Spike: Asylum [Paperback]

Brian Lynch (Author), Franco Urru (Author)

Book Description

Series: Spike | Publication Date: May 29, 2007

When the Monahan Family asks Spike to find their daughter Ruby, he accepts. The problem? Ruby's a half-demon and has been checked into the Mosaic Wellness Center, a rehab facility for vampires, demons, and other creatures of the night. The solution - Spike checks himself in as a patient. But there's another, slightly bigger problem - the hundreds of super-powered, supernatural patients at Mosaic know Spike, and want him dead. If the therapy doesn't kill him, the other patients will...

Product Details

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: IDW Publishing (May 29, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1600100619
• ISBN-13: 978-1600100611
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #209,782 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Joss Loves This Guy, June 7, 2007

By 

Pat Shand "Pat Shand" (Freeport, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Spike: Asylum (Paperback)

With dark yet colorful artwork that can only be described as quirky (and astounding), dialogue that sounds like Whedon wrote it on a good day (which is astounding), and Spike moments that range from poignant, to revealing, to funny (done astoundingly), there is really no reason that Brian Lynch's "Spike: Asylum" isn't on the tippy top of your "To Read" list.

If you've liked IDW's Angel and/or Spike comics, you'll like this. Matter of fact, you'll love this. It's better than all the Angel mini-series, better than the intriguing "Spike vs. Dracula" and better than the Spike one-shots. Not to rag on those, because they--for the most part--are highly entertaining. "Spike: Asylum" is just on a different level. It, unlike the others, transcends comics; you don't have to be a comic lover, a comic reader, or even familiar with the medium to enjoy this series.

While it's not as addictive as "Buffy: Season Eight", it's no doubt as well-written. With a different writer writing or artist drawing the same story, the story might have seemed a bit too fast paced, but the creative team of Brian Lynch and Franco Urru handle the job in a manner that can be described as nothing but perfectly. This actually reads as if it was the pilot of a Spike series (if it were canon); there's a cast of memorable characters (a few of which we'll see again, judging from the covers of the upcoming Lynch/Urru project "Spike: Shadow Puppets), and it just makes me want to read more. This is not a series that it's okay to miss.

But why are you reading this? After reading Lynch's take on Spike, Joss Whedon himself contacted Lynch and told him he wants him to write "Angel: Season Six" in comic book form. That in itself is pretty much all I had to say in this review, but I'm a long winded kinda guy.

10/10 Classic.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Your Dad's Comic Book, June 3, 2007

By 

Joseph A. Aycock (rome, georgia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Spike: Asylum (Paperback)

They don't call them "comic books" anymore, and they sure don't sell for a dime. "Graphic Novels," at least this one, have grown up considerably over the years, in every way from raw material to story content, a fact I was not aware of until just recently.

"Spike, Asylum" is targeted for the more mature fans, unlike the several paperbacks on the market, a fact that I find mildly ironic. But that has little to do with an assessment of this story.

The story consists of the results of our hero infiltrating a demon asylum in search of a missing girl' The inmates both know and hate Spike, which provides the excuse for all the action contained between these two covers.

The writing and artwork are adequate, and the title character reacts to his surroundings much the way as the one created by James Marsters, and there are quite a few inside jokes scattered throughout the story to make it a fun read for dyed in the wool Buffy fans, though those not familiar with the "Buffy," and "Angel" series may be somewhat lost. Keep that in mind when buying and reading this story, and you won't be disapointed.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One of the more in character Post-Show tie-ins, June 4, 2007

By 

L. Ward "l_ward" (USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Spike: Asylum (Paperback)

This is one of the more intriguing plot lines of the post-TV Whedonverse. Largely in character (unlike most of the tie-in novels) with a nice mix of the usual Whedonverse elements -- violence, humor, and character development. One of the better tie-in offerings and worth the notice of any Spike fan.