WIGHT-A-RAMA

In their "Best Shots" review column, Newsarama.com had this to say about MY DEAD GIRLFRIEND:

You have to love a book with a horror theme that notes on its cover that creator Eric Wight was the “Ghost Artist from The O.C..” If that wonderful pun weren’t intentional, then they shouldn’t tell. In fact, wink-and-nod gallows humor is on glorious display in the first volume of this new series from Wight, which centers around a young man with an intrusive, albeit dead, family and a miserable school life.

The charm of Wight’s book is how easily he melds teenage conventions and horror tropes. Finney Bleak comes from a long line of people who often die hilariously ridiculous deaths and continue to cheerfully hang out at the family home. He attends Mephisto Prep, where he is essentially the “Marilyn”; that is, he’s the only normal kid in a school full of vampires, werewolves, witches, bubble-helmet sporting lagoon creatures, and more. To compound this problem, Finney has a sharp wit, which, as we (okay, I) all know, will get you in trouble with the wrong crowd.

Clearly, as the name indicates, there is a romantic angle to the overall plot. I don’t want to spoil it, so I’ll sum up by saying that it’s sweet without being saccharine and cute without being overbearingly so. The potential for a romantic triangle is deftly handled, and really, all of the plot mechanics are just fun.

If you’re only familiar with Wight due to The O.C. or Batman Beyond or his more traditional comics work, you’re probably going to be in for a nice surprise. He’s a strong writer, and his graphic sense is well-suited to the “digest” size. Wight also gives us some swell extras, including several pin-ups by a murderer’s row of great artists (including the likes of Allred), as well as some design sketches. And if there isn’t a plush version of Mookie the pet gargoyle in the future, that will be a crime. If you’ve wondered about a title that’s the perfect meeting ground for the manga faithful and mainstream readers, there aren’t many places where you could do better.