Odd Is on Our Side

Sigh. I should have seen it from a mile away, but my biggest disappointment with Odd is On Our Side is that it reeks of being one giant cash grab. Apparently Koontz's character Odd Thomas, who has appeared in four previous novels (penned by Koontz) and one previous manga volume, is pretty darn popular with teens, which explains a few things to me. First, why these further adventures of Odd are presented in the manga format (actually, technically these are the previous adventures of Odd as these books take place before the prose series), and second, why Koontz didn't bother to write them himself. Take a popular character from a well known writer, truly make it a branded product by passing it off to another writer, package it in a profitable "hot" format that the target audience seems to respond to, and bam, instant profit. Along with the current boom in interest in graphic novels and adaptations, we've been seeing this equation again and again. Stephen King's Dark Tower series (Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born) and Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake novels (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter: Guilty Pleasures - The Complete Edition) have both been adapted in the comics format by Marvel to varying success, and Koontz is just the next stop in the line.

Before I start to sound too cynical, I will say that my interest was peaked with Odd is On Our Side because the material was new, whereas the trend has been to adapt and abridge into the comics format (which was the case with both King and Hamilton's comics.) On the whole, I can look past the trends and popularity if the work has some genuine passion and creativity behind it, but unfortunately that just doesn't seem to be the case with these Odd Thomas manga volumes. My main gripe is with the writing though. Fred Van Lente turns in a really uneven script full of over-exaggerated characters and 4th wall breaking. In an early sequence Odd, narrating to the reader, comments that he doesn't like potty mouths who speak in symbols, which is a direct reference to the speech bubble in the panel where a driver is yelling profanities that are obscured as symbols ($#%&!) Though it may seem edgy or "meta", this is really just an unfortunate example of how the author breaks the suspension of disbelief. The writing is also rife with groan-worthy puns, platitudes and far too many wink & nods to the reader.

On a positive note, the artwork by Queenie Chan is mostly well done and for those unfamiliar with manga's artistic eccentricities, don't fret as they're kept to a minimum (there are a few sweat/tear drop uncertain moments, and the occasion surprised starburst, but no sleepy snot bubbles or anger crosses.) Of course this does raise the question again of why the project was presented as manga, especially if these icons and symbols typical to the medium are kept to a minimum, I'm guessing to make it more palatable for an American audience. I'd be willing to bet that Koontz's main audience is of an older demographic, but since this character appeals to a younger set the publisher decided to target them by presenting the story in a format that's popular, manga.

At the end of the day the story is serviceable enough as an introduction to the character of Odd, but I'm betting Koontz fans will want to take a pass on this book unless they're die-hard completists. For manga fans, this series feels like downright pandering, and a watered down version of the original Koontz creation, and they'd probably be better off seeking out some of Chan's own original manga (The Dreaming Collection.)

I was honestly surprised when this graphic novel didn't end with;

"...and I'd have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for those meddling kids!"

It felt like a bad episode of the `Scooby-Doo Mysteries'.

This is the second Odd Thomas graphic novel. The story wasn't bad but it also wasn't great. These stories appear to take place in, around and before the first Koontz novel `Odd Thomas' but give little insight into the character's growth and development. Nothing new or hidden is revealed that adds to the multiple novel story arc.

The writing is fairly lackluster often trying to sound clever and falling flat. Reading between the lines in the story development notes at the back of the book Dean Koontz had rather little to do with the writing of this book and it shows.

The art ranges all over the place. In some spots it's quite good and in others it's mediocre at best. Queenie Chan might want to check source material such as ATVs and guns before drawing them. She also doesn't appear to know what soaping windows at Halloween is all about.

If you're an Odd Thomas fan you'll probably like this. Again it wasn't bad it just wasn't great. If you're a graphic novel collector and new to the Odd Thomas story line you may be disappointed.

If we could give half stars I'd give this three and a half but we can't so three stars it is.

I've never read any Dean Koontz books before, and I skipped the first graphic novel. So this was my first time being introduced to Odd and his world. I must say I was rather disappointed. For someone of Koontz fame, I expected something entertaining at the least.

It was very easy to catch on to the story - if I hadn't know before starting that it was the second in the series, I would have never known from reading it. Odd as a character was very flat. I feel like I should have liked him, if only the writers had given me something to like. The story was predictable and very bland. The villain was really terrible - what was his motivation? It doesn't even have the lame excuse of "He is the bad guy, so he does bad things". It doesn't bother to try and explain the villain at all, he is just a plot device.
The art was ok, nothing inspiring, nothing bad. I did like the way the weird shadow things were drawn, though I can't tell that they had anything to do with the actual plot, they were just there to distract the reader.

This book is very short, even for a graphic novel. I think it really could have used some more length to develop the characters at the very least. I suppose if you are a fan of the novels, you might already know what Odd is like and not need any sort of character development, and therefore you might enjoy these graphic novels. But for new readers - don't bother.

For anyone not familiar with Koontz' Odd Thomas character, the long and short of it is he's a fry cook who can see ghosts who try and help him to prevent tragedies... for the most part. He's got a girlfriend named Stormy who loves guns and is suitably chaste and the ghost of Elvis (and later Sinatra, though not in the comics) hangs around to help.

I have to admit, I'm a bit of a Dean Koontz hater... and I say this in conjunction with the fact that I've read and own a great deal of his books. He's like Stephen King-lite and I'm not that much a fan of King, either (a good many of whose books I also own). Here, Koontz has lent his characters to a writing/art team that has decided to dumb down his already paper thin heroes even further.

This, the second Odd Thomes OEM (Original English Manga), centers around Halloween and an, of course, inevitable tragedy that Elvis communicates to Odd via hip gyration (which must be analyzed by one of Odd's aquaintences by a dance relay of sorts, since she can't see ghosts). There's a "Devil in disguise" on the loose and its Odd's job to find him or her before the town's ghost population increases.

Exposition includes a traditional Pumpkin Toss where the town's teens steal pumpkins to smash for a rudimentary "water" slide and a stereotypical cranky old man who went nuts and gave kids poisoned candy (can we say cliche?) way back in the day. Quirks include how Stormy LOVES her gun. Man, does she love her gun. And Odd's writing mentor is a fat pig. Nice. Travesties include a saccharine Halloween origin story that pointedly leaves out any mention of pagans or Samhain. You've got to be kidding me. Giving the homeless Jesus treats? UGH!

Odd is On Our Side is a Bible Camp Scooby-Doo mystery without any kick. I mean, seriously, the villian reveal? All I can hear is "and I would've gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for those pesky kids... especially that girl with the gun." It's an exercise in bad writing with competent, but underwhelming art. It's too violent for the elementary set and too insipid for anyone older. The only joke that came close to hitting the mark passed between the Sheriff and an anonymous kid who wants to wail. If your supporting cast and an extra are stealing the show, it's time to ask for a rewrite.

Odd fans should pass, manga fans should run away screaming, and anyone who aspires to write should feel great about their chances of getting published if this is an example of what makes publishers happy.

I had no idea Odd was a comic strip. The book is page after page of comic strip-style writing. That's fine, just totally not what I had expected. I've never read the "Odd" books, so this was a first for me. Overall, entertaining. The first few pages explained this guy's ability to see things others can't, which was nice. You aren't wondering if he's just crazy the whole way through the book, which was a plus for me. I don't think I will read any more "Odd" books, just because I felt like I was missing something. I felt like I needed note to explain to fill in places, not because there were plot holes, but because I am not accustomed to reading things in boxes with pictures, or at least not 100+ pages of that. Good story, cool stuff goes on... Wasn't a waste of time, just not my thing.