Writer/Artist: Ross Campbell

Publisher: Tokyopop, $9.99

The Abandoned is pretty much a teen drama wrapped in a gory zombie outbreak, and depending on your mood that can be great or kind of annoying. Focusing on a small group of kids in their early 20's and younger, the story mostly revolves around Rylie and the girl she has a crush on as they try to survive when all the adults have turned into zombies. The story never bothers with any actual details on the zombie armageddon and just tosses you into it and instead focuses on the personal dramas that ensue when faced with such horrible challenges.

I remember really liking this the first time I read it in ‘06, but on this reread I have to admit it didn’t grab me like before. I think it was mostly because the characters really annoyed the hell out of me on this reading, so that’s probably just me then. Honestly, I was really really really glad when the horrible mauling deaths started. I wouldn’t say Campbell’s writing is bad at all, I still enjoyed the general pacing of the book. The dialogue was decent as well, I guess I just really didn’t care about any of the characters. Which made the zombie killings much more enjoyable, but I actually doubt that was the point. I think I probably was just more in the mood for horrible zombie violence and not so much the angsty teen emotional rollercoaster.

The real focus is Campbell’s art. It balances that fine line between beautifully disgusting and disgustingly beautiful, and when he wants to be ultra gory he can really pull it off. He has this soft organic feel to his work that makes everything all the more horrible when he rips it apart. I think this is perhaps one of the goriest zombie comics I’ve ever read, so maybe that’s why I really liked it the first go around.

This is actually a fairly dense package for the price tag, so all in all I would say if your looking for a violent zombie comic with interesting art, this is a great deal.

If you like this then try: Wet Moon, Water baby, Walking Dead

Related Links: Ross Campbell