Graphic Novel: Katrina Hates the Dead by Russell Nohelty and Juan Frigeri

What would you do during the Apocalypse? How would you survive? 

Those are the questions that have plagued Katrina for years. All the good boys and girls were raptured up to Heaven, leaving the rest of humanity to ask a single, solitary question: "Why not me?"
Hellspawn rose from Hell and rampaged across the world, eviscerating all they came across. It was bedlam, Hell on Earth. There was nothing anybody could do to stop it.

Then the Hellspawn got bored, and settled for a quiet life in the suburbs. They squatted in the homes of the people they once mercilessly murdered.

And that's where Katrina Hates the Dead starts. Humanity survived the rampaging demons, and now has to work and live alongside them. They steal all the good jobs, and leave humanity cowering in squallor...

Wannabe Press  *  Amazon  *  Goodreads  

My thoughts: I met Russell Nohelty at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books this past April and I was quite entertained by him. As he talked about his various works, Katrina Hates the Dead caught my eye. I was enamored by the artwork and fascinated by the plot. I knew that I simply had to read this graphic novel.

Plot- So what happens when many people get beamed up to Heaven and the "bad" people stay behind to suffer the apocalypse? You get a bizarre story of people getting killed by the Hellspawn while at the same time, the dead begin to live with the living as a "normal" part of life. I found myself chuckling a few times at the nonsense of the story. It is very dark, yet humorous at the same time. Just a word of caution, there is some inappropriate language. Once you get passed the shock of the language, it is quite an entertaining read.

Characters- Though there is not a lot of character development, the characters are represented in a way that the reader can immediately understand who they are. Katrina is the main character (obviously by the title). She is a bad ass (maybe a little too much for my taste) who is bitter about the apocalypse and is not scared of what happens to her anymore. Katrina will act before thinking and luckily, the results are not terrible. However, I couldn't help but laugh at her outcome at the end. Next, Connie is the sidekick character who wants to kill the Devil for what happened to her boyfriend. Out of all of the characters, she appears to be the most realistic. And then there is Barry, Connie's dead brother. He is a zombie who lives with Katrina and soon helps the girls out in their mission. He is a fun character!

Artwork- What do I have to say about the artwork? Wow! Though much of the panels are graphic, they are done very well. The drawings depict the plot perfectly. They help the reader understand more what the story is about. My favorite art pieces had to be the stills or posters (I have no idea what they are called) in between the "chapters." These are absolutely stunning. The softness and boldness of the colors work well together. The highlights and contrasts contemplate each other as well. It is obvious how talented the artist is. I found myself staring at these drawings for a while trying to observe every single detail.

Overall, this is a fun graphic novel. It is dark but humorous, it is action-packed plot, and has amazing artwork. If you're into graphic novels and do not mind the gore and foul language, then go ahead and read this. I am glad that I did! I rate this: