Kyle Barnes is an outcast. He’s been plagued by demonic possession all his life without an answer as to why. As he gets older, Kyle is looking for answers as to why he’s been chosen to live this life. What he discovers on his journey could be the end of life as we know it.
Title: Outcast: Volume 1
Author: Paul Azaceta and Robert Kirkman
Genre: Horror, Graphic Novel
Publisher: Image Comics
Publication Date: 12th February 2015
Pages: 152
Summary : Kyle Barnes has been plagued by demonic possession all his life and now he needs answers. Unfortunately, what he uncovers along the way could bring about the end of life on Earth as we know it!
I’ve been wanting to read Outcast for a long time. I’m not the biggest fan of The Walking Dead so I don’t know what I really expected from this graphic novel. It probably wasn’t what I expected, but I enjoyed it all the same. It was a lot heavier than I thought it would be, but enjoyable.
One of the big parts of this graphic novel is that it time skips a lot, and the scenes are short. That mixed with the style of artwork means that it is a little confusing to get your head around at first. But after a few pages I understood the way it worked and the story was being told, and started to really enjoy it. I really hope in the production of the TV series they stick to the way the story is told in small chunks.
I absolutely adored the artwork in this graphic novel. It’s edgy and filled with lines and blocks of colour. It’s not something I’ve read before but I really did enjoy the change. It seemed to fit incredibly well with the story.
Outcast is extremely different to The Walking Dead. Yes it is the same author, but everything about it is completely different. The premise of exorcism is very heavy and quite graphic at times.I’ve never read a graphic novel that was based around exorcism so it was a refreshing change. Especially one that was set in a more modern time.It’s also a very ‘grown up’ graphic novel, I definitely wouldn’t be comfortable showing anyone under 17.
So far in the story I haven’t connected with many of the characters. I think this is because in the first instalment there was a lot of new characters introduced that only got a few pages for their part of the story. I’m really enjoying Kyle’s sister and her husband so far, and I’d like to know more about his family.
If you’re a fan of The Walking Dead or not I’d recommend reading this graphic novel!
Edit: Since writing this review i have watched the first episode of the series on ‘Fox’, It is truly an amazing comparison to the graphic novel, right down to the way the characters look. You can tell that the scenes were lifted right from the pages and it made me connect with the story so much more. Even if you don’t want to read the graphic novel, i urge you to try the series.
The Little Contemporary Corner 