Advance Review: Marilyn's Monsters

We all have our demons to face; those that in the quiet corners of the night, take root in our heads and drive us towards, hopefully something better.Â But by driving forward, are we really just running away from that which has a hold of us?Â This quandary can affect anyone at anytime; daylight should bring some respite but can lead to interacting with a whole different type of demon or monster.

To whit, we have this original graphic novel by Tommy Redolfi, who provides the story and the art, following the tumultuous life of one Marilyn Monroe.Â As an icon, is there anyone more recognisable than Marilyn?Â As a study of a life torn apart by trying to be famous, is there anyone more tragic than Norma Jean Baker?Â Set in the famous Hollywood Hills, where a dark and twisted forestÂ is home to freaks and rundown trailers; a shy Norma Jean finds a home and begins to plan for her eventual stardom, blind to the perilous danger of the demons and monsters, both real and imaginary that are vying for her very soul.

Tommy Redolfi seems to have taken all that we know about Marilyn and weaved a tale of not quite terror in line with the TV show American Horror.Â What makes this story at times darker than the show is that we know how things actually went for Marilyn, even if the details are a little questionable or open to interpretation.Â As such, the real life impacts go someway to elevate the ideas that Redolfi is aiming for.Â Along the way, Redolfi tries to answer some of the questions around how Norma changed into Marilyn and how the monsters in her personal closet almost became real in the people that she would come to know.

As mentioned, Redolfi provides the art, including colors, for the book.Â For those expecting some sort of glamour type art that emphasises the glamour of the book’s heroine, the art may be a bit of a shock as Redolfi delivers a scratchy kind of off beat type of work that does take some getting used to.Â If the art is a million miles away from glamour, it certainly lives up to the horror vibe that Redolfi is aiming for.Â With the life of Marilyn Monroe as its subject matter there is the occasional nudity but it’s done in a manner reflective of the overall style and in the correct context.Â The art style changes at times during the book, to an even more simpler version, as if seen through a child’s crude pencil work.Â For me this does kind of spoil the flow of the art, but does serve to prove a point during chapter three. The colors are almost a permanent dark tapestry that gives quite a claustrophobic feel to proceedings, which again alludes more to the horror elements in play.

For Marilyn fans, this book may be a bit of a reach, especially as for the large part, there will no doubt be expectations in play.Â However, if you are a horror fan, then you will be well served by this book with its creator using such a prolific person as the focal point, the impacts of her monsters can be seen to play out in her more than colourful real life exploits and ultimately her failures.

Writing – 5 Stars
Art & Color 4 Stars

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

Written by; Tommy Redolfi
Art & Colors by; Tommy Redolfi
Published by: Humanoids Inc

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network