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Life Sucks
Life sucks for Dave Marshall.Ìý
The girl he’s in love with doesn’t know he exists, he hates his job, and ever since his boss turned him into a vampire, he can’t go out in daylight without starting to charbroil.
Undead life in its uncoolest incarnation yet is on display in this cinematic, supernatural drama told with gallons of humor and hemoglobin.Ìý In striking, colorful, B-movie style artwork and light-hearted, intelligent writing by Jessica Abel, Gabe Soria, and Warren Pleece, Dave Marshall’s story comes alive â€� in a vampiric kind of way.Ìý
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
25 people are currently reading
974 people want to read
About the author
Jessica Abel
51Ìýbooks156ÌýfollowersAuthor and coach Jessica Abel is the author of Growing Gills, Out on the Wire, La Perdida, and two textbooks about making comics, Drawing Words & Writing Pictures and Mastering Comics. Abel’s latest work of fiction is the Eisner-nominated Trish Trash: Rollergirl of Mars.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 335 reviews
February 5, 2018
What if you were stuck in a minimum wage job enslaved to basically Dracula for eternity. You can't leave, you don't have a lot of money and there is no way out. Well, Life Sucks explores this. Is being a Vampire really glamorous?
Dave doesn't drink blood, so he is weak for a vampire. He falls in love with a vamp chaser. She doesn't have a clue real vampires exist. There is plenty of drama in this tale and blood. It is an interesting take that makes vampires look like slaves for all time.
The art was decent and the story was interesting. Another interesting read from First Second.
Dave doesn't drink blood, so he is weak for a vampire. He falls in love with a vamp chaser. She doesn't have a clue real vampires exist. There is plenty of drama in this tale and blood. It is an interesting take that makes vampires look like slaves for all time.
The art was decent and the story was interesting. Another interesting read from First Second.
July 24, 2012
Sometimes I think it might be cool to be a vampire, what with that "eternal life" thing and all.
Imagine - you would actually have all the time in the world to READ EVERY BOOK your unbeating heart desires!
Now, just imagine that your master - the guy who turned you into a blood-sucking freak - forces you to work every night in his lousy convenience store. Hmm...maybe living forever isn't all that it's cracked up to be.
Welcome to Dave's world. A vegetarian while he was alive, he now scarfs down plasma and blood-products, and works six nights a week behind a register, selling beef jerky, stale chips, and Twinkies - FOREVER at the mercy of bigger, nastier, human-killing vampires.
Sheesh! How's a guy supposed to find time to score with those cute goth chicks who find the "vamp" culture so fascinating?
This is a cute, imaginative, and palatable take on the teenage vampire craze.
Imagine - you would actually have all the time in the world to READ EVERY BOOK your unbeating heart desires!
Now, just imagine that your master - the guy who turned you into a blood-sucking freak - forces you to work every night in his lousy convenience store. Hmm...maybe living forever isn't all that it's cracked up to be.
Welcome to Dave's world. A vegetarian while he was alive, he now scarfs down plasma and blood-products, and works six nights a week behind a register, selling beef jerky, stale chips, and Twinkies - FOREVER at the mercy of bigger, nastier, human-killing vampires.
Sheesh! How's a guy supposed to find time to score with those cute goth chicks who find the "vamp" culture so fascinating?
This is a cute, imaginative, and palatable take on the teenage vampire craze.
January 24, 2008
A person could be forgiven for getting tired of vampires. Is it fair to say that they’ve been "done"? From the Twilight series to Buffy to whatever vampire-related dreck we see next you sometimes just wanna grab the creators and say, "ALL RIGHT! FINE! I GET IT! IT'S A METAPHOR! CAN WE MOVE ON ALREADY???" I think we're finally reaching that phase where people start looking beyond vampire for their supernatural thrills (Zombies: This year's vampires) and in my own personal life I was prepared to never ever read another frickin' vampire novel again. So when someone at First Second handed me a copy of Life Sucks I was so not interested. Not not not. I wanted to yell, "Booooooooring!" at them and hand the novel to the first graphic novel-inclined soul I met. But that night I made a huge step backwards in my campaign against reading any more vamplit. I read a page or two. Then three. Then before I knew it I was reading the entire book, it was 2 a.m., and I couldn't stop. In fact, as I am writing this review I just attempted to read a page or two to pinpoint why this was and the next thing I knew I was on page fifteen. Life Sucks takes that old tired vampire idea, places it under ugly fluorescent lights and their dead end jobs and somehow the combination is electric. For even the most vamped out amongst us, Life Sucks offers something fresh and new.
Dave works the night shift at the Last Stop corner mart and his life is going nowhere. Literally. I mean, Dave's a vampire (can you say "worst job interview ever"?) and his master/boss happens to be Radu, a manager who likes to use terms like "team player" and "culinary instinct". If it weren't for Rosa he might just do himself in. Rosa's one of those girls, living girls, with a penchant for the Gothic. She fancies guys in capes with fake pointy teeth. Dave's got the real thing in his own mouth, but being strictly a vegetarian (blood from a can and he does NOT want to know where it comes from) he'd rather she didn't know about his dark side. That's all well and good until Wes, a surfer vamp with the same master as Dave, shows an interest in Rosa and makes a bet to make her his without the use of his powers. When Rosa suspects something is afoot, however, Dave has to make a couple sacrifices of his own to keep her safe.
An uninitiated reader unfamiliar with the graphic novel genre might pooh-pooh the notion of there being great writing in comic books. There's a perception out there that for a book to contain both pictures and words, both the words and the pictures are rendered less worthy through the combination. As if pictures destroy the worthiness of the text and dumb it down. Aside from this being an outdated and, let's admit it, old-fashioned view of the graphic format, I have to admit that when I read a book like Life Sucks and find the writing to be superb, I still feel that telltale twinge of surprise. Somewhere deep down inside of me there's this part that is surprised every single time I pick up a graphic novel and find it great. Author Jessica Abel is a comic book artist who has a YA novel by the name of "Carmina" that is apparently coming out with Harper Collins at some point. On this book she has paired with Brooklyn writer Gabe Soria. Together the two give Life Sucks just the right amounts of mindless drudgery and crazy fantasy.
Equating low-paying awful jobs with vampirism and managerial schlock is a pretty good idea. This is illustrated best when Rosa starts telling Dave how she would imagine a vampire's life to be. She doesn't want to hear about the night jobs or the low pay. She imagines "this vast network of dark, beautiful, intellectual, and artistic people, living forever with only the best things, the best food, the best clothes, beautiful homes..." This image is paired with the reality that Dave knows of Eastern European vampire immigrants playing poker and smoking over a card table at night. You can understand Rosa's desire to get away from L.A., but it's clear that vampirism just makes it worse, not better.
The moral issues attached to being a vampire get some examination here, but Abel and Soria have to fudge a bit to make them work. Dave doesn't eat people (much to the other vampires' chagrin) and he doesn't turn people into vampires either. His friend Jerome eats people with impunity and still comes off as a pretty decent guy, which is an interesting dynamic. I guess that if your book has comic elements you can get away with the funny guy killing folk, but it's still pretty weird. The nice thing is that the authors are consistent with the character of Dave, giving the ending of the book a sad/funny take. Dave has compromised himself morally to save someone he loves. And this reveal is delivered in a humorous fashion, though there's a sadness to it that fits with the rest of the book. Bleak, but not too bleak.
Warren Pleece was a good artistic pairing for this book. He's done a lot with DC, including The Invisibles and Hellblazer. He has a style that works for this storyline. For the most part the book is concerned with real people and their real lives. And sure, once in a while someone gets their head ripped off, but generally Pleece has a good feel for that skinny guy who's always the girl's best friend but somehow never manages to turn that into becoming the girl's BOYfriend. He has a great cast of instantly recognizable characters (that's always important to me) and I loved the shifting perspectives. I enjoyed the colors too, but that work is done by First Second's residential colorist Hilary Sycamore (doing everything from Laika to Missouri Boy) so he doesn't get credit for that.
There was once an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer where Buffy encountered a group of high school students with idealized views of what it would be like to hang out with and become vampires. Abel and Soria take a similar idea, but in their hands it's a story of what it's like to be in your mid-twenties without a clue about where your going or who you want to be. You feel powerless next to the jerkwad manager of your minimum wage job, like you couldn't leave if you wanted to. So it's either climb the ladder or stay where you are. That kind of hopelessness and limbo comes through loud and clear in Life Sucks and somehow ends up a fascinating, thoughtful read. A great addition to First Second's literary catalog.
On shelves April 29, 2008.
Dave works the night shift at the Last Stop corner mart and his life is going nowhere. Literally. I mean, Dave's a vampire (can you say "worst job interview ever"?) and his master/boss happens to be Radu, a manager who likes to use terms like "team player" and "culinary instinct". If it weren't for Rosa he might just do himself in. Rosa's one of those girls, living girls, with a penchant for the Gothic. She fancies guys in capes with fake pointy teeth. Dave's got the real thing in his own mouth, but being strictly a vegetarian (blood from a can and he does NOT want to know where it comes from) he'd rather she didn't know about his dark side. That's all well and good until Wes, a surfer vamp with the same master as Dave, shows an interest in Rosa and makes a bet to make her his without the use of his powers. When Rosa suspects something is afoot, however, Dave has to make a couple sacrifices of his own to keep her safe.
An uninitiated reader unfamiliar with the graphic novel genre might pooh-pooh the notion of there being great writing in comic books. There's a perception out there that for a book to contain both pictures and words, both the words and the pictures are rendered less worthy through the combination. As if pictures destroy the worthiness of the text and dumb it down. Aside from this being an outdated and, let's admit it, old-fashioned view of the graphic format, I have to admit that when I read a book like Life Sucks and find the writing to be superb, I still feel that telltale twinge of surprise. Somewhere deep down inside of me there's this part that is surprised every single time I pick up a graphic novel and find it great. Author Jessica Abel is a comic book artist who has a YA novel by the name of "Carmina" that is apparently coming out with Harper Collins at some point. On this book she has paired with Brooklyn writer Gabe Soria. Together the two give Life Sucks just the right amounts of mindless drudgery and crazy fantasy.
Equating low-paying awful jobs with vampirism and managerial schlock is a pretty good idea. This is illustrated best when Rosa starts telling Dave how she would imagine a vampire's life to be. She doesn't want to hear about the night jobs or the low pay. She imagines "this vast network of dark, beautiful, intellectual, and artistic people, living forever with only the best things, the best food, the best clothes, beautiful homes..." This image is paired with the reality that Dave knows of Eastern European vampire immigrants playing poker and smoking over a card table at night. You can understand Rosa's desire to get away from L.A., but it's clear that vampirism just makes it worse, not better.
The moral issues attached to being a vampire get some examination here, but Abel and Soria have to fudge a bit to make them work. Dave doesn't eat people (much to the other vampires' chagrin) and he doesn't turn people into vampires either. His friend Jerome eats people with impunity and still comes off as a pretty decent guy, which is an interesting dynamic. I guess that if your book has comic elements you can get away with the funny guy killing folk, but it's still pretty weird. The nice thing is that the authors are consistent with the character of Dave, giving the ending of the book a sad/funny take. Dave has compromised himself morally to save someone he loves. And this reveal is delivered in a humorous fashion, though there's a sadness to it that fits with the rest of the book. Bleak, but not too bleak.
Warren Pleece was a good artistic pairing for this book. He's done a lot with DC, including The Invisibles and Hellblazer. He has a style that works for this storyline. For the most part the book is concerned with real people and their real lives. And sure, once in a while someone gets their head ripped off, but generally Pleece has a good feel for that skinny guy who's always the girl's best friend but somehow never manages to turn that into becoming the girl's BOYfriend. He has a great cast of instantly recognizable characters (that's always important to me) and I loved the shifting perspectives. I enjoyed the colors too, but that work is done by First Second's residential colorist Hilary Sycamore (doing everything from Laika to Missouri Boy) so he doesn't get credit for that.
There was once an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer where Buffy encountered a group of high school students with idealized views of what it would be like to hang out with and become vampires. Abel and Soria take a similar idea, but in their hands it's a story of what it's like to be in your mid-twenties without a clue about where your going or who you want to be. You feel powerless next to the jerkwad manager of your minimum wage job, like you couldn't leave if you wanted to. So it's either climb the ladder or stay where you are. That kind of hopelessness and limbo comes through loud and clear in Life Sucks and somehow ends up a fascinating, thoughtful read. A great addition to First Second's literary catalog.
On shelves April 29, 2008.
November 5, 2017
Actual rating: 1.5 stars
This was AWFUL.
Seriously, the whole plot is two stupid vampire dudes fighting over a girl. The girl is treated like a slab of meat the guys are fighting over. There's all kinds of problematic language (ie. lots of mentions of "don't be such a pussy") and toxic masculinity abounds. None of this is challenged in the text in any way.
The art wasn't to my taste either. It's kind of stylized, but also looks pseudo-realistic - because it never veers enough one way or the other, it ultimately just looks kind of... odd.
The only thing that was the least bit enjoyable about this is that it's obviously poking fun at the clichéd depictions of vampires being gorgeous and glamorous creatures that we so often see in pop culture. Other than that though, I would not recommend this comic at all.
This was AWFUL.
Seriously, the whole plot is two stupid vampire dudes fighting over a girl. The girl is treated like a slab of meat the guys are fighting over. There's all kinds of problematic language (ie. lots of mentions of "don't be such a pussy") and toxic masculinity abounds. None of this is challenged in the text in any way.
The art wasn't to my taste either. It's kind of stylized, but also looks pseudo-realistic - because it never veers enough one way or the other, it ultimately just looks kind of... odd.
The only thing that was the least bit enjoyable about this is that it's obviously poking fun at the clichéd depictions of vampires being gorgeous and glamorous creatures that we so often see in pop culture. Other than that though, I would not recommend this comic at all.
July 11, 2014
Life Sucks is a graphic novel that sells itself as a possibly interesting take on another vampire tale of darkness. This story is all about removing vampire lore from its classic romanism and into some form of reality where you need to pay rent and stuff.
All of the elements here are very workable concepts and I went into this wanting to like it, but it just fell flat.
I don't really have much of a response to the book. No honest hate, no enjoyment, no emotional connection to the material, no interest in the art, and only mild interest in the plot. I can say that the characters were by far the best thing about the book, but even then they just weren't enough to carry the entire story.
What can be seen as the biggest downfall of Life Sucks was that it didn't do anything new. Everything done here feels done before. Nothing stood out and said, THIS SETS ME APART! And I hate to say that, because in a way it feels unfair to the book that I have to compare it to vast vampire sub-genre where it doesn't stand much of a fighting chance. (If only because everything has been done to varying degrees.)
There are just better, more engaging books out there that have the same overall idea. A very, very good example being , a graphic novel which I highly recommend to anyone even remotely interested, if only because the art in that is remarkable.
Speaking of art. That was definitely my low point, and very nearly made me dislike this completely. I'll start by saying the art has really good things about it: The colouring is vivid, there are a lot of small details, and it has some great panels. But these things can't save it entirely. The style does not convey movement well and I found myself getting bored with the limited array of facial expressions. Worst of all, the inability to have characters appear to be more then just stiff repositioned figures, reminded me of barbie dolls. That is never a comparison you want to think, let alone read, but it has to be written.
When rounding everything out, this turned out to be very "meh".
All of the elements here are very workable concepts and I went into this wanting to like it, but it just fell flat.
I don't really have much of a response to the book. No honest hate, no enjoyment, no emotional connection to the material, no interest in the art, and only mild interest in the plot. I can say that the characters were by far the best thing about the book, but even then they just weren't enough to carry the entire story.
What can be seen as the biggest downfall of Life Sucks was that it didn't do anything new. Everything done here feels done before. Nothing stood out and said, THIS SETS ME APART! And I hate to say that, because in a way it feels unfair to the book that I have to compare it to vast vampire sub-genre where it doesn't stand much of a fighting chance. (If only because everything has been done to varying degrees.)
There are just better, more engaging books out there that have the same overall idea. A very, very good example being , a graphic novel which I highly recommend to anyone even remotely interested, if only because the art in that is remarkable.
Speaking of art. That was definitely my low point, and very nearly made me dislike this completely. I'll start by saying the art has really good things about it: The colouring is vivid, there are a lot of small details, and it has some great panels. But these things can't save it entirely. The style does not convey movement well and I found myself getting bored with the limited array of facial expressions. Worst of all, the inability to have characters appear to be more then just stiff repositioned figures, reminded me of barbie dolls. That is never a comparison you want to think, let alone read, but it has to be written.
When rounding everything out, this turned out to be very "meh".
March 31, 2015
Wie schade, aber hier wurde viel Potenzial verschenkt. Eigentlich ein erfrischend anderer Ansatz zu all den Vampir-Comics und Stories, die den Markt überfluten. Ein junger Mann, freundlich und unscheinbar, erleidet das unabänderliche Los fast aller Teenager: er verliebt sich in ein cooles Mädchen, dass so gar nicht zu ihm paßt, heißt hier ein hübsches, selbstbewußtes Mädel aus der Gothic-Szene. Es folgen die üblichen Probleme: wie das Mädchen ansprechen, wie sich gegenüber den sehr viel cooleren und besser aussehenden Konkurrenten behaupten?
Besonderheit: der verliebte Nerd ist ein Vampir. Und er trinkt kein menschliches Blut sondern nur künstliches Plasma, mit der Folge, dass ihm die klassischen übermenschlichen Kräfte eines Vampirs abgehen.
Nette Story, nette Artwork. Aber dann bleibt das Comic doch im Mittelmaß stecken, wohl vor allem aufgrund des sehr gemächlichen Erzähltempos, bei dem ich als Leser dann doch leichte Probleme hatte, bei der Stange zu bleiben. Hier und da ganz witzige Ideen, aber alles in allem doch etwas dünn.
Besonderheit: der verliebte Nerd ist ein Vampir. Und er trinkt kein menschliches Blut sondern nur künstliches Plasma, mit der Folge, dass ihm die klassischen übermenschlichen Kräfte eines Vampirs abgehen.
Nette Story, nette Artwork. Aber dann bleibt das Comic doch im Mittelmaß stecken, wohl vor allem aufgrund des sehr gemächlichen Erzähltempos, bei dem ich als Leser dann doch leichte Probleme hatte, bei der Stange zu bleiben. Hier und da ganz witzige Ideen, aber alles in allem doch etwas dünn.
March 18, 2021
If there's one fantasy creature that's been done to death - explored, exploited, deconstructed, absolutely and thoroughly explained and mundanized and made boring - then it's the vampire. This comic book seeks to explore the logical conclusion of that angle: strip away whatever vestige of romanticism is left in them and give them regular jobs. I typically lean more towards the opposite, reconstructing the fantasy and imagination and dreams and such, but sometimes it's good to take things to this extreme just to show you how bad it'd turn out to be that way.
So I'm all for the premise, but the story still didn't work all that well for me. The characters were either unlikeable or just boring, and the plot went through the motions with fairly poor pacing and not much of a payoff. I needn't have bothered, really.
So I'm all for the premise, but the story still didn't work all that well for me. The characters were either unlikeable or just boring, and the plot went through the motions with fairly poor pacing and not much of a payoff. I needn't have bothered, really.
August 28, 2008
Meh. I had higher hopes for this comic, since it was penned by Jessica Abel & published by First Second. Plus, the idea of vampires creating their own vampiric wage slaves to work graveyard shifts at crummy jobs was kind of inspired. However, in the end I was turned off by the casual misogyny of almost all the male characters and the weak female characters, especially the main love interest, Rosa. In the context of a humorous vampire comic, her self-loathing really rankled me.
August 27, 2011
Dave works the late shift at a 24 hour convenience store which works out well for him since he's a vampire. But he's not your regular vampire, nope Dave is a vegetarian vampire...or at least he tries to be one. He doesn't like killing and he doesn't really like drinking real blood either and this leaves Dave weak. And then enters Rosa, a beautiful goth Latina who has an interest in Dave's lifestyle. But Dave's archnemesis, Wes an alpha surfer dude, also makes a move. So who will win in the battle for Rosa's affections...Dave or Wes?
This story begins with such promise, seeing the life of a vampire, not as all perfect and everlasting like Underworld makes it seem...but boring and mundane. Vampires are just like us. Sure they have their a-holes, like Wes, but they have their good guys as well like Dave...well ok mostly he's a good guy. He's the everyman who just wants to do right. And think of how great that could be! But instead...he's weak because he doesn't drink "real" blood. And then as the story progresses it gets predictable with the battle between Wes and Dave, with Wes turning out to have more charm to him than he looks. And for some reason Rosa wants to go out with him even though he's shown he's an arrogant ass and doesn't really fit into the profile that's been built for her in the story. And then the ending is just anti-climatic. There's no real resolution to it. Maybe its to show that life doesn't always have happy endings, but I kinda want something a bit more. Even if it's just a one page epilogue. I just get the impression that perhaps the story was put together after watching "Clerks" one too many times.
The artwork is decent enough, but it's nothing spectacular. It fits the theme of the story well and for the most part the colors are chosen well (although at some points the skin colors are ones that are only found in dream world.)
If you like vampire and teen romances this might be the book for you. But me? I want to hold out for something a bit more unique.
This story begins with such promise, seeing the life of a vampire, not as all perfect and everlasting like Underworld makes it seem...but boring and mundane. Vampires are just like us. Sure they have their a-holes, like Wes, but they have their good guys as well like Dave...well ok mostly he's a good guy. He's the everyman who just wants to do right. And think of how great that could be! But instead...he's weak because he doesn't drink "real" blood. And then as the story progresses it gets predictable with the battle between Wes and Dave, with Wes turning out to have more charm to him than he looks. And for some reason Rosa wants to go out with him even though he's shown he's an arrogant ass and doesn't really fit into the profile that's been built for her in the story. And then the ending is just anti-climatic. There's no real resolution to it. Maybe its to show that life doesn't always have happy endings, but I kinda want something a bit more. Even if it's just a one page epilogue. I just get the impression that perhaps the story was put together after watching "Clerks" one too many times.
The artwork is decent enough, but it's nothing spectacular. It fits the theme of the story well and for the most part the colors are chosen well (although at some points the skin colors are ones that are only found in dream world.)
If you like vampire and teen romances this might be the book for you. But me? I want to hold out for something a bit more unique.
February 23, 2017
Kalifornialaisen Dave Marshallin elämä ei ole ruusuilla tanssimista. Hän paiskii minimipalkalla yövuoroja paikallisessa supermarketissa ja yrittää parhaansa mukaan tulla toimeen saidan emigranttipomonsa kanssa.
Dave on myös onnettomasti rakastunut Rosaan, meksikolaistaustaiseen goottityttöön, jonka pöksyihin yrittää päästä myös kusipäinen mutta komea surffaripoika. Lisäksi hänen on yritettävä pysytellä keinolla millä hyvänsä vegetaarina ja vältellä auringon valoa. Ai miksikö? Dave sattuu olemaan vampyyri.
"Life Sucks" (First Second, 2008) ei ole suoranaisesti kauhusarjakuvaa, vaan tarinan keskiöön nousevat ihmissuhteet ja nuoren miehen (ikuisen) elämän kuvaus, joka ei voisi olla kaueampana n goottivampyyrien romantisoidusta maailmasta. Huumoriakaan ei ole unohdettu: esimerkiksi kohtaus, jossa vanhan liiton vampyyrit keskustelevat Bela Lugosista, on todella hauska.
Loppuhuipennus on pikkuisen laimea, mutta muuten albumi on mitä mainiointa nuorten aikuisten sarjakuvaa.
Dave on myös onnettomasti rakastunut Rosaan, meksikolaistaustaiseen goottityttöön, jonka pöksyihin yrittää päästä myös kusipäinen mutta komea surffaripoika. Lisäksi hänen on yritettävä pysytellä keinolla millä hyvänsä vegetaarina ja vältellä auringon valoa. Ai miksikö? Dave sattuu olemaan vampyyri.
"Life Sucks" (First Second, 2008) ei ole suoranaisesti kauhusarjakuvaa, vaan tarinan keskiöön nousevat ihmissuhteet ja nuoren miehen (ikuisen) elämän kuvaus, joka ei voisi olla kaueampana n goottivampyyrien romantisoidusta maailmasta. Huumoriakaan ei ole unohdettu: esimerkiksi kohtaus, jossa vanhan liiton vampyyrit keskustelevat Bela Lugosista, on todella hauska.
Loppuhuipennus on pikkuisen laimea, mutta muuten albumi on mitä mainiointa nuorten aikuisten sarjakuvaa.
June 1, 2014
Life Sucks was a good comic, it had its humorous moments. I liked how the vampires were implemented into this story, they basically use the vampires as slaves for night shifts at their workplace. I liked how when the vampires get hit by the sun they actually burn and don't sparkle beautifully(Twilight 0/10). The art style fit this comic pretty well and I would recommend this to people who like vampires.
October 9, 2017
This was probably the most interesting book I have ever read that involves vampires because it was about a man who is love with a goth but he is vampire and she is a mortal who will be enslaved by a bloodthirsty surfer dude vamp. I thought this book was really good because of how realistic the plot was but yet a modern fantasy for bloodthirsty readers young (teens of course) and old.
December 1, 2009
This is the story of Dave, a vampire who works the night shift at a Los Angeles convenience store for his vampire master, Radu. In this world, the vampire who "turns" a human becomes their master, and the human is bound by their master's wishes. Dave didn't ask to be a vampire, but now he has no choice but to do as his boss wishes, which usually involves turning the hot dogs and sweeping the parking lot. He refuses to drink human blood, and because of it his health suffers.
Dave becomes infatuated with Rosa, a goth hottie that frequents the club next to his store. He wants to ask her out, but he's constantly in competition with his former co-worker, and fellow vampire, Wes, a meathead surfer dude that makes a bet that he will steal Rosa right under Dave's feet.
What I liked about this story was the fact that the vampires in this story had to do the same things the humans did, i.e. work crappy, wage-slave jobs for their masters in order to pay rent. The depressing reality of Dave's life is a nice contrast to Rosa, who is so entrenched in literary and cinematic vampire myth that she believes being a vampire would be the best alternative to her current life.
The conflict of the story was of the typical "boy wants girl-boy gets girl-boy loses girl" formula, and started to wear thin early on. Rosa was too naive and vain to really be a likable character, but these characteristics did work well with the themes of the story.
The illustrations were good, if not always consistent. Radu and Dave were probably the best drawn, and therefore, the most believable characters.
Dave becomes infatuated with Rosa, a goth hottie that frequents the club next to his store. He wants to ask her out, but he's constantly in competition with his former co-worker, and fellow vampire, Wes, a meathead surfer dude that makes a bet that he will steal Rosa right under Dave's feet.
What I liked about this story was the fact that the vampires in this story had to do the same things the humans did, i.e. work crappy, wage-slave jobs for their masters in order to pay rent. The depressing reality of Dave's life is a nice contrast to Rosa, who is so entrenched in literary and cinematic vampire myth that she believes being a vampire would be the best alternative to her current life.
The conflict of the story was of the typical "boy wants girl-boy gets girl-boy loses girl" formula, and started to wear thin early on. Rosa was too naive and vain to really be a likable character, but these characteristics did work well with the themes of the story.
The illustrations were good, if not always consistent. Radu and Dave were probably the best drawn, and therefore, the most believable characters.
May 24, 2013
Knowing that the stereotype for vampires is now to be super sexy, rich, and mysterious, it was a breath of fresh air to see a vampire who was much more down-to-earth, okay looking (?), and poor like a majority of us. Dave as a character didn't feel forced into the role of underdog; he simply was a young immortal victim forced into a dead end job as a clerk at a convenience store during the night shift. His decision to be a vegetarian doesn't feel like it's some sort of ploy to make him seem like a better person rather than make him seem stubborn and a little stupid because it causes him so much trouble.
The overall feel to it was a pretty good balance, I felt. The characters were believable; from the cheap boss Radu who doesn't understand an employee who wants a little free time all the way to Rosa, Dave's love interest who wants to be a vampire to gain "freedom".
I will say that some of the points in the story drag a tiny bit, but the characters' banter and snark keep you amused enough to get through it. I had bittersweet feeling about the ending; I liked it because it wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but I was glad for that.
It's a pretty quick overall and it doesn't feel overdone despite the fact that recently vampires as a whole have been a little overdone at this point. If you're looking for a victim vampire who you can root for, Dave is your guy.
The overall feel to it was a pretty good balance, I felt. The characters were believable; from the cheap boss Radu who doesn't understand an employee who wants a little free time all the way to Rosa, Dave's love interest who wants to be a vampire to gain "freedom".
I will say that some of the points in the story drag a tiny bit, but the characters' banter and snark keep you amused enough to get through it. I had bittersweet feeling about the ending; I liked it because it wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but I was glad for that.
It's a pretty quick overall and it doesn't feel overdone despite the fact that recently vampires as a whole have been a little overdone at this point. If you're looking for a victim vampire who you can root for, Dave is your guy.
February 4, 2009
Being a vampire doesn't have to be glamorous. For Dave, it's sure not. Dave's a wage slave whose convenience-store boss is also his vampire master, an ex-pat Romanian who "turns" good workers into vampires when he needs a reliable night-shift manager. Dave lives with his best friend (still a mortal), has a crush on Rosa, a goth girl who's into the romance of the dark side, and manages to stay semi-vegetarian by stealing donations from blood banks. There's a nemesis surfer-boy vampire, an Old Country old boys' club, a little bit of gore and a lot of hanging out with goofy pals. Grimy young adulthood meets the logic of the undead. Pretty fun, with engaging drawings and lively, realistic dialogue. My only complaint was that certain story segues happened abruptly, leaving me wondering if I'd missed a few pages.
March 3, 2016
This book is really good, it's about this guy who is kinda awkward and a wimp who works a nightshift at a convenience store for a vampire lord because he himself is a vampire. BAsically there is this girl who keeps showing up around and he develops a crush on her, but there is this other like Alpha vamp who is like bro I can get the girl before you cause you're basically a vegetarian vampire loser.
Some interesting panels and quotes would be these series of panels where you see the two vampire fight, which happens a couple times in the comic. Also anyone with the main character's best friend because he is hilarious. You'd like it if you like not to lovely dovey stories, a little horror, some realistic situations, an underdog story, or just like the supernatural. 10/10 way better than Twilight.
Some interesting panels and quotes would be these series of panels where you see the two vampire fight, which happens a couple times in the comic. Also anyone with the main character's best friend because he is hilarious. You'd like it if you like not to lovely dovey stories, a little horror, some realistic situations, an underdog story, or just like the supernatural. 10/10 way better than Twilight.
January 23, 2009
I read this book because it was getting some buzz for YA graphic novels, and I like to keep that section going since it snags readers that won't look in any other section. This is a vampire story, so there is a built in audience for it right now, and that's a good thing because I don't think it could make it on its own. I just didn't find anything new or innovative in this story - it features a vampire that doesn't want to be one in love with a human girl who does want to be one. Sound familiar?
I did order it for my library because, as I said, it's got a built-in audience right now, and the graphics are eye-catching. I assume from the abrupt ending another one will be coming along; I guess I hope I gets a little better.
I did order it for my library because, as I said, it's got a built-in audience right now, and the graphics are eye-catching. I assume from the abrupt ending another one will be coming along; I guess I hope I gets a little better.
May 25, 2014
This book was actually really interesting. Not cliche stereotypical, but comical stereotypical. All the characters were well developed, and even extremely stereotypical at time viss their vords and zer modd svings. Oh Lord A I would so be your Vampire wife just to make fun of the way you talk for the rest of eternity.
The story line was even fun to follow because it was more contemporary life than forbidden fruit. The way that the girl was fought over by two "brothers" and her eventually having neither of them and each living their own life. Very different, and equally interesting.
I do recommend you take a gander in this direction if you ever need a good laugh. I read it in a few hours so it shouldn't be that long of a read. Good luck viss your reading.
The story line was even fun to follow because it was more contemporary life than forbidden fruit. The way that the girl was fought over by two "brothers" and her eventually having neither of them and each living their own life. Very different, and equally interesting.
I do recommend you take a gander in this direction if you ever need a good laugh. I read it in a few hours so it shouldn't be that long of a read. Good luck viss your reading.
January 27, 2025
This seemed like it was never going to end. Had a couple lines I thought were funny but other than that it was hard to pick back up after setting down.
May 8, 2008
I appreciate vampire stories that aren't the typical dark, brooding, and hyper-sexualized ones that most people seem to like. I never got into Anne Rice's Lestat bullshit, but I really liked this story of a slacker convenience store clerk who happens to be a vamp. His boss/master Lord Radu looks more like your Ukrainian landlord than Count Dracula.
It's a fast and fun read. Don't judge it by its crappy title.
It's a fast and fun read. Don't judge it by its crappy title.
May 18, 2009
Dave lives with Carl and works night shift at an LA convenience store. If this brings to mind Clerks, you're halfway there, because Dan is also a vampire, having been "made" by Radu, the cheesy convenience store owner. When he falls in love with local goth girl Rosa, the last thing he expects is vampire surfer Wes to bust up his groove.
This book is lots of fun. Sincere Twilight fans might not like it, but there are vampires for all sorts of people!
Gift booklist.
This book is lots of fun. Sincere Twilight fans might not like it, but there are vampires for all sorts of people!
Gift booklist.
June 29, 2008
Witty little book on being a minimum wage slave and a member of the undead. Does put the idea of being a vampire into prospective. Decent art and good dialogue is found throughout the book. The downside is that the ending is pretty lame and not a book that someone as accomplished as Jessica Abel should be doing.4
February 8, 2012
Sick of glamorous vampires? Me too.
What if being a vampire meant that your life is essentially the same, only more limited? What if it meant being a slave? What if it meant that you still had a crappy job, and that one girl still didn't notice you? A life of undeath isn't all it's cracked up to be...
What if being a vampire meant that your life is essentially the same, only more limited? What if it meant being a slave? What if it meant that you still had a crappy job, and that one girl still didn't notice you? A life of undeath isn't all it's cracked up to be...
September 1, 2009
Janet will love this one! Dark artwork, but funny. Boy vamp turned against his will (hmmm...this is a common theme lately) who doesn't want to suck blood. Forced into "mini mart slavery" by his master, who turned him b/c he needed a night manager at his 24/7 convenience store. Snarky dialogue. Love it!
December 25, 2012
The story revolves around a vampire, Dave, who works nights in a convenience store. His vampire master is from the old world, owns the convenience store, and spends his evenings play cards with other old vampires. Dave meets Rosa who hangs out the the goth club near the store. The rest of the book deals with their strange relationship. Nice graphics.
Seems like a sequel is due for this book.
Seems like a sequel is due for this book.
July 24, 2009
Vampires who hate their jobs and have relationship problems just like everyone else. This wasn't the "best" graphic novel I have seen lately, in terms of storyline of drawing, but it was pretty solid, and for whatever reason it was just really enjoyable to read.
November 20, 2014
Ha, ha! This book is great! I had no idea what it was about going in, and I won't ruin the surprise for anyone, but this book is sweet!
May 24, 2014
Ugh. Imagine Twilight, but twisted to appeal to a heteronormative white guy with no imagination or history of talking to real women.
Like a fedora hat from okc wrote Twilight. That's this book.
Like a fedora hat from okc wrote Twilight. That's this book.
July 10, 2015
Liked the story idea. Also the boss/master thing. Should be one of those new TV shows based on a comic book.
October 19, 2017
I really wanted to like this more. A vampire stuck working at 7-11 is an interesting concept. It just really didn't work for me. Meh.
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