Reviews
REVIEW: Stranger Things: Tomb of Ybwen #1
Book Title: Stranger Things: Tomb of Ybwen #1
Book Description: Stranger Things: Tomb of Ybwen takes us back to Hawkins, Indiana in 1984 when Bob was talking to Will about how to make nightmares go away. We all know how the rest of that story goes. The story picks up again between seasons two and three of the television series.
It’s January, 1985 and Will is trying to adjust to everything that happened. He can’t stop thinking about Bob. He’s not sad that Bob is dead. He’s mad about it.
The worst part is he doesn’t feel like he has anyone to talk to. Mike and Lucas are too busy in their relationships with El and Max. Dustin doesn't understand. He’s trying to pull Will out of his shell by talking about science camp. When that gets nowhere he reminds Will that El killed the Mind Flayer and nothing can happen to him. Dustin makes a valid point; but it isn’t what Will needs to hear.
Mr. Clarke has a better idea of what’s bothering Will and takes a stab at it. He reminds Will that Bob founded the Hawkins A.C. Club… and that he and Bob were friends in middle school.
Mr. Clarke gets out a box of mementos that he has from that time. There’s a picture of him with Bob when they were kids, the founding documents of the A.V. Club, some brain teasers, and some papers that look like Dungeons and Dragons maps. One has an “X” on it. When Will puts the maps together the border spells a message: “Congratulations, you found the first clue.”
Upon seeing this Will gathers everything up and races to find the guys. He tells them that Bob left a treasure for them to find. They need to go on a quest for it. The guys drag their feet at the notion. There’s a blizzard coming so they’d rather not be caught in it. Instead they suggest a sleepover at the Wheeler’s house.
Will tells them he needs to go home to check with his mom first. A little bit later he’s geared up for a night of adventure! Not with his friends, mind you. He’s going in search of Bob’s second clue!
Book Author: Greg Pak
Book Format: Paperback
Publisher - Orgnization: Dark Horse
Publisher Logo:
Illustrator: Diego Galindo
- Story(3.25)
- Interior Art(3)
- Cover Art(4.25)
- Dialogue(3.75)
- Mechanics(3)
- Editing(3.25)
Summary
As a child of the 80’s Stranger Things speaks to me more than a lot of the other shows set in that era. The guys are nerds, just like I was. The only difference is they were a few years older than me when the story takes place.
With Netflix not planning to release season four of my beloved show until sometime in 2022 I will take any new content I can get. Enter Stranger Things: Tomb of Ybwen. Just like with Star Wars, I appreciate content that helps fill in the voids of what happened off screen. We saw that Will was feeling isolated from everyone else in season three of the tv series. Here we get a glimpse of how long ago those feelings started festering.
If not for the artist being listed in the credits I would swear that this cover was photoshopped into existence. The artwork is so vivid and clear that it’s hard to believe it isn’t a photograph. Most impressive!
The interior artwork is very solid. Mr. Galindo does a great job of depicting the various facial expressions all of the characters have. I am especially fond of the panel where the Mind Flayer took Will.
As a geek on a budget and huge Stranger Things fan, I think this is a great story. It’s a little slow in places. That happens. Not every page can be Dustin declaring war on Dart or Eleven using her powers. If you liked the series I think you’ll love Stranger Things: Tomb of Ybwen, too.
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