In Odd We Trust by Dean Koontz

Dean Koontz has created a great teen series with Odd Thomas however, the graphic entry in this series falls flat.  The story is that Odd is a local short order cook with the famous pancakes in town, oh yeah, he can see dead people.  Elvis for one and Lyndon B. Johnson (who constantly makes obscene gestures at Odd).  The ghosts of the recently departed seek out Odd to help them bring their murderer to justice.  In this volume Odd sees the ghost of a murdered child but the child runs from him (which is not usual).  Mixed up in this story is a Nanny who is the target of a stalker.  Are the stalker and the killer working together, are the same person?  Check out In Odd We Trust to find out.

For the graphic element Queenie Chan has illustrated this volume.  Previously she has created The Dreaming a popular manga from Tokyopop.  She is an excellent illustrator but this entry seems phoned in.  Odd is drawn very stiffly while the backdrops offer less insight into the story as her previous work.

All together In Odd We Trust is OK.  Fans of Queenie Chan and the Odd Thomas series can skip this manga.

Elk’s Run by Joshua Hale Fialkov

Fialkov’s Elk’s Run is the fascinating story of a group of kids who have never known life outside of Elk’s Run.  When their fathers had left Vietnam they felt rejected by the society that they fought for, so they started a small town and controled everything going in and coming out of the town.  Things were great for awhile until people began questioning the authority of the town’s founder after an incident that left a child dead.  Around the same time the teens of the town decide to escape.  This leads to a confrontation from which Elk’s Run will never recover.

This graphic Novel is riveting and you won’t be able to put it down.  The artwork is good but the story is where the novel shines.  A must read for Graphic Novel fans.

Lost Season 1 by Abrams, Lieber, Lindelof

I sincerely wonder if the title of Lost is about the survivors or the viewers. I’m not complaining, haters of the show constantly criticize the confusing and twisting plot. I think Lost is a lot like Jaws in that you don’t see the monsters and you feel just as terrified as the characters. For those of you who have totally missed out on this phenomenon, let me fill you in: Plane crashes, most survive, camp on beach, others come, radio french chick, polar bear?, camp in jungle, creepy music, another plane!, some die, raft made, baby born, creepy whispers, “others” coming, hatch found, Sun speaks english, Black Rock, 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42, dynamite, hatch opens, roll credits. OK now we’re all caught up.

As a show, Lost ranks among the greatest. The suspense is great, I can’t believe people watched this week after week, I highly recommend the DVD. Once you get started it’s ridiculous, you won’t get any sleep. Because everyone asks, Charlie is my favorite character in season 1, I think is the most sincere eve if often misguided. If you’ve ever thought about trying the show, do it, take the plunge, you won’t be disappointed.

Plus, check out the bonus features and watch Jimmy Kimmel tour the Island, pure comic genius!

Dark Water by Walter Salles

A woman (Jennifer Connelly, Labyrinth) going through a divorce is searching for an apartment for her and her daughter. She finds one in a run down apartment building in a not so great neighborhood. Though not ideal, Dahlia can not deny the low price. From the very beginning there is a presence in the apartment building and when Dahlia’s daughter makes a new friend that know one else can see, the troubles starts.

While the story is just OK, the direction is where this movie shines.  Walter Salles is master of detail and he creates a mood with his actors, Dark Water is no exception.  The movie has to be experienced from beginning to end, I recommend a comfy couch and a dark dark room.

Dark Water is a very dark movie, all the colors are drab and washed out giving the effect of dreary water all around you. A great movie to watch on a rainy night! The movie was directed by Walter Salles (Motorcycle Diaries) and was based on the novel Honogurai Mizu No Soko Kara by Koji Suzuki (author of the Ring).

Battle Royale by Koushun Takami

In a not so parallel universe Japan is run by a militaristic government where criticism is not tolerated. In order to keep
Japan in a state of control a program is enforced on a random Junior High School class. The students are taken to a secret island location, equipped with different weapons, means of survival, and are forced to kill one another. The game ends when one student is left. “Battle Royale is a Lord of the Flies for the 21st century, a potent allegory of what it means to be young and (barely) alive in a dog-eat-dog world.” This violent story explodes from the beginning and never lets up! This book has been turned into both a movie and very popular manga series. Due to its very graphic content Battle Royale is recommended for High school and up.

Koushun Takami is a reporter in Japan. His book was rejected in the final rounds of a literary contest on the grounds of its controversial subject. Battle Royale has since gone onto be a runaway bestseller in both Japanese and English.