Nights Vol. 1

Nights

by Wyatt Kennedy, Luigi Formisano (cover_art)

It’s 2003, supernatural creatures casually exist amongst humans, and America is made up of 31 states. Vince Okonma has lost his parents, moved in with his secret mercenary cousin and his video game-making roommate, and befriended “the greatest vampire who’s ever lived.“ And that’s just the first 20 pages.
From WYATT KENNEDY (BOLERO) and newcomer LUIGI FORMISANO, a new vision of urban gothic adventure starts here! Welcome to Florida, where the youth is wasted on the young…
Collects NIGHTS #1-6

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

Kindle Edition

Published June 12, 2024

Reviews

[Jim Ef · Rating 2 out of 5]

3.6/10
I almost didn't finish this.

"Florida is owned by Spain. America consists of 31 states. Vampire, ghosts and supernatural creatures are common and benign. The internet is infantile and irrelevant."
That's the first thing you read when you open the first issue, and again in the second issue. You'll thing this is very important and that you'll learn more about this alternative world. Wroooong. Yes supernatural creatures exist, the rest is useless information that doesn't play any important part in the story. I wish we would get more of that instead of what we actually got here. Because what we got is just boring.

I genuinely don't like leaving bad reviews, but i also have to be honest. It has so many things going on ( the alternative world and creatures and world end scenario ) yet it offers so little.

Maybe if i cared at least for one of the characters, i would get a bit more invested. They felt so flat though.

I will end in a positive way by saying that the art is fine.

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this quite charming, kind of to my surprise. There's a lot of alternate history stuff in here, but it barely has any influence on the story, and I normally would find that bothersome, but here it doesn't bother me (maybe exactly because it's just windowdressing?). A world where the undead are real, including vampires, ghosts and other monsters.

I like the characters, their interactions, it's all kind of low-key and at times even cozy. There are horror elements, moving forward the main plot, and those are okay, they don't get in the way of the characterisation.

I'd like to see more, yes yes yes.

(Picked up a review copy through Edelweiss)

[Alex Sarll]

"Florida is owned by Spain. America consists of 31 states. Vampires, ghosts and other supernatural creatures are common and benign. The internet is infantile and irrelevant." Well, it starts in 1999, so the last bit would apply to our timeline anyway. But the culture, from Frankenstein to Dragonball and even jokes about Florida, appears identical too, and I'm not asking for every little ramification to be worked through (though it would be nice), but if you're not going to bother with even a veneer of shifts, why bother opening proceedings by telling us you're setting the story in an alternate world you're only going to ignore? Strip that out, and ignore the fairly generic occult apocalypse we know is coming, and this has a not inconsiderable amount of charm as something much smaller scale, a story about growing up, or not, and how there comes a point in life where you need to get things together, but how does that intersect with a flatmate who's a charming, unageing (un)deadbeat? McKelvieesque art helps sell proceedings, though lacks his clarity in some of the action scenes; still, the monsters are good, especially the vaguely bathetic ghosts who, in an obvious but still effective metaphor, have only 25 years to sort out their unfinished business, but don't necessarily know what it is. The lettering, on the other hand, sometimes has bubbles in confusing orders, and doesn't follow the usual rules for foreign languages, whacking pointy brackets around bursts of actual German rather than German translated into English. Still, if you ever fancied seeing how Something Is Killing The Children might work as a bittersweet slacker comedy, or how Marceline might work in a more down to earth setting, this is worth a look, despite the bits that get in the way of its strengths.

(Netgalley ARC)

[Barbara Behring · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very interesting take on vampires. Just when I was really getting into the story the volume ended so now I need to continue. The story was hard to read at times, but the graphics are great. I will continue on with the series.

[Matthew Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up on a recommendation, but I wasn’t sold on it. Reading it however, I really enjoyed most of what this was. Characters are first most important in this story and the world that was built is also hugely important. That’s what I really prefer in a new story, so this one hit for me. There are some situations in this one that don’t sit with me the best, but the story doesn’t really linger on those. I enjoy the art on this one too. What gives this one a bit more of a knock is that the story will shift wildly with what is going on and that can be a bit harder to follow at times. Overall, I found this one to be a solid debut volume and I’m looking forward to the next one.

[Sarah KK · Rating 3 out of 5]

C’était… différent de ce que je lis d’habitude ? Jsp pas trop comment décrire la bd mais j’ai quand même passé un bon moment, un peu wtf quand même j’ai pas tout compris mais c’était stylé 👹

[Rahul Nadella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nights is set in an urban-fantasy world where supernatural entities (vampires, ghosts, even talking animals) are recognized as real, albeit rare, Vince Okonma is moves to Florida after losing both his parents. There he lives with his cousin Ivory, who is secretly a mercenary; Matt, Ivory’s gamer friend; and Gray, the local vampire. Initially sounding like an interesting setup, with a fascinating alternate history to learn about, it never seems to take off and meanders in no particular direction. Nights continues its streak of being a series packed with surprises. Luckily the horror story really takes center stage here and it almost feels like a brand new start that the series desperately needed. There's plenty to get invested in going forward but this initial volume is just entirely too much to process and splitting it up into two parts or saving some big moments for later could have been a tremendous help. If they really fleshed it out, they could have brought character, plot and world-building together and this could have been something really special. But so many scenes are filled with nothing of substance and with a persistent air of bland irreverence. This comic is just a shallow, hollow and ultimately underwhelming and confusing journey, with a bunch of characters I couldn’t care less about.

[Mohan Vemulapalli · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Nights Volume 1 " is a an uneven first volume for what could be a truly amazing series. The main problem with this volume is that it flops around like an unsecured fire hose and never manages to go in the same direction for a significant period of time. That being noted, the volume does introduce a promising cast of characters, including a manic pixie dream vampire-girl, a hitman turned adoptive dad with a teaching credential and a nasty addiction to painkillers, and a ghost with an artistic bent. The main character is a bit underwhelming and the world the characters inhabit is colorful but significantly underdeveloped. However, the writing and art in this book are more than competently done so it is not completely delusional to hope that the second volume, with the right attention from the creative team, might have the organization and structure that this series requires to really take off.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Image Comics for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mostly world building (Florida is owned by Spain, vampires and ghosts are unremarkable, nasty misshapen monsters lurk in forests or even back yards) and character introductions. They're kids, then a jump to 5 years later, they're adolescents and young adults. Except of course, the vampire who is 185 years old and shares a house with our main character who is falling in love with her. She looks like a teenager and seems to be returning his attention. But there are hints she will eventually ruin the world, or maybe will, or something bad but unclear. Anyway, the focus of the story is the main character's angst and his (along with others') struggles of growing up. A coming-of-age story with lots of side weirdness. For me... I've sort of been there and am not going to go again.

[Read With A Teacher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Netgalley Review
Rating: ☆☆☆

This one was alright, it's got some funny parts, some serious parts, and a lot of room for a lot of dark parts. Always interested when I find a new supernatural/monster/ Magic read.

The reason is only 3 stars though is the story had a lot going on and depending on how they handle the different story lines and flesh out the story would depend on if this goes up stars or down.

Personally, I like the art style, I think it has interesting characters, the story line has possibility and I plan to read the next volume!

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stronger than the sum of its parts, some of which are only slight variants on clichés (e.g., the manic vampire dream girl). Eager to see where it goes.

[Lucille · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alors j’avoue que j’ai rien compris

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Image Comics for an advance copy of this graphic novel about a young man, his living and undead roommates, becoming disillusioned with those who mean so much to us, and the many problems of growing up.

Some graphic novels like a big old splash page, to hook the eye and keep a person reading. Others like some cool formation of panels to intrigue and draw one in, to see if this experiment might continue. This graphic novel starts with three lines of text in English, with translations in other languages and lets the reader know that they are not in Kansas any more, Toto. Though there might not be a Kansas anymore either. And with that one is plopped into the story, and what a story this turns out to be. Nights Volume 1, Season One Part One is written by Wyatt Kennedy with art by Luigi Formisano and features an eclectic collection of characters, living and dead, trying to get by in a world very much different from our own.

The book begins with Vince, a recent orphan travelling to Florida, which is still controlled by the country of Spain. In this America there is only 31 states, so things are a little different. Oh and the dead walk among us, along with lots of other supernatural creatures. So things are very different. Vince is coming to Florida to live with his older cousin Ivory, a great guy that everyone likes who moonlights as a contract killer. Ivory has two roommates, Matt is an anime and manga fan, who later dies and becomes a ghost who is wandering the Earth until he completes a deed, but is unsure what that is. Grey is an ancient vampire from Germany, though she looks in her early twenties, and has a first edition Frankenstein book. The story jumps to 2003 where Matt is dead but still walking around and Vince is thinking of going to NYU for film studies. Ivory is looking for a teaching job, while still side hustling in assassination. And shadows are forming on the horizon.

A story that sets up its world right from the get-go, and counts on readers to follow along and pick up hints and tips as the book goes on. Which is great. Kennedy gives enough hints about what is going on that within a page, one is flipping along and enjoying the story. The interplay between the characters really helps with the reading. The story does take a bit to get going and the time jumping can take a page to pick up. However the characters, especially Grey and Vince really make this a stand out of a story. There is a lot going on, shadowy governments, supernatural bad guys. And a young boy in love with a much, much, much older woman. The art is excellent and really compliments the story. The colors are really nice, the backgrounds strong, and the character design quite good. A really good story, that ends on a cliffhanger, and one I'm excited to see more of.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars rounded up.

Summary:

Vince Okonma's whole life has changed over the course of a few weeks. He went from being an ordinary kid (teen) to being a kid living with a punch of paranormal beings. Thanks to a tragedy in his life, Vince is moving in with his cousin (and roommates).

Here's the thing: nobody in this house is normal. The cousin is a secret hitman, and the roommates include a ghost and a vampire. It's a lot, but it's also the perfect place for Vince to be right now, oddly enough.

Review:

Okay, wow. There's a lot to take in while reading Nights Vol. 1. It reads like an ordinary paranormal story (is there such a thing?)...at first. But the more you look at it, the more you realize that everything is different.

To start with, the world isn't the one we know. There are paranormal creatures, a different number of states, and so much more. It's basically an alternative history fantasy story, with many foundational elements changed.

I both loved and hated that. It made for a fascinating read, especially when learning about the oddities in the woods (I want more answers on that). Likewise, I'm fascinated by the cousin's story (which has strong Something is Killing the Children vibes). I have so many questions.

All things considered, Nights Vol. 1 is an interesting read—and yet not at all what I expected. I'll probably keep up with the series, though I have no idea where it will lead in the long run.

Highlights:
Paranormal Creatures
Hidden backstories
Vampires & More

Thanks to Image Comics and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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[Tiana · Rating 2 out of 5]

It happened very early on in this comic that I realized I hated a majority of the characters. They do the stupidest most insufferable actions and I understand that those kind of teens exist, but I prefer to not have to read about them. It really sucks too, because the art in the comic is amazing. There’s game and anime references I loved. It references my partners all time favorite anime bobobo directly. I feel like I’d love the people that worked on this as friends.

However, these teens are so deplorable. Their the kinds of teens that deface, steal, and all around cause hell and laugh about it after words. The kinds of teens who think they are invincible and have no moral compass. It makes actual 0 sense that these teens are going to save the world from anything. They are part of the problem.

As for the first love part of the story. I couldn’t root for or care about it at all because these kids are toxic pieces of trash. There’s only 1 character in the whole thing that calls them out for being assholes, but it wasn’t enough to save the comic for me. The combination of this 1 character and the gorgeous art is the only reason I rated this a 2 star instead of a 1 star.

I understand that gaming culture can have the most toxic assholes in it. I understand that these kinds of people exist and that their story’s can be worth telling, but there seemed to be no greater reason for it or any sign that they get to experience consequences for their actions. They’re constantly shitty and just laugh and run away and I’m supposed to care that they’re crushing on each other? This review is turning into a rant.

Another issue I had with this comic is marketed towards teens and yes this is about teens, but it’s like saying that Euphoria is something teens should be watching. I feel like this comic should be marketed towards an adult audience instead, but still the contents just didn’t give me enough enjoyment to recommend it.

The other problem with this comic is that there is pacing issues and jumping around too often with time lines and plot points. The artwork wasn’t enough to save this comic from being something I just did not feel joy while reading.

The Nights Volume 1 was unfortunately disappointing.

[Cloude · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nights is a paranormal / horror graphic novel, set in the state of Florida (that is incidently owned by Spain for some undiscussed reason). In this world, the paranormal is...well...normal and commonplace. Our main character Vince, is moving in with his older cousin after his parents die, and his new room mates consist of a dead skeleton boy who can't move on, and a vampire girl who he later develops a crush on.

The first issue/chapter was pretty slow for me. There are a lot of characters you're being introduced to and I didn't really care about any of them or feel engaged in the plot at all. After this first chapter though, I started to become really invested in the characters, particularly our dead boy Matt, who is always appearing in adorable onsies. Grey, our vampire girl also gave me big Marceline from Adventure Time vibes,which I loved. She's a rebellious trouble maker who just wants to have fun. And oh there's also a talking star-nosed mole who makes a brief appearance and is hands-down my favourite character.

While you're following this rag-tag group of teens and young adults try to scrape together a functional home, in the background we have a lot of really dark and sinister stuff happening. There are frequent count downs to a big 'end of times' event that you keep forgetting is coming, weird monster appearences, and strange agents that remind me of something out of the game 'Control'. All this paired with a single warning that Grey is dangerous and shouldn't be trusted, which leaves you wondering what's going to happen next and what part she will play in it all.

The illustrations are really nice and pretty much follows the standard 'comic book' illustrative style. They were expressive and funny, and the way Grey is drawn is so cute.

At first I wasn't sure that this was a graphic novel I'd enjoy, but i'm absolutely invested now and with that cliff hanger, i'll be eagerly waiting to see what happens in the next volume!

Thank you NetGalley and Image Comics for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

[Clint · Rating 2 out of 5]

This reminds me a lot of a bad Matthew Rosenberg comic. It’s the epitome of a 40ish LA nerd bro still fixated on being into the hippest pop culture his 23yo self could imagine. It’s got stale 20 year old media references shoehorned in as lazy shorthand for characterization, a fantastical parallel reality with foundational differences from ours that remarkably still developed all the same pop culture he’s nostalgic for, and dialogue that’s mostly just brash repartee that overshoots being witty into being obnoxious. The pop culture interests that show up are perfectly fine on their own, but Kennedy has included such a mad libs mess of them without doing any of the world-building or character work to give the assortment a sense of cohesion or internal logic. Commit to and develop some of them instead throwing all your young adult interests against the wall and hoping something sticks.

He also tries to do the “comic needle drop” thing where song lyrics are overtly overlayed for multiple pages, and while a familiar song reference in a panel or two can be neat, dragging them on for multiple pages is tedious, particularly when the song isn’t likely to be recognizable (“Cucurrucucú paloma” is one of the songs whose lyrics gets this treatment, and congrats if you’ve heard of or can hum any part of that song). Allusion doesn’t work if you can’t expect your audience to know what you’re alluding to, plus comics aren’t an audio medium, so this gimmick always makes me think the author wanted to make a soundtrack-driven movie but had to settle for a comic instead.

The art looks pretty good, though.

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like the art style and there are some very cool monster designs. I enjoyed parts of the story, but for me it really took until part 5 for things to fully grab my interest. Some of the chapter plots just seemed a bit mismatched. It did have a great ending though which admittedly had me swiping for more only to find I was sadly at the end.

My favourite character was a Starven, who is just a brief side character and sadly I think that says alot. Personally I didn't connect with any of the characters in particular but I think a slightly younger audience as it's aimed at will be able to see parts of themselves in what is happening with the characters. There's a good diversity of characters and their backgrounds. I do feel like some of them got the short straw like Matt.

I'd interested to see what happens next but only because I got to the end of part 5. If I'd have just picked up the first comic, I don't think I would have bought the second.

This probably a good intro to YA horror comics for someone starting out.

[Kandis Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't read many comic books, so this story line is a different one for me. The story is set in a dystopian apocalyptic state that was once part of U.S.A., and is now part of Spain, where monsters and the undead coexist. The story line is pretty good with a Vincent, who goes to live with a relative and his many roommates, but falls in love with a vampire who is in a world of her own and happens to be his roommate. I think this book will be suitable for not only young adults but more mature readers as well. It was fun and interesting to read. The reason for the 4 stars is because the beginning started out a tad bit dull, but getting to know more of Gray's background, the story became more interesting. I think other readers will appreciate the personalities of the characters in the story. I do see this publication being turned into many continuous series and I'm look forward to reading them.

[Eden · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a review copy

I'll admit, I decided to request this because the synopsis mentions Scott Pilgrim (which is one of my favourite graphic novels of all time) and the premise seemed super interesting

And I am so glad I did.

The world is very much a weird form of nostalgia to me and I love it. It feels steeped in gamer culture, combined with a subtly weird setting that we just accept (like there are vampires and ghosts and we aren't quite sure why.) Though I would have liked more reason as to why and I hope this comes in future issues.

There was a lot of dialogue in this that made me laugh.

One thing I would have liked is an overarching plot as each issue seemed to have its own plot, without much connection to each other.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Crisply written with punk attitude, "Nights Volume 1" introduces us to a group of slacker housemates in a supernatural Florida where ghosts and vampires are real. It's creative and smart, with interludes ranging from rampaging cryptids to support groups for ghosts unable to finish their earthly business.

The plotting isn't especially focused: there's some punk skater stuff and teenage romance (although that label is questionable when one of the parties is a 200-year-old vampire). The coolness of the characters feels a bit forced; the petty crimes and nihilistic attitudes lean toward "zany." But the series has a unique vibe, and it kept me guessing about what would happen next (although the final reveal is predictable to anyone who's read a Hellboy comic).

The art by Luigi Formisano is excellent: cool monsters, great character designs and clean, Allred-esque lines.

[Leah · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I'm hooked....Nights Volume 1 has started off so strong. The 1st page with the description of Florida being owned by Spain, 31 states & the supernatural being common place + benign hooks you and it doesn't let you go. The ending of the first issue alone? A+ I need volume 2 immediately!
The world is jam-packed with such quirky world building and oddities such as jogging ghosts & moles giving relationship advice. The characters are all wonderful with Matt and his collection of onesies being my favourite. Starven as a one off also top tier.

The end of volume 1 sets up the story nicely and will leave you with lots of questions of what's happening but I'm sure volume 2 won't disappoint!

Thanks to Netgalley & Image Comics for the arc.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember this is Florida! Yes, it is a alternate world where vampires and ghosts are real, not to mention all sorts of strange critters. Vince moved to Florida after both his parents died to live with his cousin Ivory (hitman), Ivory's friend Matt (dead video game designer), and Gray, a 189 year old vampire. So ordinary life until things changed. Vince has grown up and is falling for Gray who appears 19. But strange things are happening, I mean strange even for Florida and Gray seems to be loosing her mind. Then the reader finds out why but it is the end of the volume and you need to wait until volume 2 to find out how it all plays out. A fun in a strange way read!

Thanks Image Comics and Netgalley for the chance to read this tale!

[RunningRed NightBringer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not entirely sure what was going on in this story.
It's an alternate 1998 where Florida is still part of Spain, vampires and other weird creatures exist and are a normal part of life.
Vince is a young teenager who moves in with with cousin, a ghost roommate and a female vampire he develops a crush on.
The writer does a good job of show, don't tell. We're not bogged down by exposition and are expected to figure out what's going on by context and the flow of the story. Kinda like the artsy indie films you gotta watch a few times to get some of the subtler bits.
I'll be honest, I still don't know what's going on, but the writer and good art kinda pulled me along for the ride so I'll keep an eye out for book two to see where it takes us.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is set in an alternate 2003 where Florida is part of Spain and there are only 31 states. I'm not sure why that's even noted though because it doesn't play into the story at all and everything culture wise seems to be the same as actual history. The real change is that vampires and ghosts are real and not considered dangerous or scary. There's not much of a through story. It's about a teenager who has to go live with his older cousin after his parents died. There he has a vampire and a ghost for roommates. I guess this would be considered a slacker comedy. I just considered it not all that interesting and a bit pointless.

[Ali Suchy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Right so, Nights follows the life of teen Vince, his cousin Ivory, and their vampire roommate Grey. Florida is owned by Spain (though I genuinely have no idea why that's important), the US has 31 states, and it's 2003. There's also Matt.

I had fun with this. I had no idea where the story was really going for at least the first three issues but I eventually got there and I'm even now debating going and picking up the 7th issue at my local comic shop. The art was a bit gory and fucky but full of emotion, and the coloring was creepy and awesome. Definitely recommend this for Image and indie comic lovers, as well as vampire/horror lovers.

[DollarBin ComicWin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely one to read in a collected edition. I imagine singles are great but there is so much that happens and changes. I’d love to see how this is all kept in order. Amazing!

The art is so fun and eclectic! Literally, one panel is a funny meme and the next is bloody mess. This truly is an example of art helping set the tone.

DollarBinComicWin: “Where did you get the inspiration for this story, Wyatt?”

Wyatt Kennedy: “Lotta pop rocks, cola, watchin’ anime, and playin’ video games. It’s a lot of different things both from my life (shockingly) and just the stuff I obsess over. Glad you enjoyed Vol. 1! Weirder stuff to come.”

[Kyle Banks · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought the first issue when the series debuted but couldn't afford to continue. So I'm glad I found this volume 1 trade paperback.

On first read, it has a few inspirations from Japanese manga from panel layouts to manga/anime character tropes. That being the case, it carves its own identity as a romance story between a normal orphan boy and a centuries old vampire and their daily lives in an alternate history USA.

I like mash-up of different cultures from German and Japanese to Spanish and English including the music, the written languages, and other aspects.

Nights has a vibe not everyone will like off bat, but I'll will vouch that anyone should give it a try.

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave myself a few days after my first read and re-read the comic. I came to the same conclusion. I liked the artwork, I liked much of the story line. But it jumps about backwards and forwards in time. These jumps didn’t happen, from my perspective, in a coherent and understandable way. However I really like the artistic expression when Gray is actively vampiric destroying monsters, and the Ghost who brings humour to the story line. I look forward to Vol 2. Thank you to Image Comics and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

[Alana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Galley from publisher

Pros:
-laugh-out-loud funny at times
-I like the characters

Cons:
-time jumps don't help the sense that this is all over the place
-sometimes it reads like an uneven translation
-do you like stories that build instead of coming out of nowhere? Then this isn't for you
-it surely doesn't answer the question "What do hundred+-year-old vampires see in teenagers?"

I wish:
-someone had asked for this to be a tighter story, because as it is, the slice of life is super jarring with the giant leaps in "plot"

It really is funny, though. And the art is very pretty.