"Over the Wall" Graphic Novel Review

Over the Wall by Peter Wartman

A great wall separates an ancient metropolis from the surrounding countryside. Abandoned, shrouded by time, forbidden to all. No one may enter the mysterious city…
​
Who dares to go over the wall?

---

Over the Wall is a short, simple graphic novel about a girl searching for her brother. The idea that “no one may enter the mysterious city” is a little misleading, in that every year, every boy who reaches adulthood has to prove their manliness by going into the “abandoned” city, which is less abandoned and more crawling with giant, memory-eating demons.

The girl’s brother is the only one who didn’t come back with the others, so she goes after him. Not only does she have to navigate the maze of ruins without getting eaten by mega-sized monsters, something about what the demons do to their victims means she doesn’t even remember her brother’s name, or what he looks like. If she had waited any longer, she would have forgotten he ever existed.

So, yeah. That’s terrifying.

The good news is it’s a really cute buddy story! The girl manages to talk a smaller, less hungry demon into acting as her guide. He’s the hilarious voice of reason to her noble stubbornness.

Over the Wall is short and sweet, while also managing to give us a world rich in strife, magic, and clashing histories and ideologies. To top it off, the culture is based on Mesoamerican art and history, which gives us something new and uniquely beautiful. The coloring is very basic: white, black, and purple for shadows, making everything stark and mysterious.

Also, the creator lives in Minneapolis. Just like me! Minnesota writer powers activate! :D

Welcome, Over the Wall , to my Favorites list!

Support this blog on Patreon!

BECOME A PATRON