Book Review: Lenore Noogies – Author Roman Dirge

Lenore Noogies
Written by Roman Dirge
Published by Titan Books
Publication Date: 2009
Format: Color – 128 pages (Hardcover)
Price: $17.95

Lenore is a fine guilty pleasure. Let’s forget that this comic / book collection would make every goth practitioner drool. Let’s forget that it’s wonderfully morbid and tastefully sick. Let’s forget that it’s simple, artsy and to the point. Let’s also forget that is just plain friggin hilarious.

On second thought let’s not ….cause it’s all those things and more. My introduction to the comic was usually per way of the local mall “Hot Topic” outlets. While the store was selective in what they carried, this odd little comic seemed to embrace the idea of Hot Topic’s to a T. I had picked up a few and read thru but up till now have never owned any. Partially because I’m more of a TPB collector than a single issue collector. Though you cant help but ignore those big ghostly eyes and that small innocent figure that hides under so much chaos and destruction. Thick inks …spooky and creepy like a spider laying under your sheets…. Lenore is the perfect anti-hero!

While the back cover boasts a perfect union of Tim Burton and Dr. Seuss, I couldn’t agree more. Lenore would fit perfectly in a Burton animation like a child to candy. Her gothic presences reminds us of Wendy from the adams family, her actions though are closer to a serial killer meets sadist. This is the joy of this little and misplaced comic book.

The review comes in the form of the collected edition titled Lenore Noogies which collects issues 1-4 under a swell looking full color hard cover edition perfect for any library. The author Roman Dirge actually informs us in his opener that this book almost never came to be. The files and artwork of the originals were lost to all kind of modern dilemmas. So in an effort to give it new life , he had to recreate the art from scanned copies and repaint. That’s dedication. Well the effort was well worth it as once I got started, Icouldn’t put the edition down.

The humor comes at us much like the old mad magazines though with a R rating. Lenore is the queen child bitch who destroys all those she chooses……….. you’ll find a sick and twisted brand of humor in this series that defies mere off the shelf comics. What can I say? I love it! There’s not alot to reveal as each short comic should be experienced in its own creation.

The characters are gothic and odd, the words are limited and the outcomes are perverse and original. OK, well just a little preview ….I love the reinterpreted nursery rhythms within…… something I could see bored school children re-animating for fun in there heads. Pick one up and live the moment ……..eloquently perverse!

Available from Titan Books
Also available from www.amazon.com