Jim Campbell (1) (1977–)

I can't remember the last time I actually laughed out loud reading something, but this did it. I loved Over The Garden Wall the miniseries, and the comics retain the same dark humor, the same charming art style, and . . . the same everything that made me fall in love with the original.

Book content warnings
drowning mention

This comic is a small self-contained story taking place between episode 3 and 4 (the tavern episode). Wirt, Greg, and Beatrice come upon two girls doing chores--and when show more Wirt tries to help, they give the most confusing orders ever, so that he ends up "messing things up" instead of helping. And they keep repeating "Papa won't like this at all"! in a very ominous verse.

I wish I could remember the direct inspiration for these girls. Was it a quilt pattern? I know everything from this comic/show is inspired by some old American show/old-time folk something. In this case, I forgot . . . I'll have to do some research!!

But in any case, this is the most fun I've ever had reading a comic in perhaps forever. show less

Having recently read The Book of Bill and Journal 3, I of course had to complete the trifecta of Gravity Falls spinoff books with this graphic novel. We have four complete stories here, namely:

"Face It": When a monster steals Mabel's face, Dipper and Pacifica have to go on an adventure together to steal it back. This one very much feels like it could have been an episode of the show. And I like the fact that Pacifica, despite having undergone some character growth and graduated from show more "nemesis" to "frenemy," clearly has not changed entirely overnight in some pat and unrealistic way. I'm not entirely sure how I feel about the possible vague hints of Pacifica/Dipper romance, but I guess this isn't exactly the first place I've seen them.

"Comix Up": A very meta little tale, in which our heroes get sucked into comic books, romping through a variety of different styles and genres. I started this one thinking, "this is silly, but cute and kind of clever," started laughing uncontrollably somewhere in the middle, and was going "awwwww" with a great deal of feeling come the end. Not sure you can hit the right notes for this sort of thing any better than that!

"Don't Dimension It": Mabel accidentally gets dragged into the multiverse through a dimensional tear, and Stan and Ford set out to rescue her. Lots of interesting weirdness, lots of bickering grunkles, lots of Mabel. All great stuff! The only thing that gives me pause about this one is the fact that it's hard not to read it as a reply to those people who like to blame Mabel for everything, making the point that, yes, OK, she can be self-centered, but basically she's a good kid. Which is absolutely true, but I'm sorry, her detractors do not deserve one Mabel, never mind a multiverse full of Mabels!

"The Pines Boys in: The Jersey Devil's in the Details": This one features the elder Pines twins as kids. It's the one I was most looking forward to, and, boy, did it not disappoint. The story is lots of fun, there are some jokes that made me flat-out guffaw (although the throwaway joke that made me laugh the hardest I suspect you have to actually be from New Jersey to be amused by), and I adore these kids. Especially lil' Ford, who is a nerdy little cutie pie. I just want to cuddle him and share my science books with him. (OK, admittedly, I might feel the same about the older version, too, but never mind that.) And their sibling bond here is so sweet and lovely. It's simultaneously heartwarming and, knowing what comes later, heartbreaking. Although it does, of course, end on a happy note.

So, anyway, yeah. It's all good stuff, and it satisfyingly captures all the things I love about the show itself: the strangeness, the great characters, the humor, the perfectly blended combination of goofiness and genuine heart. Definitely recommended to fans of the show, of all ages. show less

The first half of the book does a good job of capturing the tone and spirit of the original cartoon with half-brothers Greg and Wirt each offering their differing versions of events from the same odd evening.

But then the second half of the book goes off the rails as we are subjected to a story set in the schoolhouse from the "Schooltown Follies" episode. No Greg, no Wirt, no frog or Beatrice even. Instead, we are introduced to Pooree the Elephant, the clumsy new transfer student. Horribly show more drawn, horribly written, and, worst of all, horribly colored in a manner that completely clashes with the palette of the series. What were the editors thinking? show less

I love the Over the Garden Wall universe and its characters so much. It's like coming home, and it's like sipping hot tea on a chilly autumn night. These characters and this humor has become so familiar, despite this series and the show not being like seven seasons long. It's just that good.

The search for the Hero Frog ends in this volume. As in the last volume, this story makes up the bulk of the graphic novel (I'm silently cheering), and at the end there's another story from Miss show more Langtree's schoolhouse.

Unlike the earlier volumes, though, the schoolhouse story isn't illustrated by the same artist (thank god!). I don't mean to be unnecessarily cruel, but I think that art style is why I couldn't enjoy the schoolhouse stories as much as I might have, because this story? Adorable! I loved it!

The Hero Frog's story resolves in a satisfying way--and with some precious moments between Sara and Wirt I've been waiting for this entire series! There were only a few jumps between parts that made me confused--as if maybe there were a couple panels skipped or something, but I was able to put things together simply enough.

My only concern is now that the Hero Frog is over, what will volume 5 consist of? show less