‘Little Monsters’ Deluxe Hardcover (review)

Written by Jeff Lemire
Art by Dustin Nguyen
Published by Image Comics

Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Dustin Nguyen make one hell of a team.

They have worked together for years, most recently on the Descender and Ascender series. Those science fiction books worked on a very large level and really represented something new in both of their respective works.

For Lemire, it was a chance to expand his writing to include a larger science fiction world building setting. For Nguyen, it gave him a chance to really express himself with his artwork, delving into watercolor artwork. His work was always great, but there is something about the transition he made that made his artwork grander.

So, it was with a lot of excitement that I picked up this book.

The first thing that I will say about this book, is that it is probably the quickest read that I had in comics in quite some time.

This hardcover collects thirteen issues but it goes by in a fast clip. I do wish it was a bit more dense like their other works but the quality is still high. We get to meet the cast right out of the gate. The main characters, of course, are little vampires. They are stuck in this dystopian setting and seem to be acclimated to their surroundings quite well.

The young vampires play games with each other at night.

They survive on the blood of rats as that seems to be the only source of food available to them. They are children, quite frankly. Yet, they are children that have lived for more than a hundred years. They have all been turned into vampires by someone called the Elder. They all talk about the Elder with reverence and respect. They know that the Elder will also return someday to take them to their next steps of existence.

Is this actually going to happen? Is the Elder even real? Or is the Elder something that these vampire children are just making up?

We see that that character of Billy is starting got question how things are. One of the vampires named Romie goes missing. Dawn is approaching quickly! Billy has decided to go find Romie before the sunlight comes up. But can he do it? Does he even understand what is out there in this world? And is there a bigger threat on the horizon that they are not yet able to see?

Things get wild from there. We get a flashback and a little history behind the vampires, and how they got to the point where they are. It’s very cool and very in depth. This happens at a few points in the comics and it only deepens the characters more. Eventually we return to the story of Billy and Romie. They struggle for a bit but eventually, they find themselves trying to get back to their vampire friends. They eventually make it, but then they find more things coming their way.

We see that Billy and Romie come from two different types of vampire groups. To survive, these groups may need to come together. That is starting to look more and more impossible as time goes on. Billy’s group is the more aggressive one, and Romie’s is a little less so. But the two of them may be facing a larger threat than either of them could ever see coming.

This all leads into a small epic that is very focused on character.

The beats that make up this story are very grand but they are also very focused. By the end, I was fully immersed into the world and the characters. Billy and Romie’s story goes full circle here and it is a wonder to behold. The characters all meet some crazy fate at the end, but it all makes sense. I was sad there wouldn’t be any more stories with these characters, but everything is pretty wrapped up well.

Jeff Lemire continues to be one of the best writers (and artists) in comics. He is always doing something interesting and always striving to create something new. Dustin Nguyen meets that high expectation that Lemire creates and meets it every time. His artwork is simply wonderful.

All in all, this is a small masterpiece from two creators who excel separately and definitely together, each time at at bat.

RATING: A