Customer Reviews

Love & Rockets Vol. 8: Blood of Palomar

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Gilbert Hernandez outdid himself with every new installment of "Heartbreak Soup". As he took his characters through each realistic and dramatic experience, they grew more lifelike, and the reader gained something close to friendship with then. Every one of his stories of Palomar affected me in a way; this one probably had the greatest impact.

The book begins with a few typical, cute Palomar stories (one of the most brilliant things Gilbert did was to jump the characters ahead 10 years, and look back once in a while; he created instant nostalgia), then launches into its centrepiece, the 100+ page "Human Diastrophism". This is a brilliant story that juggles three or four subplots at a time with ease. Luba's journey through family-abusing depression, regression into lust, and her final success at reclaiming her dignity is poignant and unforgettable. Marciela and Riri's romance unfolds slowly and is eventually revealed as the foundation of the whole story. Tonzantzin's pathetic, cathartic, and tragic story is the biggest suprise her; she had been pigeonholed as the town slut, and a 2-D figure, but by the end you can't help but feel sympathy for her. And there's a murder mystery, too; sometimes I wonder why I bother to write comics when Gilbert has already perfected them.

Please, please don't be an intellectual snob and disregard this as a "funnybook". Pick up the book; Blood of Palomar and the other 14 Love and Rockets paperbacks deserve a place at the table of the great works of the century.

a marriage of the visions of frida kahlo, the tales of carlos fuentes (think AURA), the humanity of gabriel garcia marquez, gilbert hernandez's opus THE BLOOD OF PALOMAR redefines the novel for an american late 20th century that found literature in flux: think pynchon, or vonnegut, or, even, warhol or coppola. his is a tale of art, murder, love, loss, and desire that few others could tell.

Although the premise (a serial killer is stalking the Central American town of Palomar) initially stuck me as a bit over the top, the execution more than makes up for it. The murders become almost secondary to the human drama of the residents of the town, as families are pulled apart, reunited, and the entire town struggles with an invasion of demonic monkeys. All this, and Luba too! A fantastic book, that I find stays with you long after you've actually put it down.

A remarkable book that ranks with Maus and Binky Brown as the best graphic fiction I have read. Tonantzin's search for answers and meaning, and her ultimate fate, are truly poignant. A masterpiece.