Oh mannnnn I really wanted to love this. It could have been perfect. I don't know if it was a short production schedule or what but the transitions between issues just did not make sense. First it's these rich guys doing this ritual and I'm thinking damnnn this is going to backfire on them but then in the next few issues the rich dudes are not even there?

They explained at the beginning that everyone was to sit together in one room and light 100 candles and after each person told a scary story they were to extinguish one candle. Except they moved rooms and characters disappeared and the candles kept multiplying???

We have the chefs go into this room with the candles alone without the rich dudes (the characters are divided into the richies and the chefs who just cooked their 5-star dinner), but the whole conceit was that you sit together and one at a time extinguish a candle, chefs and rich dudes alike. I seriously went back to the beginning several times because I was like, am I missing something?

It was a genuinely terrifying concept that was executed poorly. A group of people from different worlds, summoned by a mysterious and eccentric millionaire, is convinced to play an ancient samurai game where 100 candles are lit and everyone has to go around telling a scary story and extinguish one candle until all the candles are out and a demon is summoned. That's a genuinely awesome story!

But this isn't that story. ( )

I was compelled to pick this up because it was listed as Anthony Bourdain's Hungry Ghosts, and so I believed that he played a large role in it's execution. Instead, he and Joel Rose collaborated on the idea and he contributed a few recipes. Rather than Bourdain's Hungry Ghosts, it probably should have been a co-author credit (though I understand the choice).

Regardless, I enjoyed the different tales and styles of Japanese monsters and ghosts. They weren't particularly scary, though I'm sure they were for samurais decades ago. Though I didn't try them, the recopies looked good (but how was a horse meat recipe not included?).

“The Starving Skeleton” - A man refuses to feed a homeless man, only to find he's a vengeful spirit who starved to death. 3/5 art, 3/5 story. Pretty average.

“The Pirates” - A pirate ship rescues a woman and demands her services in exchange, only to discover she's not a human woman. 4/5 art, 4/5 story. Wonderfully creepy art, a palatable sense of tension, and I've never seen the monster before.

“Salty Horse” - A man has an insatiable appetite for horse, until it backfires. 4/5 art, 3/5 story. Though the art was grotesque, it really lent itself to the tale.

“The Heads” - A man takes on a new apprenticeship, only to realize his new companions are goblins who detach their heads from their bodies. 3/5 art, 3/5 story. Kind of meh compared to the two that came before it.

“Deep” - A young chef is abused by his superior, until a demon disguised as a man offers a solution. 3/5 art, 4/5 story. Old school chefs were power-mad and rude, and it's nice to see those attitudes being treated with the disgust it deserves.

“Boil in the Belly” - A young man is possessed by a Hungry Ghost which, unfortunately, is not taken care of properly. 3/5 story, 3/5 art.

“The Snow Woman” - A young man and his father encounter the snow woman, who kills the father yet falls in love with the boy. They live happily for a while, but the man cannot keep quiet. 4/5 art, 3/5 story. I don't really understand the lesson of t his story; yes, keep your liaisons a secret if someone tells you to, but they were married and had kids at this point - why keep it a secret?

“The Cow Head" - A starving village is visited by a cow-man who offers to tell them where to find food. Instead, they consume him. 4/5 story, 4/5 art. Truly a cautionary tale about not biting the hand that (offers to) feeds you.

3.5 stars average, rounded down to 3. ( )

A fancy dinner party is capped off with ghost stories being told in the Japanese tradition of 100 Candles. The chefs are asked to join the game by their host who won a charity auction for the dinner. Each story is a traditional Japanese folktale that due to the chefs telling each story has a thread of food keeping them together. The art is great and really works well with each tale. The comic also has several recipes at the end of it. What is sad reading is this was completed just a few days before Bourdain’s death ( )

Some cool macabre stories based on Japanese folklore. Good graphic art and a nice book that also contains recipes by the celebrate late chef. ( )

Anthony Bourdains Hungry Ghost
by Anthony Bourdain
2018
Berger

Bourdains graphic novel is an interesting take on International dining, with spirits that will make you squeal. Each story has it's own artist, and several of the stories really worked for me. The Pirates, Deep were good. The creepiest one, for me, was Boil In The Belly
This includes recipes and a guide to the spirits behind the horror in this book.
Not great....not bad.....recommend for a quick fun read.
#teamslaughter #scarathon @Clwojick
6 pts. ( )