Death, Jr. (Volume 1) [Paperback]

Gary Whitta (Author), Ted Naifeh (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 29, 2005

When a school field trip to the local museum coincides with coming-of-age angst and an overly inquisitive friend (a cute goth girl named Pandora), Junior releases something terrible on the world... and its up to him to fix it. Featuring an awesome cast of back-up characters including Stigmartha whose hands bleed when she gets nervous; Smith & Weston, two twins conjoined at the head and The Seep, a foul-mouthed, armless, legless fetus in a tube. He's your average, everyday, happy-go-lucky middle-school student... who just happens to be the son of the grim reaper.

Product Details

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Image Comics (November 29, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582405263
• ISBN-13: 978-1582405261
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #491,184 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WITTY AND BIZARRE!, January 3, 2006

By 

Tim Janson (Michigan) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Death, Jr. (Volume 1) (Paperback)

In the best tradition of Charles Adams comes this witty and hysterically funny trade paperback collecting the adventures of Death Jr., the son of the Grim Reaper. Written by Gary Whitta and beautifully illustrated by Ted Naifeh, Death Jr. is a morbidly funny book.

Life isn't always so easy when you're the son of the Grim Reaper. Dad casts rather a long an imposing shadow. On top of that things, such as the pet cat, seem to die with alarming frequency when they are around you. Add to that...you've just found out that you have to ride the short bus to school! Junior finds himself on the short bus with an odd mix of bizarre children such as spooky friend Pandora who simply can't resist opening any box; Smith & Weston, Siamese twins who are joined at the head; Stigmartha who bleeds from stigmata wounds when she's nervous, and Seep, whose basically a grumpy baby torso floating in a tube of chemicals that rides on a track similar to a tank.

Junior can't wait to get into the "family business" but dad knows he's not yet ready for the task. Like any kid, Junior is upset that his dad still thinks he's a kid and wants to prove him wrong. A trip to a museum leads to the ever curious Pandora opening a box containing the imprisoned spirit of Moloch, the previous Grim Reaper and the brother to the current GR. "Uncle" Moloch seduces junior into stealing dad's Scythe and eventually reveals his true motives imprisoning Dad. Moloch releases the spirits of the dead upon the city including animating the dinosaur statues in the museum. It's now up to Junior and his misfit friends to save the day.

Death Jr. is a refreshingly funny book filled with colorful and bizarre characters. Contray to what you might think, the Death family, including a very normal appearing, June Cleaver like mother, do not live in a ramshackle, mysterious old home, but rather smack dab in the middle of suburbia, which only lends to its amusing charm. Ted Naifeh has a clean, cartoony style that fits the subject matter perfectly. A great, change of pace type of read for comic fans looking for something just a little bit different.

Reviewed by Tim Janson

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grrrrrreat!, July 23, 2006

By 

John Platt (Belle Mead, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Death, Jr. (Volume 1) (Paperback)

Silly name, great book. Clever, funny and touching with amazing artwork. Don't miss it.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A unique read, worth every penny., July 20, 2006

By 

Catrina Thomas "Luvtlee" (Cape Carteret, NC - United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Death, Jr. (Volume 1) (Paperback)

I bought this for my 10 year old son who owns the PSP game. He loves the book (the game too), and I myself quite enjoyed it.

We never noticed Seep's wheels changing from tracks to wheels the few times the panels were inconsistent, so we aren't quite as observant as some, but found this book loads of fun. Great background material if you're a fan of the game also.

It is humorous, entertaining, and I love how the author portrays such awesome moral content in a unique and strange way. My son reads parts of it to his younger brother (he is almost 5), and he too loves it.

Definitely a "different" kind of book, getting across the normal range of emotions and values in a slightly bizarre way. Both my son and I agree, it was money well spent!