Lenore Vol. 5 – Purple Nurples (Titan Books – Dirge)
When there’s no more room in Hell, or if they just get a little bit bored, the dead shall walk the earth! Lenore, the cute little dead girl, is back, determined to carry on exactly where she left off, being beastly to Mr Gosh, accidentally squishing small cute animals, making friends with all manners of monsters! Collecting issues 4 to 7 of the sold out comic series and beautifully and painstakingly illustrated by creator Roman Dirge.
In a pop culture landscape that is riddled with stories dealing with off-beat zombie / vampire characters, Roman Dirge’s Lenore “the Cute Little Undead Girl” has been a spotlight of comic genius going on its second decade.
For those of you that are unaware of who the delightfully joyful yet creepy ten year old Lenore is, she is a young lass who is just out to explore and have the best day ever. By the way, she lives in a haunted house, her best friends are demons, possessed dolls and serial killers… and oh yea, she died a hundred years ago!
Volume 5 Purple Nurples consists of three separate story arcs. First, Lenore and her friends take on the Creeping Creepig – The vengeful embodiment of pork gluttony. Comic historian note: this arc includes the greatest epic battle never seen in comics! (you will just have to check it out for yourself) In the second storyline, Lenore comes to terms with the dweller in the fridge while her house mates explore the infinite possibilities of their supernatural dwelling. And lastly, Lenore tries to do right by a tiny fly who only has a one-day life span – unfortunately her game plan involves sneaking into the bowels of hell.
Lenore as a series is brilliantly written, smartly drawn / colored, incredible macabre and an absolute thrill to read. Creator Roman Dirge combines his creative scripting and artistic talents to synthesize a series that is witty, adventuresome and downright disturbing all at the same time. It is truly the Addams family for the 21st century reader. He has channeled all the best parts of Calvin and Hobbes, Invader Zim, and Tim Burton’s The Corpse Bride.
The volume itself is a 120 page hard cover from Titan Books collecting 4 issues from Dirge’s sold out series and includes a clever forward from Clint Blackwood and some awesome pin-up art.
Grade: A
The Bottom Line: If you have a good sense of humor – you want to dive into the morbid yet hilarious adventures of Lenore!
