Thanks to NetGalley and Image Comics for an eARC of The Cull Volume 1!!

What an absolutely stunning graphic novel! I truly enjoyed reading this one, while there was a lot to unpack I really enjoyed where the story was going. There was quite a bit of world building in this volume (which I actually liked), that seemed to really be setting up this graphic novel for success. The illustrations though, were something to behold. Illustrations can often make or break a graphic novel, these illustrations definitely made the the graphic novel!

4.25/5

Thank you to Image Comics and NetGalley for providing a copy of this ARC in an exchange for an honest review. TW: self harm, abuse, death, and, violence, The art on this was mind blowing! It is one of the most hyper-realistic art styles I’ve seen in a graphic novel to date. I think this would be perfect for fans of Stranger Things. Overall, a strong and interesting start to a new series. Very excited to see the next volumes come out and to learn more about this world.

The Cull is a sci-fi graphic novel that starts off with a group of teenage friends who go out in the middle of the night to do some filming and end up finding a portal to a strange place. Cleo, one of the main characters, hopes to find her missing brother there but instead they find a creature with its own plans for them.

Initially, I thought I was really going to love this but it fell flat for me in a lot of ways. Shortly after the beginning, you are thrown right into the group discovering the portal world and there isn't much buildup or introduction to the characters. We also don't know why they think Cleo's brother is there so it was a bit confusing. After that, the story continued to feel clunky throughout. One of the characters explains they are in a liminal space and gives a big speech about how this place works without any good reason for why she would know that. Everything felt like it moved forward too quickly and was almost entirely written through dialogue.

I did really like the premise and I'm interested to see where it goes in the next volume. The ending was intriguing and I think it would be worth checking out if you enjoy sci-fi and other Image comics. The illustrations were by far my favorite part. I loved the detailed, hyper-realistic style and thought it worked well with the story.

This was so interesting I LOVED IT. The beginning was a little clunky as they set the stage and caught the reader up to speed with the relationships between the characters but the rest blew me away. Reminds me of James Tynion IV's types of stories, definitely something to check out if you like his books. Also is this a metaphor for AI? Not sure... but loved it.

I picked up Issue 1 of The Cull from my comic book shop and was immediately pulled in. The art style is beautiful and realistic and the cover gallery is amazing. Issue 1 gives just enough detail for you to be intrigued but not confused, and ready to dive into Issues 2 and beyond. The gang gives Stranger Things/Super 8 vibes but a bit older and more mature. The gang is heartfelt and humorous and I can't wait to read more of their story.

A group of teenagers, mourning a disappearance, go down to Black Water Beach before dawn to make a short film - and stumble into another world. We know from the off that something terrible is going to come back, but I don't think that's what made this feel so predictable. Sure, Kelly Thompson's script has the kids pointing out that what they're doing seems like a bad idea, but much better that than the weird genre convention of genre characters not knowing genre conventions; besides, they come up with much better counter-arguments than teens normally need. It's more that Mattia di Iulis' art, while great for the eerie sheen of the other world, and even the wildlife there, leaves the humans with a stilted, glossy quality reminiscent of Greg Land or Ariel Olivetti, meaning whatever dialogue they deliver comes across as unconvincing as an address to camera on The Truman Show. Just when the story starts to look like it might have found a way to make that work, it instead flubs into a superhero story that hopes the lack of costumes will hide how generic it is, before attempting to tease an ongoing with a facepalm of a final twist. Plus, one of the kids uses 'out of pocket' to mean 'out of line', which I'm aware has become a thing but I still wish they wouldn't. All in all, a disappointment, especially after those first previews promised so much.

(Netgalley ARC)

I loved this story so much! It gave me a lot of Goonies and Stranger Things vibes. The twist at the end really got me, I love that it had a twist rather than a ‘happily ever after’ it just fit the story so perfectly. And honestly I cannot get over the images and colours in this, they were stunning! Maybe I am biased because pink is my favourite and the alternative world being pink was amazing! Definitely a 5 star read for me, 100% would recommend!

Thanks NetGalley, I loved the storyline but wasn't a huge fan of the graphics. It reminded me of video games. Will that keep me from reading the next one, absolutely not. I am guessing that part of the issue is that I read it on my phone instead of my Kindle. I couldn't get it to download properly to my Kindle. I will definitely be reading it again when I purchase a physical copy. Plus, I couldn't stop reading if I wanted to! The ending left me needing more. I am extremely excited to see where the story goes.

The Cull is a dark tale about five friends setting off in the middle of the night to shoot a short film on a forbidden rock near their small coastal town the summer before they all go their separate ways. But they're not really there to shoot a film. One of them has lied. And that lie will change EVERYTHING.

A group of five friends sneak out in the early hours to film a special project but not everything is as it seems. The Cull Volume 1 collects issues #1 to #5.

The story is a mixture of science-fiction and horror, I think fans of "Stranger Things" and "Life is Strange" will enjoy this.

The artwork in this graphic is superb, it uses a hyper realistic artwork style and there is lots of details in the world and espeically the emotions in the faces of the characters.

My only ciritism of the collection is that the story is a little bit rushed as whole story takes across 5 issues and the story on a cliff hanger.

Kelly Thompson and Mattia De Iulis's The Cull is a marvelously well told story. It feels familiar without treading over the same ground as Stranger Things, The Goonies, and Paper Girls. I hadn't planned on reading it all in one sitting, but after the first part, I dared not set it down. Beautiful, emotional and unexpected, I really hope we get to see the characters again.

Special thanks to Image Comics and Netgalley for the digital ARC. This was given to me for an honest review.

This one ends with a huge cliffhanger. Thank to NetGalley and Image comics for letting me reading an eARC of The Cull. If you enjoyed Y the Last Man and books like Saga, this is a great pick. It is very New Adult and will probably survive best in a public library versus a school library. I can't wait to read more.

This was... creepy and also a fascinating take on dystopia and superheroes! The artwork is incredible and I'm interested to see how this will translate into an ongoing series. Perhaps it's just a me problem, but I felt the pacing was extremely fast - but I think that might be me needing to get used to this type of graphic novel.

The Cull bills itself as Something is Killing the Children meets "The Goonies," which sounds right up my alley. Its summary reads like a Karen McManus young adult mystery-horror, which hooked me. Five teen friends leave their homes in the middle of the night to shoot a film at the beach, but one of them is lying to the others.

The first two issues of The Cull were easily the best of this volume. Kelly Thompson had an incredible idea for this series, and the premise worked so well for me. Young adults in a beach town? Heck, yes. One of the teens has a hidden motive? That sounds fun. Multiverses and alternate worlds? I wasn't expecting that, but I'm certainly not mad at it.

I'm a bit torn by The Cull. Mattia De Iulis's art is incredible, and there's a killer twist at the end of the volume, so The Cull had a lot going right. I also really loved most of the teen characters. While I enjoyed parts of this story, the main narrative wasn't fleshed out enough. The third and fourth issues should have been expanded into one or two more issues, which would have added more depth to the story. The monsters and alternate worlds were interesting, but I wanted more of them both. If more issues are released in this series, I will 10000% continue with the story, though.

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Thanks to Image Comics for providing me with an advanced review copy! All the above thoughts are my own.

I really enjoyed this fantasy/sci-fi comic! The absolute stand out of this is the art. The artist does this incredible job of making hyper-realistic yet fantastical settings and creatures. I want to just skim through to look at the art again because it’s just fantastic.

I enjoyed the concept of the story and the overall premise is really cool. However, I wasn’t 100% invested and in love with the characters because there’s not much time to get to know them before their thrust into the new world.

I still highly recommend this little comic series. They’re fighting creatures that are way bigger themselves and dealing with something so mind boggling and they do it by being there for each other. The feeling that I got while reading this the most was how cool it is. It carries the sense of wonderment and “what is going on here?” kind of feeling very well.

If you like sci-fi that’s about huge monsters and whole new worlds you’ll love this! All in all I really enjoyed my time with The Cull.

There is a lot of talking in this story, but not much doing. The plot spends a lot of time having characters talking to one another, but nothing is truly explained. It throws multiple interesting new concepts while also using a lot of commonplace tropes, while nothing is truly explained. The cast of characters is diverse in their appearances, but they feel a bit flat as people. You learn small bits about these characters during long exposition conversations, but it feels unnatural. It's so obvious it's meant to be exposition for "character building". I do like the overall plot idea! Weird portals, magical powers, crazy aliens. But the plot flies by so fast and with so little substance, that you're left with the feeling of "Okay that's something I've read." I will admit though, the ending got me. I didn't fully expect that cliffhanger. I would pick up the next volume, the story did well enough to interest me in seeing how it ends. But I don't think I'd buy a copy for my shelves, you know? Also, the art style I really did not vibe with. No hate towards photo-realistic art styles, but it just does not work here. I didn't realize the characters were meant to be teenagers until I reread the plot blurb. How they're drawn makes them look like they're in their late twenties! The art style also does not look like an art style at all, it looks more like someone used real photos and slapped a "painting" filter on. The kicker is that some of the art on the variant covers would have worked so much better for this story!

Also, my one gripe is the completely random [spice] scene, between two of the teens. Like, what was the point of that? Are you trying to imply the confident curvy girl who is a redhead HAS to also be promiscuous? That trope is SO tired, come on now.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

An interesting, fast-moving, stunning-looking comic about a friend group who meet up to make a short film–well, sort of. The beginning feels a bit rushed but I think it's because you can't take the eyes off of the art. Sorting out names is easy; personalities take a little bit longer, and then we're off. Though this feels like a combination of stories I've read before, it's gorgeous and has a lot going on with it and for it.

‘The Cull’ follows five friends who set out to shoot a short film and stumble upon something unexpected – something that will forever change their lives.

I won’t reveal much more than that, as I highly recommend going into this graphic novel with minimal information. The reveals are much more enjoyable when you have no idea what's coming. I surely was not expecting THAT.

The art style and colour palette perfectly complement the playful yet suspenseful storyline and overall tone.

I sincerely hope there is more to come, as I would love to discover what happens next and spend more time with this gorgeous group of friends.

Thanks to NetGalley and Image Comics for the e-ARC. All opinions are my own.

Wow! All the WOWs go to the art of this book! It is so, so nice! The art has a distinct voice of its own, the art tells the story perfectly, and the art also sets the mood beautifully.
Everything is perfect about the art in this book.
The story is great also, but in this book, it really feels like the text is just complementing the art (while in most cases of graphic novels the opposite is true).
This is the most perfect read for any teen (older and more mature tweens maybe also?) and YA reader.

Beautiful art work, engaging story, this was very entertaining. I loved the art, and the scripts were very good. Will definitely recommend to teens looking for more adult themed graphic novels.

Fantasy story comic. I loved the realistic artwork. Imaginative, vibrant and colourful, matching perfectly with the strong story line. The characters are fully developed as real individuals both in their speech and facial expressions. There is a cliff hanger but I didn’t feel short changed having read Vol 1, bring on Vol 2! Thank you to Image Comics and NetGalley for the comic ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.