Dark Ride Volume 1

Dark Ride #1-4

by Joshua Williamson, Andrei Bressan (Artist), Adriano Lucas (Artist)

Devil Land has been the world’s premiere horror-themed amusement park for over 50 years, home to the scariest ride ever created – The Devil’s Due.   Family owned and operated by the reclusive creator, Arthur Dante, and his two children Samhain and Halloween, Devil Land is seeing some financial stress with low park attendance. Samhain wants Devil Land to expand its brand beyond the park gates, and a rejection from his father in tandem with a request to design a new ride for the park, lead Samhain to uncover the sinister secrets of the park and the role his family, including his sister, has played in a myriad of unsolved deaths and disappearances at the park over the last 50 years.    

Genres: Horror, Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Fantasy, Comic Book

120 pages, Paperback

First published March 14, 2023

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Has a bit of that horror movie vibe to it.
While two siblings vie for the top spot in their father's evil company, another young woman infiltrates the park as an employee in the hopes of finding her missing brother.



Samhain is running the family's theme struggling park, trying to find creative ways to drum up business through marketing and merchandise, and trying to spend time with his little girl. His sister, Halloween, is his father's favorite and an influencer riding the high of her leaked sex tape.
They can't stand each other and both are trying to prove their worth to their reclusive father.



From the opening scene where their father kills his first wife, you know that this theme park is going to be chocked full of possessed rides. Not sure why, but I wasn't expecting the Five Nights at Freddy's stuff. But I suppose if you're going to have employees wandering around looking like plushie demons, then there will also need to be creepy things happening with the suits when the park closes.
That's just science.



There was way more plot here than I expected and it ended on a nice little cliffhanger.
I'm definitely reading the next volume.
Recommened.

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun little horror book.

Basically this crazy ass guy kills his wife and makes a pact with a demon and creates an amusement park filled with scary shit. His kids then help him build this park up as well, one leaving to become a superstar/porn star, while his son stays behind to keep the park afloat. But when they're running out of ideas to make profit, something terrible might happen, to cause the park to keep afloat.

It's a dark little sick horror book that actually was really enjoyable. If like the evil people being twisted fucks, solid dialogue, and some nasty art, this book might be for you. A 4 out of 5.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fun, nice to see the Birthright duo of Williamson and Bressan reunited. I'll definitely read Vol. 2.

[Sesana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this. I'm a big theme park fan, and so much of this book rang true. The dedicated fans, the merchandising, the specialist YouTube channels. Even the existence of an entirely horror themed park doesn't seem that crazy, between the success of events like Hollywood Horror Nights and Knots Scary Farm and the possible addition of a classic horror themed land to the upcoming Universal Epic Universe park. It's that grounding in reality that makes the horror elements stand out that much more. This is just the first four issues, and there's obviously going to be a lot more twists and turns, but I love where this first volume lands us.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

Samhain and Halloween are heirs to Devil Land..a horror themed amusement park.

They live in the shadow of their father /founder Arthur Dante whose buried at least one body to get where he is.

Summer is looking for her brother Owen who started working at the park..then disappeared.

Then there's those Mascots....who seem to have other things on their monds

[Matthew Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I’m really intrigued with this story and looking forward to seeing where it goes. The horror elements are pretty typical from what I expected from Williamson and the theme park theme has been fun!

[Sam S · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't think horror is the genre I want in my graphic novels, but the art was great. And creepy.

[The Geeky Viking · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wicked new horror comic from writer Joshua Williamson and artist Andrei Bressan, the duo behind fan-favourite fantasy series Birthright, Dark Ride is about a horror theme park called Devils Land. Once the most popular theme park in America, it's fallen on hard times and is struggling to stay open. The park's owner - reclusive Arthur Dante - hasn't been seen in years and his son, Samhain, is running the business while struggling to be a dad to his young daughter. His sister, Halloween, is a mega influencer and Daddy's girl and she's back, called home by their father for some unknown reason.

Strange things happen in the park and it's revealed early on that Arthur made a deal with the Devil in order to get things going. An interesting cast of characters is introduced in this first volume as the creepy goings on of the park become apparent to them. Williamson writes an intriguing tale and Bressan's artwork is spot on. I really enjoyed this one and I'm looking forward to see where they go wtih it.

[Sebastian M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This initial volume lives up to its premise, balancing the mystery and gore you'd expect from a horror story with the fun and over-the-top nature of an amusement park. Williamson's cast of characters, particularly the Dante family, are also really compelling and I'm excited to see the directions they go in next.
Also, I can't imagine it was easy to draw, but Bressan did a great job visualizing the theme park and all of its rides.
The only thing that didn't always work for me was the dialogue in some places. A bit too stilted sometimes, but given the campiness of everything else this story has to offer, I can forgive it.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Devil Land is an amusement park to die for!

Fifty years ago, Arthur Dante made a deal with the devil and afterward created Devil Land, a theme park devoted to horror. Famed for the scary ride The Devil’s Due, the park is now facing financial issues as Arthur has become reclusive and his adult children Samhain and Halloween have now taken over. Sam and Halloween have a strained relationship, as Sam is a divorced dad of a young daughter and Halloween is a hedonistic porn star. An issue is that Sam handles the day-to-day operations while Halloween cruises on her fame but gets more of the attention from fans and their father.

The story opens with a young new employee learning about the behind-the-scenes work of the park, and he is thrilled as he has been a big fan of the park for years. But he meets an untimely end, and his older sister goes undercover to find out what happened to him. In addition, a blogger is trying to expose the secrets of the park, as all the while Sam is dealing with his daughter hurting herself when one of the park mascots is supernaturally talking to her. Arthur is hiding away, but promising something big for the park, but his successes are always based on the misfortune of others as we get hints of horrible past events.

I enjoyed the artwork by Andrei Bressan, as I am a fan of realistic-looking characters instead of caricatures and exaggeration. But he also got to have fun creating an amusement park of horror and the three mascots were fanciful and creepy. He drew a statue of a young Arthur that was definitely inspired by Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse and was a sly little in-joke about idolization. The coloring was rich, with jewel-tone colors of reds, blues and purples.

The narrative ends on a cliffhanger as this is the first in a series, and I will tune in for more from author Joshua Williamson, to find out what other horrors await the Dante family and their adoring public.

This review can also be found on my blog: https://graphicnovelty2.com/2023/10/1...

[Benji Glaab · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have vivid memories of this horror movie Ghoulies when I was a kid with all these creepy ass gremlin looking characters stalking around a theme park killing off teenagers etc. Joshua Williams has channeled all that energy but added some corporate Disney greedy profit energy into the storyline.

Arthur Dante had made a deal with the Devil and sacrificed his wife in exchange to fully realize his dream horror Park fast forward into the future the mega successful theme park is starting to lose popularity and the day to day operations have fallen to Samhein and Halloween, Arthur's children. As a death in the park draw in huge crowds it only adds some more mystery to the Parks sinister energy.

I love the art in this volume and the colours pop. This is a great looking book with awesome character designs

[Regina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I happened to discover Dark Ride at the end of my copy of Creepshow, Vol. 1 and gave it a shot on a whim. I'm glad I did. The art is gorgeous, it has great kills, and the story immediately hooks you. This is perfect for fans of Cameron Roubique's Kill River trilogy, but if you're into horror in general I wouldn't miss this.

[Hilary (Melted Books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary: Devil Land is the world's premiere horror theme park. The owner, a recluse named Arthur Dante, along with his two children Samhain and Halloween, are trying to fix the 50-year-old park's financial downturn by expanding the brand outside of the park. But Samhain and Halloween are at odds with their ideas. Things get even more complicated when an investigation into mysterious park deaths and disappearances threaten the park's reputation.

Review: This is everything I would ever want in a horror graphic novel about a theme park. It's campy, creative, and dark. I can't wait to read volume 2.

Content warning: self harm, blood, body horror, gore, suicide, harm to a child, hospitals

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A super dark opening issue leads into a more standard narrative of a deal with the devil gone wrong. The family dynamics are very 90s movie, for better and worse. As a *Disney Adult*, I understand the appeal of theme parks, but Dark Ride feels a bit over the top. Still, I guess when the Devil's involved, anything is possible.

An intriguing opening volume, but I also don't really see where this is going to go. Solid art, nice ride details.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful visuals.

[Matteo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grandissimo numero con una storia che più si legge più si va a capire quanto questo parco di divertimenti sia dannatamente spaventoso

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

A campy comic for fans of Horror, Halloween, Amusement Parks, and maybe even Satan.
It won’t blow your mind, but it’s fun as hell. Pun intended. Strongly recommend this ride for a good time.

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic fun! Premise: What if a guy made a deal with the Devil and what the Devil wanted in return was an...amusement park! A lot of fun gore and satire to be had. I can't wait to read volume 2.

[Alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was great all around. I loved the character design, the story, the plot.

I really had no idea where this was going to go, but it kept me interested nonetheless. I am so curious to see what's going to happen.

Arthur was a struggling artist who murdered his wife. After trying to hide her body, a voice spoke to him. He created Devil Land, and after some initial success, the park's glory is fading. He has two children, Samhain and Halloween. Samhain has a daughter as well and Halloween is a popular influencer. Both are trying to come up with ideas to save the park, but Arthur wants them to work together.

There's a new worker at the park, Owen, who is very interested in working there. At night, he goes into one of the rides after hearing a voice. He ends up being murdered by the ride.

Sam is stressed out about the park and feeling like he's not good enough for his father. His daughter hears a voice, telling her how she can help. She starts cutting her wrist. Sam finds her and she goes to the hospital. Sam hears a voice and sees a hallucination of his mother.

Owen's sister, Summer, starts working at the park to try and find out what happened to him. She gets a lead from one of the avid vloggers at the park. She breaks in at night and is caught by Sam.

They end up finding Owen's body. The cops are called and ticket prices soar.

The vlogger from earlier gets a text to meet at a specific place in the park. He goes and there's park mascots there. They show him the inside of one of the mascot heads, which is a bunch of teeth. They put the mascot head on top of the vlogger's head, killing him. Halloween shows up, turns out she was behind this, and says "like father, like daughter".

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

The idea of a theme park devoted to horror is a cool idea and the artwork is generally pretty great. Unfortunately I think the execution is a bit lacking, with too many storylines being told at once, but not one of them coming to some sort of conclusion by the end of the first volume.

I'm not sure if I'll keep reading this series.

[Diana Tsuji · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sinister with body horror, carnival, and supernatural elements. The artwork is fun and cartoony but there's lots of death and gore. CW: suicide

[Subham · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was actually a fun read, I remember reading the first issue last year and actually enjoyed it, now reading the trade of it and just seeing the vision williamson has had for it is fun, seeing the Dante family and how messed up they are and how this park came into existence, the murder of a fan boy and his sister SUMMER investigating and the weird and bizarre occurrences around this park were wild man and someone needs to get ahold of this property and actually make a real life park because there are some names here that are so awesome and I won't mind a real life amusement park like this haha!

The supernatural stuff really elevates the horror usually towards the end when you see what happened with Owen and also the youtuber guy in the end who I just loved haha, its contemporary but also manages to sort of give you exposition about the world and the history and its fun and just the ending will have you going "whaat?"!

I really like the horror timing and also how the suspense is built and when the ending happens you can't help but wanna pick up the next volume, because the reveal is so awesome and actually makes sense considering all thats set up!

Also loved the art here, unusual style but these two did Birthright, which is like one of my favorite indie comics series which I absolutely adore!

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark Ride reunites the creative team from Birthright, writer Joshua Williamson, artist Andrei Bressan, and colourist Adriano Lucas, in a twisted look at horror, amusement parks, and sibling relationships.

Each of the four issues in this initial arc make it look like the story's going to follow different people, only for the rug to be pulled out from under you each time and the perspective to shift for one reason or another. Each issue gives you a few more pieces of the puzzle, until by the end the picture is much darker than you would have ever expected. Dark Ride gets dark quick and doesn't stop, even as you barrel towards the end of the arc.

Bressan's artwork is fantastic, as it was before - he manages to capture the mundane so well that the strange and bizarre looks somehow scarier. The most straight forward images of the theme park can have some horrifyingly creepy details in the backgrounds, and that's before you get to the explicit horror stuff later on. He's having a lot of fun with this, I can tell.

Dark Ride's not your grandpa's Disneyland, and it's all the better for it. Creepy and disturbing and thoroughly compelling - I can't wait to see what's next.

[Rick Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable, campy horror story that builds enough intrigue to keep the reader invested all the way through. Williamson's new horror comic, Dark Ride, takes on the perspective of new characters with each issue, serving as an interesting way to flesh out this haunted theme park. There is a decent amount of humor injected into the comic, and most of it lands for me. I admittedly am not a fan of Nailbiter, Williamson's previous horror title at Image, but Dark Ride handles the camp and levity much better and as such was more enjoyable to me. Bressan's artwork is dynamic and vibrant, and delivers some truly gnarly moments that resonate long after I finished reading this. I'm definitely interested in reading another volume should the quality hold.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars/5 for me.

Heads up: if you can't handle kids in distressing situations and/or self harm, this comic is not for you.

Basically, think Walt Disney makes a deal with the devil. It's a big wonderful park, only instead of pixie dust, it's crushed bones, horns instead of mouse ears, and gore where the magic would be.

It was a fun quick read that definitely left me curious about what comes next. It could get a bit confusing to follow at first since it tended to jump around. It got easier as the book went on, but the twists kept coming and they were rather well done. It also makes some interesting comments on the horror genre as well as on those who will do anything to keep their money and power.

[Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy....(or unholy) crap!

What if Walt Disney, when dreaming up Disneyland, had gotten into a fight with his wife and killed her? Then, after burying her in the desert, he was visited by a haunting voice that offered him a deal...of a lifetime. Devil Land is born, and it is most popular amusement park in all the land.

Years pass and the popularity is starting to wane. The creator, Arthur Dante, has locked himself within the park's castle. He's left most of the park workings to his two children, Samhain and Halloween.

Lots of strange things are happening at the park. This volume (the first four issues of the monthly) lays the groundwork for more scares and hauntings to come.
-----
Bonus: You can feel the creator's love for all things horror AND Disneyland

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a creepy thrill ride. I've read 1000's of comics in my day and rarely have I winced when reading them. Here, it happened multiple times. The book starts with a murder and gets darker from there. What are the secrets behind Devil Land and their infamous creator? That's the question that starts this horror, thriller from the amazing creative duo of Joshua Williamson and Andrei Bressan, who were great on Birthright. I thought the book could've been slowed down a little as quit a bit happened in just the first four issues but this was a scary good read. Bressan's art was stellar and at times, insanely creepy. Overall, better than almost every horror movie I've seen in the last 10 years.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

There's some potential here, but I don't think it really capitalized on its premise. Aside from the fake-out of the first issue, this is a pretty straightforward family/business drama, albeit with a darker side that moves steadily further into the supernatural side, even as it focuses on management and relationship issues. And as a big theme park fan, I was disappointed at how little the park and its rides actually factor into the story - this is a series where it feels like the setting should drive the story, but most of the time it doesn't. I'm kind of hopeful that it gets better with the next volume, but it's not quite there yet for me.

[Timothy Pitkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great set up with a great mystery as we learn about Devil Land a theme park that focuses on scaring its customers. We learn about it's founder Arthur Dante and a mysterious deal he made. I love the setting as it reminds me of Horrorland from Goosebumps but with the amusement park being the main focus instead of the monsters. Even after the first volume we still have so many questions but it is done well as our main character Sam the son of the founder is now grappling that something is not right with the park as it threatens his daughter. The art helps the mood that something feels wrong about this.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

A horror story set in an amusement park? Yes, please. This book was exactly as much fun as I had hoped for, which is impressive in and of itself. Beautifully drawn and well, told, this is a story of a man who sold his soul to the darkness and built the scariest amusement park in its honor. Now his adult children, a set of dramatically different twins, are vying to take over the place, but neither of them really knows what they're getting into. The park is struggling financially and is full of terrifying secrets to boot. Steps inside Devil land and grab a ticket. it's going to be an awesome ride.