Sequential Art

Monsters

Monsters

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  • Create Date：2021-07-08 06:55:28
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Barry Windsor-Smith
  • ISBN：1683964152
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Summary

The year is 1964。 Bobby Bailey doesn’t realize he is about to fulfill his tragic destiny when he walks into a US Army recruitment office to join up。 Close-mouthed， damaged， innocent， trying to forget a past and looking for a future， it turns out that Bailey is the perfect candidate for a secret U。S。 government experimental program， an unholy continuation of a genetics program that was discovered in Nazi Germany nearly 20 years earlier in the waning days of World War II。 Bailey’s only ally and protector， Sergeant McFarland， intervenes， which sets off a chain of cascading events that spin out of everyone’s control。 As the titular monsters of the title multiply， becoming real and metaphorical， literal and ironic， the story reaches its emotional and moral reckoning。


Monsters is the legendary project Barry Windsor-Smith has been working on for over 35 years。 A 380-page tour de force of visual storytelling， Monsters’ narrative canvas is both vast and deep: part familial drama， part political thriller， part metaphysical journey， it is an intimate portrait of individuals struggling to reclaim their lives and an epic political odyssey across two generations of American history。 Trauma， fate， conscience， and redemption are just a few of the themes that intersect in the most ambitious graphic novel of Windsor-Smith’s career。 


Monsters is rendered in Windsor-Smith’s impeccable pen-and-ink technique， the visual storytelling with its sensitivity to gesture and composition is the most sophisticated of the artist’s career。 There are passages of heartbreaking tenderness， of excruciating pain， and devastating violence。 It is surely one of the most intense graphic novels ever drawn。

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Reviews

Mono ，

Tour de force。

Alex Sarll ，

When it comes to comics' big beasts， there are names whose feet of clay I delight in pointing out （Stan & Jack）， ones where I'm a fully indoctrinated member of the fan club （Alan Moore）。。。and ones like Barry Windsor-Smith， where I know I've read the odd issue but am mostly unfamiliar with the work which made his name。 Still， this seemed like a big enough event that it was worth checking out。 Nearly 40 years in the making， it began as a Hulk story at Marvel before being retooled as a creator-owne When it comes to comics' big beasts， there are names whose feet of clay I delight in pointing out （Stan & Jack）， ones where I'm a fully indoctrinated member of the fan club （Alan Moore）。。。and ones like Barry Windsor-Smith， where I know I've read the odd issue but am mostly unfamiliar with the work which made his name。 Still， this seemed like a big enough event that it was worth checking out。 Nearly 40 years in the making， it began as a Hulk story at Marvel before being retooled as a creator-owned project from a respectable publisher， and right there you can see how the problems began。 If this had come out in the eighties， it might well get talked about alongside Miller， Moore and Maus as part of comics growing up。 Now， to anyone who's vaguely paid attention over the intervening decades， it feels distinctly old hat。 Case in point – the question at its heart: who is the real monster？ Is it the poor lump on the cover， looking like lockdown has left me feeling， and the result of the usual sinister experiments by an 'ex-'Nazi scientist？ Or is it the military-industrial complex， in its suit and tie？ Aaaaah。 Among the insights shared along the way are the remarkable news that sometimes people who seemed quite nice before going off to war are really fucked-up when they come back。 None of this is untrue， or unworthy as a subject， but nor is any of it really news anymore， certainly not in comics， and a lot of it has been handled in much more adroit fashion over the intervening years – including in Hulk comics， for that matter， which have gone over a lot of this territory while BW-S has been beavering away， and in a particularly unfortunate coincidence of timing， are as good as they've ever been right when Monsters belatedly lumbers into view。On top of which， gods know I wouldn't make any grand claims for the quality of editing at comics publishers， but one gets a strong sense that somewhere in its peregrinations， Monsters became （contractually？） uneditable。 I can certainly see 'emmigrants' and 'complaintant' sneaking through at Marvel， but in places the order of speech balloons on the page isn't remotely intuitive， and that feels like something that could have been caught and fixed were it not being treated as sacrosanct。 More drastically， perhaps they could have brought the enterprise in somewhere under its current 365 pages。 I've got nothing against long comics per se， even long comics on harrowing themes – From Hell is a masterpiece。 But a lot of the time Monsters just feels like it's hammering us over the head with the information that bad things are bad。 The military can be dicks。 PTSD isn't very nice。 Abusive husband-fathers are rotten。 And as for Nazis and cannibalism – don't get me started！ These points are made powerfully， and then sapped of all their power by repetition with slight variations over page after page after grisly page。 And to be fair， they are very well-made pages。 When BW-S draws a snowy woodland， or a car crash， or a hallucination， it looks amazing。 The writing isn't bad either; there's some very good stuff early on about race， and code-switching， and the distinctly mixed blessing of a family history of minor psychic powers you can't altogether bring yourself to rely on。 Around midway there's an extended scene around a military banquet which is full of colour and life and incident， even as it holds the seeds of the tragedies to come。 But then it just keeps。。。on。。。going。 There's just so damn much of it all that， grotesquely enlarged like its protagonist， the book becomes more chore than revelation。（Publisher freebie for being on a market research thing） 。。。more

Blue ，

3 stars for story， 5 stars for artMonsters is a tour-de-force。 Beautifully drawn and inked， large-format art is amazing。 Monsters tells the story of a man， Bobby， who volunteers （kind of） for a military project。 The backstory， which is most of the book， is how Bobby came to be there as well as the history of the project。 There are several key players in this history and their origins are revealed in flashback as Bobby escapes the facility of the military project and takes refuge in his childhood 3 stars for story， 5 stars for artMonsters is a tour-de-force。 Beautifully drawn and inked， large-format art is amazing。 Monsters tells the story of a man， Bobby， who volunteers （kind of） for a military project。 The backstory， which is most of the book， is how Bobby came to be there as well as the history of the project。 There are several key players in this history and their origins are revealed in flashback as Bobby escapes the facility of the military project and takes refuge in his childhood home。 The art does a good job of switching back and forth between flashback and present， as well as between narratives。 The pacing varies and is probably the thing that most detracted from the story for me。 The beginning is slow， with many military personnel and unknown motives， while the middle is spent in Bobby's childhood and his mother's long letters （written in hard-to-read cursive） about the abuse from her veteran husband who is suffering from PTSD （and more）。 The end brings us back to the present， Bobby holed up in his now-abandoned childhood home， while some try to capture him （and pin some murders on him）， while some people from his past trying to help him。 The Nazi background story is mildly interesting， but the twists and turns are not at all surprising and novel。 Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the whole story is the "sight" or "gift" one family has and how they use this intergenerational gift to help Bobby。 The characters don't really grow or change throughout the story （I mean internally; there is a lot of external conflict， of course）。 The mother is always abused and helpless， the father is always evil and abusive， Bobby is voiceless， the evil man behind the project is just pure evil。。。 Everyone's black or white。 There's some moral ambiguity with two main characters， but even that is very slight; they're essentially well-meaning good dudes。 Overall， Monsters is an impressive project with fantastic art。 For that， it's worth a read。 but the story might drag at times for some readers。 The middle part could certainly be trimmed and tightened for a shorter flashback to childhood。 Recommended for those who like bikes， sixth sense， cannibalism， evil scientists and military luncheons。 。。。more

Gergő Esze ，

Mennyi mély emberi dráma， mennyi rejtőző és előbújó szörnyeteg és mennyi gyönyörűen részletes Barry Windsor-Smith rajz！

Dorian Holley ，

A beautifully told tale of human horror。 Feels as if you are watching the story from a camera high in the corner of a room。 Windsor-Smith has created people in all their glory and complexity and uncertainty and contradiction。 And it’s all done up in gorgeous， meticulous black and white。 This book is a masterpiece。 It takes an afternoon to read but you’ll go back to study the action and the faces。 You’ll pick it up the next day and the next。 You’ll marvel at how time actually passes; how the scen A beautifully told tale of human horror。 Feels as if you are watching the story from a camera high in the corner of a room。 Windsor-Smith has created people in all their glory and complexity and uncertainty and contradiction。 And it’s all done up in gorgeous， meticulous black and white。 This book is a masterpiece。 It takes an afternoon to read but you’ll go back to study the action and the faces。 You’ll pick it up the next day and the next。 You’ll marvel at how time actually passes; how the scenes are laid out and edited; how the scenes feel unstaged and improvised。 There’s real pain in this story; true passion。 You’ll feel that too。 Monsters is a work of wonder。 。。。more

Neil ，

This is clearly a labour of love， and is dense and I suspect technically excellent （I'm only an occasional reader of graphic novels， so don't have enough experience to say， really）。I found it hard going at times: he goes for a quirky placement of speech bubbles， so many times I found myself confused about reading order。 It felt like he was trying for film effects at times， switching contect and/or time， sometimes just for one panel， and I wasn't sure if I was missing something。 There were times This is clearly a labour of love， and is dense and I suspect technically excellent （I'm only an occasional reader of graphic novels， so don't have enough experience to say， really）。I found it hard going at times: he goes for a quirky placement of speech bubbles， so many times I found myself confused about reading order。 It felt like he was trying for film effects at times， switching contect and/or time， sometimes just for one panel， and I wasn't sure if I was missing something。 There were times when I didn't know how to interpret what was going on， so I ended up pressing on and hoping it would become clear。I wonder whether it would make more sense， and be more enjoyable， on a subsequent read， but it's long， and and not a light read， so I'm not likely to re-read it for a while。 。。。more

Ezra Judge ，

4。5/5

Eamonn Murphy ，

When you read that a book has been thirty-five years in the making， it gives you high expectations。 Such is the case with ‘Monsters’ by Barry Windsor-Smith， which began life as a story for Marvel’s Incredible Hulk character but evolved。 There are several monsters in the story but the principal victim， not a monster， bears a strong resemblance to Bruce Banner’s alter-ego。 For good measure， he’s relentlessly pursued by Major Roth of the U。S。 Army and there’s a cameo by one Captain Talbot but this When you read that a book has been thirty-five years in the making， it gives you high expectations。 Such is the case with ‘Monsters’ by Barry Windsor-Smith， which began life as a story for Marvel’s Incredible Hulk character but evolved。 There are several monsters in the story but the principal victim， not a monster， bears a strong resemblance to Bruce Banner’s alter-ego。 For good measure， he’s relentlessly pursued by Major Roth of the U。S。 Army and there’s a cameo by one Captain Talbot but this is not a Hulk story。It starts back in World War II but， for the reader， begins in Saturday， 11 June 1949， at the Bailey home in Providence Township， Ohio。 Like many modern films， the book aims for realism by giving exact dates and places for the events。 The opening pages show a terrible event where a boy loses an eye， perhaps in a cycling accident， perhaps by other means。 His father is unpleasant。 His mother tries to protect him。Cut to Los Angeles， California， Wednesday， 22 April， 1964 and Bobby Bailey is trying to join the U。S。 Army， just like his dear old dad。 Recruiter Sergeant McFarland discovers the lad has no identity papers and ‘no home。 No relationships to speak of。 No Social security card。 Outside of his own head， he doesn’t exist。’ This makes Bobby Bailey the ideal candidate for Project Prometheus and， not long after， a car comes to take him away for genetic experiments that will turn him into a muscular freak。 McFarland comes to regret his actions and tries to make amends。After a certain point， the story keeps going backwards and the reader discovers more and more about Bobby Bailey’s terrible childhood。 There are also extended scenes featuring Sergeant McFarland’s home life。 Certain members of his family have the gift of second sight and perceive things others cannot see。 The flashbacks are interwoven with poor Bailey’s current predicament， explaining it and heightening the emotional impact。 There are unexpected connections between the characters。 Eventually， the flashbacks return to Bobby’s father in World War II and the horror he encountered。The art is as beautiful as you would expect， lovely detailed black and white， pen and ink panels used with the storytelling skills Barry Windsor-Smith has acquired over a long career。 What’s astonishing is the script。 Who knew an artist could write so well？ Don’t expect slam-bang super-hero action， though。 There are long scenes of domestic life， petty squabbles， introspection and， sadly， domestic violence。 There are fights and car chases， too， but few of them in 380 pages。 The pace is downright leisurely at times。 That enables the author to give depth to the characters， and it’s never dull。 Although there are Science Fiction and fantasy elements here， the basic setting is the real world， which has more monsters， past and present， than you could fit into a thousand Hammer Horror movies。‘Monsters’ is a masterpiece that shows what can be done with graphic storytelling。 Thirty-five years of work？ It was worth the wait。 。。。more

Sean Kottke ，

Sort of in the 2。5 range， but rounding down。 The ambition here is undeniable， and there are individual panels that are the stuff of nightmare。 The story is a genre stew of mad scientist， post-war domestic melodrama， government conspiracy， ghost story， and WWII atrocity fictions。 The non-linear storytelling mostly works， though some instability in character rendering， sudden unsignaled shifts in time， and an unconventional patterning of word bubbles conspire against the reader more often than not Sort of in the 2。5 range， but rounding down。 The ambition here is undeniable， and there are individual panels that are the stuff of nightmare。 The story is a genre stew of mad scientist， post-war domestic melodrama， government conspiracy， ghost story， and WWII atrocity fictions。 The non-linear storytelling mostly works， though some instability in character rendering， sudden unsignaled shifts in time， and an unconventional patterning of word bubbles conspire against the reader more often than not。 Some portions feel overlong， and the dialogue verges on B-movie melodrama creakiness。 Most egregious for a 2021 publication is the stereotypical representation of Black American speech by a white British author。 That might have been passable when the book was started some 37 years ago， but not today。 That could have been edited easily enough， and I’d have enjoyed it more if those portions had been rendered without affectation。 。。。more

Paul Spence ，

It's been 16 years since Barry Windsor-Smith's last book and in Monsters， you can see the work of those days and years on every page and panel。 Drawing the story of three generations of characters， Windsor-Smith richly layers lines， images， and even timelines in this book。 His classically influenced style， as rich now as it was in the '70s， fills the pages with drawings and sequences you can easily lose yourself in the depths of。 His fine linework establishes the brokenness of the character， dep It's been 16 years since Barry Windsor-Smith's last book and in Monsters， you can see the work of those days and years on every page and panel。 Drawing the story of three generations of characters， Windsor-Smith richly layers lines， images， and even timelines in this book。 His classically influenced style， as rich now as it was in the '70s， fills the pages with drawings and sequences you can easily lose yourself in the depths of。 His fine linework establishes the brokenness of the character， depicting a post-World War II dream that possibly was never anything more than an American nightmare。 Windsor-Smith makes sure that no line and no detail is superfluous， every element of this story builds on the tale's structure to reinforce Windsor-Smith's themes and concerns。At first， this story could almost pass for a Hulk story。 It is one-part origin story for a military-made hulking brute as the military recruits and performs experiments on Bobby Bailey， a young man who carries the scars of his youth but sees no future other than following in the footsteps of his father Tom Bailey。 As we see more and more of Bobby's story， we can see how lost he must be if he is trying to be like his father。 When this experiment turns him into some kind of monster， you may think that you are starting to see the shape and direction of this book。 And you may be partially correct but Windsor-Smith is not here to give you a simple， straightforward story。This is a story that needs a lot of space。 On each of the more than the nearly 360 pages that make up this work， Windsor-Smith settles into a pacing where each sequence allows the story and the characters to breathe。 Bobby Bailey， the most obvious of the titular monsters， gets to be a character we see at the beginning and near the end of his life， becoming this tragic figure who was destined to be nothing more than a victim of life。 Windsor-Smith appears liberated from the constraints of the kind of 20+ page comics that he built his career on。 From Conan to Solar to Rune， Windsor-Smith always brought a high degree of craft to all of his work， creating beautiful illustrations that served the needs of corporations and their restrained views of what comics should be。 His work over many different comics created a body of beautiful and fluid drawings。 But after that amount of work， he has now created a work that his legacy will be forever tied to， melding his stylistic artwork with a story that explores trauma and grief in ways that he has never been able to before。Monsters is built on the connections of Bobby Bailey and his family to the closing days of World War II。 That war was the result of monsters， but it created its own monsters who carried an evil spirit back to their homes and families。 But these monsters existed even before the war but spread like an infection after the Allied Forces declared victory and thought that they were going to be heading to their homes soon。 World War II may be the catalyst for this story but what Windsor-Smith explores is a much larger and even more pervasive evil than the horrors of war。 He examines an evil force that travels through generations， bringing the sins of the fathers to their sons and daughters。 Tom Bailey brought those horrors back to his family in the states but the McFarland family， another one caught up in these events， had to live with the death of a father during the war。 Tom Bailey and Leon McFarland walked into the heart of darkness in 1945 not knowing that their families would be living in the shadows of that darkness for the next twenty years。Time collapses in on itself in this book， blurring the lines of the past and the present。 Windsor-Smith constructs this story with flashbacks upon flashbacks and even flashbacks within flashbacks。 Because of that， time becomes its own type of monster， fluid but unyielding。 He uses time to build the layers of this story， following the effects of actions long before the cause of them。 This sets up mysteries for us to follow but it also gives us the ability to live in these moments， inhabiting the world of Bobby Bailey from childhood to the days where he's on the run from the army。 Bobby is one of the few innocent people in this book but he suffers the most。 He has to carry all of the sins even as he himself was never one of the sinners。Bobby literally becomes the monster in this book but nearly every character acts like a monster at one point or another。 Whatever force that leads him on his path infects everyone， including his mother， a woman who struggles to rise above her troubles。 The book is about men and women who succumb to the world， who fight for as long as they can before being beaten down and transformed into some corrupted thing。 In many of the characters， we see moments of good and moments of evil; in that way， they're ultimately very human as they exist on a spectrum of morality。 There is a pervasive evil in this world， some original sin that infects nearly every character。 Windsor-Smith sets the majority of this story in a Normal Rockwellesque America， one that is easy to idealise and idolise from our distance to it。 He uses that as a backdrop to question what is the cost of war。With that question as a central theme of the book， Windsor Smith understands that war is something that eats away at the fabric of society and families。 Monsters is a war story as all of the threats of the story tie back to Germany and 1945。 Bobby may have only been a young boy as the war ended but his whole life， whether he knew it or not， was affected by what happened in Germany to his father。 Windsor-Smith crafts a war story that recognises that wars don't end with an armistice。 For some people， wars never end as they have to live with the experiences and atrocities every day and every night， even after they eventually get to go home。 。。。more

Frank ，

Interesting story with great graphics。 This is a new take on Frankenstein’s monster and Nazi experiments on humans with a little spirituality thrown in。

Aaron W。 Roberts ，

4。5， but rounding down to 4 as felt about 50 pages too long。 This is brutal stuff。 The middle section centered around Bobby's turbulent home life is just devastating。 Not sure I can easily connect beggining-middle-end with a consistent theme， but I was never bored and often quite moved。 4。5， but rounding down to 4 as felt about 50 pages too long。 This is brutal stuff。 The middle section centered around Bobby's turbulent home life is just devastating。 Not sure I can easily connect beggining-middle-end with a consistent theme， but I was never bored and often quite moved。 。。。more

Williwaw ，

It's been a while since I've read a long-form graphic novel， so this was quite a treat。 It's a very dark story， which shouldn't be a surprise， given the title。 But I wasn't expecting so much death， sexual perversion， cruelty， and evil。 BWS tries to tie everything up with a redemptive ending， but I found it unsatisfying because it all hinges on the premise that our problems can be solved in the afterlife。 As a person who has serious doubts about the survival of the self after death， I found this It's been a while since I've read a long-form graphic novel， so this was quite a treat。 It's a very dark story， which shouldn't be a surprise， given the title。 But I wasn't expecting so much death， sexual perversion， cruelty， and evil。 BWS tries to tie everything up with a redemptive ending， but I found it unsatisfying because it all hinges on the premise that our problems can be solved in the afterlife。 As a person who has serious doubts about the survival of the self after death， I found this to be hokey。 Nevertheless， I found the story structurally interesting。 The art is beautiful。 The story did sag a bit around the mid-point， which was aggravated by Smith's decision to present long passages from one of the main character's diaries in page after page of cursive script。 This was the worst shortcoming of the book。 Overall， though， this was a powerful story that kept me on my toes， wondering what was going to happen next。 。。。more

Chad ，

What a disappointment！ It took BWS 37 years to create this and it felt like 37 years for me to read this 370 page story。 This is such an overwritten slog that could have been edited down to half as long and still gotten BWS's idea across。 The story is told backwards with a young man being turned into a monster by a Nazi working for the American military in the 60's。 There's also a Scatman Cruthers character named McFarlane who has the Shine although it doesn't fit with the rest of the story at a What a disappointment！ It took BWS 37 years to create this and it felt like 37 years for me to read this 370 page story。 This is such an overwritten slog that could have been edited down to half as long and still gotten BWS's idea across。 The story is told backwards with a young man being turned into a monster by a Nazi working for the American military in the 60's。 There's also a Scatman Cruthers character named McFarlane who has the Shine although it doesn't fit with the rest of the story at all。 I'm not sure what the character with supernatural sight adds to this story at all other than BWS must have read a lot of Stephen King over those 37 years。Then we flash back to the young man's family as a boy。 The story is told from his battered mother。 She writes in her diary and there are pages and pages of diary entries written in cursive that add zero to the story。 BWS illustrates everything in the diary entries in the preceding pages so I don't see the point of these entries at all other than adding to the page count and boring the reader to tears。The final section flashes back to the final days of the war and how the Nazi scientist escaped Germany and started working for the Americans。 It's only goal seemed to be to show the Dr。 Mengele wannabe was a monster。 Surprise。 Surprise。 Like I couldn't infer that。I will say this。 Barry Windsor Smith is still an extremely talented artist。 The artwork is fantastic。 His pen and ink drawings are meticulous， drawing you in。 。。。more

Terry ，

Worth owning for the Art alone， the story adds on to make a perfect comic experience。 Beautifully bound and presented， it’s great to have BWS back doing comics again。 He had a huge impact on me， like every kid who read comics for the art as much as the stories。 Solid 5-stars。

Erin ，

This book is an absolute ride。 A book that's got some truly horrific things （even more than most horror I've read） like not gonna lie some parts of the book had my stomach churning。 But it also has some very human moments as well。 If you're not faint of heart or stomach I would recommend this， it's an excellent read full of incredible art and a story that will stick with you。 It definitely gets a 'rated M for mature' on it but don't let that steer you away！ This book is an absolute ride。 A book that's got some truly horrific things （even more than most horror I've read） like not gonna lie some parts of the book had my stomach churning。 But it also has some very human moments as well。 If you're not faint of heart or stomach I would recommend this， it's an excellent read full of incredible art and a story that will stick with you。 It definitely gets a 'rated M for mature' on it but don't let that steer you away！ 。。。more

Hisham ，

A book that was over thirty years in the making and was originally conceived as a Hulk story for Marvel Comics。The black and white artwork by Barry Windsor-Smith is stunning， but at over 300 pages the story frequently drags in places。 Still， it does provide a deeper story about the various forms that "monsters' can take and the legacy that domestic violence and trauma can leave behind。 A book that was over thirty years in the making and was originally conceived as a Hulk story for Marvel Comics。The black and white artwork by Barry Windsor-Smith is stunning， but at over 300 pages the story frequently drags in places。 Still， it does provide a deeper story about the various forms that "monsters' can take and the legacy that domestic violence and trauma can leave behind。 。。。more

Dlotempio ，

There's a hole in my pocket where my dreams fell through，From a sidewalk in the city to the avenueThere's a leak in my dam 'bout the size of a pin，And I can't quite remember where the water's getting inBut when you're wearing on your sleeve，All the things you regret，You can only remember what you want to forgetYou feel it tugging at your heart，Like the stars overhead，'Til you rest your bones on the killing bedThose lyrics are from a song called The Things I Regret by Brandi Carlisle。 The song em There's a hole in my pocket where my dreams fell through，From a sidewalk in the city to the avenueThere's a leak in my dam 'bout the size of a pin，And I can't quite remember where the water's getting inBut when you're wearing on your sleeve，All the things you regret，You can only remember what you want to forgetYou feel it tugging at your heart，Like the stars overhead，'Til you rest your bones on the killing bedThose lyrics are from a song called The Things I Regret by Brandi Carlisle。 The song embodies a loss of identity and profound spiritual chaos。 The grace of god has been lost and the path back to sanctity is covered in blades。 MONSTERS charts the journey of those souls hoping to reclaim sanctity and harmony。 The art is absolutely gorgeous。 The story is heart breaking and unforgiving。 But it’s multi-faceted virtues are mirrored by equally disappointing vices。 The title of the book tells the reader there are multiple monsters in the story。 Different types of monsters stalk the righteous path。 The book itself should be considered one of the monsters - a titanic creature of beauty marred by sinful flaws。The pacing and structure is misshapen。 Non-linear sequences alternate between fast action and languid voyeurism。 The first 100 pages cycle contain the rapid torture of Bobby Bailey， a cracking car chase， an exciting escape and inexplicably a drawn out family drama。 It is like country driving。 One minute your driving fast and then suddenly you must downshift to village speed。 It’s difficult to grasp a rhythm。 Is this a conscious choice by Barry WindsorSmith to emulate the misshapen monster of Bobby Bailey？ No idea。 This attribute didn’t bother me much through the middle since the story refined its focus on the Bailey home。 This is the soul of the book and I loved it。 “A heart that is broken makes a beautiful sound” sang Brandi Carlisle and there is tremendous music at the heart of Monsters。 Unrequited and tragic love， a soul damaged by post traumatic stress， a mother’s dream for a loving home only to discover an incontinent wolf roaming the rooms - all of this is rendered in majestic art。 The experience is supremely sad。 Even depressing。 Brilliant。I thought BWS did a fine job with the voices of the different characters。 I was impressed with his ability to capture America circa 1940-1950。 He omits some cultural touchstones but nothing felt false。The inclusion of characters with Second Sight is going to be problematic。 Merging sci-fi and mysticism is tricky。 You may consider it a convenient plot device to resolve the story。 I can accept that。 But this is a story about resolving spiritual trauma， second sight and ghosts felt like a natural inclusion。 The biggest problems that I see are at the end。 BWS spends 6 pages explaining some plot points to set up the end。 It’s a pandering speed bump。 BWS just spent the past 200 pages showing us the events。 Don’t suddenly TELL us the cliff notes version！ It is unnecessary。 Also， there is a brief sequence involving ghosts recruiting citizens to block an Army regiment that adds absolutely NOTHING to the climax。 It either needed to be developed more or totally cut。 The climax is a sharp stop。 I won’t divulge how it ends。 I loved it and it felt appropriate。 It approaches harmony。 In my opinion， the book would be a masterpiece if BWS cut the pandering and moved immediately to this resolution。 Not everything needs to be explained。 Not everything SHOULD be explained。 The end comes for us all， even monsters。 And the mysteries we can’t explain are transformed as our bodies die。Let the ground keep my bonesLet the water be my homeLet the dust hold my soul，Like a holy rolling stone- Brandi Carlisle 。。。more

Briones ，

Good old BWS， back at it again after decades， and his writing and composition are as great as ever。Despite the fact that *ahem* some people appear not to be able to read past the fact that BWS is calling Nazis monsters， there's a lot of interesting subtext going on in this story。 In fact， Nazis are actually not the monsters of this story， and this book goes out of its way to criticise the mythical modern perception of Nazis as some kind of super-intelligent collective that could've won the war w Good old BWS， back at it again after decades， and his writing and composition are as great as ever。Despite the fact that *ahem* some people appear not to be able to read past the fact that BWS is calling Nazis monsters， there's a lot of interesting subtext going on in this story。 In fact， Nazis are actually not the monsters of this story， and this book goes out of its way to criticise the mythical modern perception of Nazis as some kind of super-intelligent collective that could've won the war with their inventions and experiments。This romantization of Nazism can be seen in a ton of comic-books， like Hellboy and Captain America， even if those books are openly anti-Nazi。 I think it's important that someone finally challenged this idea: in Monsters， the Nazi experiments are not Even though my favorite part of this book is the one that addresses these ideas and shows how incompetent and impractical most Nazi inventions truly were， the emotional core of the book is in the characters and their interactions。 There is no true main character， despite being Bobby the one who ties all of their stories together。 I won't' go into spoilers here， but all of the characters have interesting roles that end up paying off in the end。 On a visual level， this book can be a bit confusing regarding male faces because of how similar most of them look， but the text bubbles and the way dialogue flows more than make up for that。 BWS has always been a master of juxtaposition and dynamic dialogue， and this book is no exception。Give it a try if you want a cerebral， dark but hopeful exploration of the human psyche。 。。。more

Craig ，

This is a massive graphic novel that the author started working on in 1984 while making comics for Marvel， specifically （and thematically crucial） the Weapon X plotline of the X-Men series， about the military experimentation that creates the character Wolverine。 Monsters is a narrative kaleidoscope centered on trauma in the life of Bobby Bailey， who is turned into a hulking， mute giant by the US military in a continuation of Nazi genetic experiments。 Layers of Bobby’s life are peeled back so tha This is a massive graphic novel that the author started working on in 1984 while making comics for Marvel， specifically （and thematically crucial） the Weapon X plotline of the X-Men series， about the military experimentation that creates the character Wolverine。 Monsters is a narrative kaleidoscope centered on trauma in the life of Bobby Bailey， who is turned into a hulking， mute giant by the US military in a continuation of Nazi genetic experiments。 Layers of Bobby’s life are peeled back so that the reader sees trauma laid upon his mother by his father， his father by war， and Bobby himself by the abuse and neglect of almost everyone around him。 It’s a sad book that dips into familiar themes around military industrialization and domestic abuse with an odd dash of The Shining， and with that much going on， it doesn’t always stick the landing。 The black-and-white inked art is starkly expressionistic and effective， but the narrative meanders and shifts so much that I can’t pinpoint what the beating heart of the story is supposed to be。 It could be trauma， or the military， or spirituality， but it didn’t hit any of them hard enough to render a solid impression to me。 Impressive？ Definitely。 Important？ Eh。 。。。more

Gregory Litchfield ，

A deeply emotive tale， rendered masterfully in Windsor-Smith’s detailed pen & ink style。 A difficult， but unforgettable reading experience。

Pamela Scott ，

https://thebookloversboudoir。wordpres。。。This is a new author for me。 Monsters is a graphic novel which uses black and white ink drawings。 I’ve read a few graphic novels but I want to read more books in this style as I’ve found them to be just as well-written and enjoyable as a standard novel with added visuals to really bring the book to life。 Monsters focuses on the US Government experimenting on a naïve young man using Nazi technology – you know how that’s going to turn out。 Monsters reminds m https://thebookloversboudoir。wordpres。。。This is a new author for me。 Monsters is a graphic novel which uses black and white ink drawings。 I’ve read a few graphic novels but I want to read more books in this style as I’ve found them to be just as well-written and enjoyable as a standard novel with added visuals to really bring the book to life。 Monsters focuses on the US Government experimenting on a naïve young man using Nazi technology – you know how that’s going to turn out。 Monsters reminds me a lot of Frankenstein and Bobby becomes physically very similar to Mary Shelley’s creature。 I enjoyed how the book explores the past of Bobby and his father highlighting key moments that led to Bobby becoming a lab rat。 I was also impressed by the fact the author didn’t go down the obvious route， turning Bobby into a freak or a killer but really humanised him。 Monsters is a terrific read。 。。。more

Jefferson ，

Beautifully illustrated and very ambitious， but the story is over-long and gets pulled in too many different directions， relying on an unconvincing level of coincidence to tie the different plot threads together。

Clay ，

I'm kind of "meh" about this book。 I expected more from something that was an author's pet project for （I'm told） 35 years。 While the art was great， the story underwhelmed me。 I was halfway through the book and I still had no idea about what the point of the whole things was or should be。The reader is taken back from current （1964） events through flashbacks to the aftermath of WWII and the final days of that conflict in order to fill in backstory， in reverse order。 By the time we return to resol I'm kind of "meh" about this book。 I expected more from something that was an author's pet project for （I'm told） 35 years。 While the art was great， the story underwhelmed me。 I was halfway through the book and I still had no idea about what the point of the whole things was or should be。The reader is taken back from current （1964） events through flashbacks to the aftermath of WWII and the final days of that conflict in order to fill in backstory， in reverse order。 By the time we return to resolve the current situation， it's now 250 pages later and I've almost lost track of who's who， what's what， and how we got to that point。 It was good to be reminded that soldiers of that war came back with just as many problems as we're seeing today and that we saw in the mid-70s。 After reading this it was somewhat jarring to watch a film about WWII soldiers that are all well-adjusted and as happy afterwards as they were before they went to serve。Windsor-Smith is a fantastic visual storyteller。 This book had many nice graphic devices incorporated in a natural way that didn't call attention to themselves。 One really nice one was for Jan's journaling with a fountain pen that breaks near the end of an entry and the rest is obviously finished in pencil。 Besides the obvious difference between ink and pencil， the accompanying illustrations show the nib in a glass of water， the roughly sharpened pencil， and a knife that was used to hone a point。 。。。more

Jonathan Hawpe ，

This stunningly gorgeous instant classic of graphic lit takes inspiration from Frankenstein， Graham Greene， Slaughterhouse Five， and The Tin Drum to subvert Captain America style "supersoldier" comic book tropes in a wrenchingly painful but beautifully human meditation on country， family， violence （individual and state） and redemption。 This stunningly gorgeous instant classic of graphic lit takes inspiration from Frankenstein， Graham Greene， Slaughterhouse Five， and The Tin Drum to subvert Captain America style "supersoldier" comic book tropes in a wrenchingly painful but beautifully human meditation on country， family， violence （individual and state） and redemption。 。。。more

Sean Pollock ，

Unrelentingly bleak and extremely dense。 Not an easy by any standard。 But the story has real heart to it。 Told in a non-linear fashion it slowly reveals layers of meaning upon earlier chapters and the characters are very well fleshed out。 It's a heartbreaking emotional journey that pulls at the heart strings masterfully。 The art for the most part is extremely good， Windsor Smith showing none of the deterioration in skill we see from other artists of his age （Looking at you Frank Miller）， althoug Unrelentingly bleak and extremely dense。 Not an easy by any standard。 But the story has real heart to it。 Told in a non-linear fashion it slowly reveals layers of meaning upon earlier chapters and the characters are very well fleshed out。 It's a heartbreaking emotional journey that pulls at the heart strings masterfully。 The art for the most part is extremely good， Windsor Smith showing none of the deterioration in skill we see from other artists of his age （Looking at you Frank Miller）， although there are some panels that seem rough and unfinished， but that might reflect the independent nature of the project and it's protracted 30 year creation。 It's amazing that this came out in 2021。 Definitely feels like something Alan Moore would have done in the 80s 。。。more

Gareth Osborne ，

Allegedly， while working for Marvel in the 80's， Barry Windsor-Smith submitted a version of this as an origin story for the Hulk。Marvel passed on it - they though it was too dark - so it kept kicking about in Barry's noggin whilst he created a reputation for writing gritty tales for some of Marvel's more feral creations， including Wolverine's Weapon X。Thirty-five years later， this opus has emerged， somewhat fully formed - as much a misfit hybrid as its protagonist。 It's Windsor-Smith's first pub Allegedly， while working for Marvel in the 80's， Barry Windsor-Smith submitted a version of this as an origin story for the Hulk。Marvel passed on it - they though it was too dark - so it kept kicking about in Barry's noggin whilst he created a reputation for writing gritty tales for some of Marvel's more feral creations， including Wolverine's Weapon X。Thirty-five years later， this opus has emerged， somewhat fully formed - as much a misfit hybrid as its protagonist。 It's Windsor-Smith's first published work in sixteen years。 In 1964， Bobby Bailey doesn't realize he is about to fulfil his tragic destiny when he walks into a US Army recruitment office。 Secretive， damaged， innocent， trying to forget a past and looking for a future， Bobby is the perfect candidate for a secret US government experiment， an unholy continuation of a genetics program that was discovered in Nazi Germany nearly 20 years earlier in the waning days of World War II。 As with the best Frankenstein-inspired stories， the monster is not the monster， and Windsor-Smith packs a lot of anti-war， anti-authoritarian anxiety （and not a little body horror） into 360 pages full to the brim with abusive fathers， nazi scientists， clairvoyant children and those weird old horror comics I used to read as a kid - like Scream， Tales from the Crypt， and the early Alan Moore Future Shocks。 The illustrations are beautiful， although the dialogue boxes are a little hard to follow at times。It's an engrossing work of art that is beautiful and horrific in equal measures and worth the sixteen-year wait。A sad reflection that wars do not necessarily end when they are over。 。。。more

Anubhav ，

3。5/5Sometimes it tells too much and then not enough， often getting in its own way。 The storytelling here is admirable and near-impeccable， you can see a master at work here with BWS illustrating every page with luxurious penmanship。 But I feel the disparate strands - flashbacks within flashbacks that intricately connect each character - never truly come into focus despite his neat plotting。 This should have been a longer book so that the themes could really， uh， marinate。 As it stands， it's too 3。5/5Sometimes it tells too much and then not enough， often getting in its own way。 The storytelling here is admirable and near-impeccable， you can see a master at work here with BWS illustrating every page with luxurious penmanship。 But I feel the disparate strands - flashbacks within flashbacks that intricately connect each character - never truly come into focus despite his neat plotting。 This should have been a longer book so that the themes could really， uh， marinate。 As it stands， it's too ambitious for its pagecount， and one of the flashbacks centered on a Nazi doctor feel like wasted pen and ink， adding nothing to the material narratively or thematically。 。。。more

Meghan ，

I liked the different threads， and how they all came together。

Jason ，

I struggle to say that Monsters was good， at least in the traditional sense。 It's a dense narrative that takes some interesting twists and turns。 I found it slow at the beginning， but it quickly picked up speed and become wholly engrossing。 It's a heart wrenching horror story。 The art style was beautiful at time and hard to look at in others， all of which purposeful。 It felt like reading a great work of literature。 I struggle to say that Monsters was good， at least in the traditional sense。 It's a dense narrative that takes some interesting twists and turns。 I found it slow at the beginning， but it quickly picked up speed and become wholly engrossing。 It's a heart wrenching horror story。 The art style was beautiful at time and hard to look at in others， all of which purposeful。 It felt like reading a great work of literature。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Monsters

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Monsters&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Monsters&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0