'opposto di ciò che immaginerei debba esserci in una graphic novel. Linguaggio diretto (diciamo così), autolesionismo, droga, sesso, violenza. Ma non mi riesco a fermare e continuo a leggere le duecento pagine una dopo l'altra, fino alla fine (vabbè, in libreria non si dovrebbe, è vero, però...).

The End of the Fucking World (da cui è stata tratta la serie tv che porta lo stesso nome) racconta la storia d'amore di due adolescenti disadattati che fuggono in modo sconclusionato da un’esistenza tranquilla che non riescono a sopportare. Una fuga che non può che terminare male, contrariamente a qualunque logica di lieto fine. Ciò che mi ha colpito di più è la velocità della narrazione, fulminante, fatta di disegni minimali, di descrizioni ridotte all'osso; un ritmo quasi martellante che rende efficacissima la narrazione.

Plauso all'autore per la bravura; ma non nego di avere qualche dubbio sui contenuti.
Ma che fatica essere adolescenti!

[Diabolica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not my cup of tea.

In as few words as possible. Was not a fan of the plot, characters and found the whole thing a little choppy. Didn't help that I wasn't too much of fan of the art.

[daph pink ♡ · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just watch the show guys. It's a complete waste of time. Even yet, reading it only takes around 20 minutes.

[♡︎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Netflix series of this took me by surprise and left me in the deepest of feels and absolutely shook. It was that good. I absolutely loved it and got excited when i realized it was based on this graphic novel. Netflix really did a great job of bringing the vision of this book to life and foreal y'all need to read AND watch the tv show!

[Anu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love books and movies of the dark comedy variety. I also have a soft corner for (well-written) teenage/high school stories. Also, the show based on this book is fucking brilliant. For these reasons, I decided to read this book, which, by the way, is incredibly hard to find. The book, however, in comparison to the show, is vastly underwhelming. Where the show was rich, complex and absolutely a delight to watch, while maintaining its original gritty undertones, the book was too bleak, too abrupt. But hey, I had gratuitous Holden flashbacks, so not all was lost, eh? Word of advice, though; skip the book, watch the show.

[Vladimir Ćeha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having watched the TV series, I decided to read the comic, but, to my surprise, I found it weak and even dull. The comic is told in a simple way, it's like a flat line that ends at some point, without evoking any real emotions along the way. It was interesting to see some of the episodes that were used in the TV series, but, in the end, I would recommend watching TEOTFW instead of reading it. It's one of those rare examples where the adaption is actually better than the original.

[Tony Vacation · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much like Celebrated Summer, The End of the Fucking World is a simplistic exploration of teenage alienation that is easy on the fingers to flick through. Like an indie film with a non-existent budget from the 1990s, Forsman contrives an aimless roadtrip for a pair of teenage runaways that allows them to jeer at society, intimacy and the value of life, both human and animal. To make sure that these sentiments aren't subjected to too much scrutiny, every adult they meet is either a pedophile, a satanic serial killer or just dumpy and disappointing. Forsman's art, which embraces a sort of slacker minimalism, is likable but also furthers the impression that he isn't straining himself in his writing of the human condition. This reader has yet to see the Netflix adaptation, which under the right guidance could do a lot with the source material, but it isn't hard to imagine Forsman wishing that Gus Van Sant or Jim Jarmusch in their youth had helmed the endeavor instead.

[Meli · Rating 1 out of 5]

Siento... siento que leí una muestra gratis.
La historia tiene potencial e impacto, pero cero profundidad y cero desarrollo. Muy pobre todo.
Esto bien elaborado sería una bomba. Pero nop.



Edito: de hecho la sinopsis es más elaborada que el cómic entero. Bendito sea el que haya tenido que rebuscarselas para redactarla jajaja

[George K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Μέσα στη βδομάδα κυκλοφόρησε στα ελληνικά από τις εκδόσεις Γράμματα το συγκεκριμένο κόμικ, πάνω στο οποίο βασίζεται και η σειρά του Netflix “The End of the Fucking World”. Ουσιαστικά δεν άργησα ούτε στιγμή να το αγοράσω, το τσίμπησα σήμερα το μεσημεράκι και το διάβασα εν ριπή οφθαλμού σε τρένο και σπίτι. Πρωταγωνιστούν δυο έφηβοι, ο κοινωνιοπαθής Τζέιμς και η συμμαθήτριά του Αλίσσα, οι οποίοι θέλοντας να ξεφύγουν από τις οικογένειες και την πόλη τους, το σκάνε με ένα αυτοκίνητο. Μετά από περιπλανήσεις και κάποιες τρελές καταστάσεις, καταλήγουν στην αναζήτηση του πατέρα της Αλίσσα, η οποία έχει να τον δει πάνω από δέκα χρόνια. Η περίληψη που έδωσα σε καμία περίπτωση δεν μπορεί να περιγράψει την τρέλα, τη νοσηρότητα και την κατάθλιψη που γενικά επικρατούν στην όλη ιστορία. Έχουμε να κάνουμε με μια δραματική ιστορία ενηλικίωσης με στοιχεία εγκλήματος, η οποία αποτυπώνει με ιδιαίτερο τρόπο τη σκοτεινή πλευρά της ανθρώπινης φύσης, όπως πιθανότατα και τις απογοητεύσεις που αντιμετωπίζουν οι έφηβοι. Το σενάριο είναι απλό, χωρίς συγκεκριμένο χρονικό πλαίσιο και με τους απολύτως απαραίτητους διαλόγους, ενώ μινιμαλιστικό και χωρίς πολλές λεπτομέρειες είναι και το ασπρόμαυρο σκίτσο, το οποίο όμως θα έλεγα ότι έτσι όπως είναι κάνει πιο έντονα τα αισθήματα κατάθλιψης και αποστασιοποίησης που διαποτίζουν τη γενική παρουσίαση των δυο πρωταγωνιστών. Σίγουρα η ιστορία και ο τρόπος παρουσίασής της, καθώς και το απλό σχέδιο, δεν είναι για όλα τα γούστα, προσωπικά όμως δηλώνω ικανοποιημένος, ενώ σαν κόμικ με έκανε να νιώσω και λίγο περίεργα. Λίαν συντόμως θα δω και τη σειρά.

[Ioanna ms✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5;
Εχοντας δει τη σειρα, το βιβλιο μου φανηκε πολύ "λίγο" και οι χαρακτήρες καθόλου ανεπτυγμένοι, γενικά το στορυ ήταν σαν σε fast forward. Επίσης δε μου άρεσε καθόλου η μετάφραση😑 Δείτε τη σειρά καλύτερα!

[Fabián Tapia Quintero · Rating 1 out of 5]

Es HORRIBLE.
Todo sucede demasiado rápido, las relaciones entre los personajes te dejan frío, el dibujo está muy pobremente trabajado y la narrativa es simplemente un fiasco.
Estoy sorprendido por que se hayan atrevido a adaptarlo.

[Aleja · Rating 2 out of 5]

A-Z Challenge Character Edition 2021: A.

Esta novela gráfica fue muy "?????". O sea, se entiende pero a la vez no Jajaj

No sé que opinar de esta historia, la verdad😅

[Rygard Battlehammer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bir çizgi romanın kapağına “Netflix’de dizisi var bunun” yazmayı acıklı buluyorum. Bunun ardından çizgi romanın kendisi kurumuş tatak kıvamında çıkınca ise özel olarak sinirleniyorum. Aslında ortalama bir çizgi romancı Charles Forsman, ekonomik zekalı emo wannabelerin harçlıklarına çökmeye çalışmadığı zaman okunabilecek de bir adam, gel gör ki nitelikli dolandırıcılık girişimi diye kabul edebileceğimiz the End of the FXXXing World ile vurmuş voliyi kendisi.

Yazara sorsan “minimalist bir anlayışla tasarladım eserimi” diyeceği bir “tarzı” var çizgi romanın; kitabın girişine ”the end of the fucking world” yazmak için 6 sayfa kullanıyor yani. İçerik kısa, klişe ve boş. Psikopati hastası bir oğlan çocuğu var, James. "Hiç mizah anlayışım olmadığını keşfettim 9 yaşında, sonra biraz hayvan öldürdüm, elimi de çöp öğütücüsüne soktum" diyor. Oysa bence çöp öğütücüsüne el sokmak komik biraz. Bir de ailesinden sevgi ve ilgi görmeyen, mercimek beyinli asi kız çocuğu Alyssa var. Bu kız çocuğu psikopat oğlana diyor ki "ben sana aşık oldum, hadi kaçalım." Oğlan da diyor "bana fark etmez,"

Yazar, polisten kaçan sorunlu ve suçlu çift klişesine sarılmış ama hikayesini geliştirmek için bir özgün kurgu oluşturmaya fena halde üşenmiş. Saçma sapan tesadüfler üzerinden ilerliyor hikaye. Camı kırıp boş bir eve giriyorlar, bir hafta o evde kalıyorlar. Meğerse evin sahibi sapık katilmiş, oğlan da fırsat bu fırsat ben bunu öldüreyim diyor. Vay atanamamış Dostoyevski bana, bu ne yaman hikayecilik? Sapığın karısı da polis mi çık sen, düş bunların peşine. Arada otostop çektikleri adam sapık çıkıyor, oğlanı elliyor falan. Oğlan bir şey hissetmediği için tepki vermiyor, kız da diyor ki "biraz hakkını savun yav". Kızla oğlan ayrı kalınca oğlanı sokakta tokatlıyor -neden hiç bilmiyorum- diyor ki kıza "meğer ben seni değil sen beni koruyormuşsun!." Ulan bunlar tanışalı zaten 50 sayfa oldu, bir ahfta önce yoktu ki bu kız? Neyse... Kızın babasına gidiyorlar beraber, onu da sevmiyorlar kendileri bulunmaz hint kumaşı olduklarından. O arada sapığın karısı da sapık çıkıyor, Charles bu işlerden hiç anlamadığı için de climax olarak bunu kullanıyor. Oysa bize ne lan, duygusal bir bağ kurabileceğimiz bir durum yok ki zaten kadınla, şaşıralım, üzülelim bir şey olsun? Kız koluna jiletle James yazarken bitiyor, lan bari SLAYER yazsaydı! Yemin ediyorum anlatırken fenalık geldi.

Çizimleri basit, detaysız ama aynı oranda çirkin. Yeteneksizliği, karakterlerin görsel olarak da tutarsız olmasına neden oluyor. Panel kullanımı kötü, kontrasta güvendiği kısımlar ise feci şekilde amatörce. Ortaya kaba bir sonuç çıkıyor ama bu “vulgar bir üslubu var sanatçının” dedirtebilecek bir durum değil, “git tekrar çiz şunu ahraz herif” denmesi gereken bir çirkinlik. Bu arada elemanın Charles M. Schulz’u taklit ettiğine eminim ama ispatlayamam.

Genelde bu tip amatörümsü çizgi romanlarda, yazar/çizer tayfanın yaptığı bir iyi şey vardır da ona odaklanırlar, biz okurlar da onun hatırına görmezden geliriz gerisi. Charles için durum böyle değil. Enteresan şekilde kötü olmadığı alanlarda bile vasat altı. Tutunabileceği herhangi bir yan unsur da bulunmuyor; "en azından gore var," "en azından çizimler iyi," "en azından tuhaf ve uyumsuz bir atmosfer var," gibi herhangi bir avuntuya fırsat bırakmıyor, homojen biçimde kötü. Gerçekçilikten uzak, aptalca diyalogları, niyetlendiği her işi yarım yamalak ve beceriksizce yapması, sadece 15 yaşında, Amerikalı, okulunu taramak için gerekli cesareti toplamaya çalışan sevimli psikopatların ve hayatında hiç edebiyat görmemiş uyumsuz çocukların sevebileceği bir kitap ortaya çıkarıyor.

Kitaba getirilebilecek tek olumlu yorum/yaklaşım, “aslında bunu tamamen geri zekalı olmayan biri yazarsa bundan güzel Çöpflix dizisi çıkabilir” imiş ve onu da yapmışlar ve bitmiş, Charles saymış parasını cebine koymuş, konu kapanmış. Gözümüz yok, keriz parasıdır, afiyetle yesin. Ama lütfen artık sırf Netflix PR’ı adına şu aptallık yığınını yeni dillere çevirtmeye bir ara versin.




PS edit: the end of the Fucking world ile ilgili hislerimi belki de en güzel Rob Barrett ifade ediyor; We'll end your fucking life

[James Francisco Tan · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Sometimes doing the right thing feels like committing a crime.”

[Kyle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Actual rating: 1.5 (rounded up)

The comic is sparse and devoid of any emotion or depth in comparison with the television series. I don’t know why I thought it’d be anything as substantial...

The black and white coloring, minimalistic art style, and rather superficial dialogue create a simplistic, (only sometimes) darkly-comedic portrait of teenage angst & alienation. But it’s ultimately forgettable in it’s lo-fi meanderings.

In any case, I’m glad I watched the show before reading this, because I don’t think I’d have been as eager/interested otherwise.

[Neil Franz · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's fu**ing dark, sad and visceral.

[Lyla · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the show but I wasn’t a great big fan of this unfortunately 😭 I don’t think graphic novels are for me

[Tani · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mediocrity at it's best. Just skip to Netflix series.

[Iva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Там трохи більше:
https://movnyydoshch.site/review/teotfw/

Типовий приклад короткого та вкрай довбонутого чтива. Наштовхнувся через рекомендації на ФБ на сторінку екранізації, подивився її трейлер, побачив, що це є екранізацією комікса. Та й прочитав.
І не побачив нічого значно більшого за те, що було у тому самому трейлері. Правда, вони у ньому проспойлерили 80 із 140 сторінок.

Жорстоко, безкомпромісно, дуже підлітково, тохи по-Кобейнівськи та дуже у дусі психо-дев’яностих із їхнім розстрілом однокласників та втечами заради пограбунків.

Малюнок має декілька доволі цікавих візуальних рішень та образів і за стилістикою явно угорає над "Снупі" . Поділ на восьмисторінкові міні-випуски також дається взнаки, зрештою, спочатку комікс виходив у форматі стріпів.

Втім, то було швидко. І ось вже його нема.
Різня всіх із підтримкою від близької людини та натяками на неповнолітнє тойво. Та й таке.

[Drew Canole · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's a lot to like in this book. I guess my favourite thing about it was the pacing and the play between the text and the art. The author definitely has a good understanding of how words and drawings go together in a comicbook.

I enjoyed the simple art style for the most part, but there were some panels that seemed a bit lazy - perhaps with stylistic intent, but I feel like they could have been refined.

The story is about a couple lost teenagers going on a disastrous road-trip (or hometown runaway). I usually read this type of story pretending that its a depiction of the teenage will, or mentality, and not literally. To the two teens, everyone is the bad guy.

I'd recommend this for a nice read. I think its an excellent example of the power of this medium - even if the story didn't resonant with me.