Review- WHISPERS IN THE WALLS

WHISPERS IN THE WALLS (Humanoids, 2011; Softcover)

Note: Released in North America in 2012

Collects Whispers in the Walls Nos. 1-4 plus the unpublished (in the US) 5 and 6 (cover dates August- November, 2010)

Note: Originally published in France as Le Manoir des Murmures Vols. 1-3 (cover dates November, 2007- August, 2011)

Writers: David Munoz, as translated by Alex Donoghue

Artist: Tirso

This wasn't anywhere near what I expected, judging by the title and cover of the book. I half expected it to be about little monsters inside the walls, sort of a Don't Be Afraid of the Dark excursion. Instead, we are treated to vampires and werewolves and every other monster under the sun...or rather, moon. Lots of twists and turns, double crosses and revenge, with two organizations vying for control of the monsters in a fictional 1949. This is a tale of manipulation gone wrong, and is wide open for a sequel. 

I love the page layouts, with as many as 10-15 panels per page. This allows for an incredible amount of characterization in as few pages as possible. There are pages with fewer panels and some pages with no words at all, while others are jam packed with dialogue. Since this is a translation, the word balloons and font size are very small, and are at times difficult to read when compared to our fat, stupid American fonts. There are a few grammatical errors in the translation. While there are stylistic differences in these European comic books, comic books are really a universal language. From this to Japanese Manga to our American superheroes, every country has a flavor, and they are all available on the racks around the world. This pleases me. 

The OCD zone- Like all Humanoids books, this is a high quality affair, featuring a super thick cardstock cover, nice paper, and sewn binding.