Peter Richardson: In terms of wanting to start comics in addition to the clothing line, I was actually inspired to do it more by film than other comics. I watch a lot of independent Japanese punk films from the 80s and 90s. The energy that those movies make me feel pushed me to wanting to go beyond putting my art on t-shirts. I've always had a huge love of comics, and manga specifically. I felt that there weren't many manga that really emulated the feeling of those Japanese punk arthouse movies, so I wanted to experiment and see what that might look like in comic form. Thanks to NetGalley, Diamond Book Distributors, and Ablaze for the digital ARC in exchange for this honest review. Since Halloween is only a few weeks away, I'd like to read books about horror, gore, and science fiction. Fortunately, I came across this intriguing title on NetGalley's Read Now list. I was hesitant to put this book on my shelf at first because of the cover, which I thought was an odd attempt to make the protagonist appear iconic and feisty. But I did want to try something new. As someone who has been a long-time fan of Richardson's clothing brand, I felt like this work was not necessarily bad, but also did not fit my preferences and is *not for everyone*. The story can be very confusing to follow, especially for anyone who may not first read the work's description. There are multiple main characters who are introduced, but they are confusing to follow altogether and feel very thrust upon the reader. There is not a lot of build up for me to care about any of the character's too much, though I feel the characters look and feel interesting.

I’m not entirely sure what I expected going into this, but it’s not what I got. Zombie Makeout Club sounds like something out of Tina Belcher’s erotic friend fiction. What I learned, after reading the entire manga and then doing some googling, is that Zombie Makeout Club is a brand of clothing sold at places like Hot Topic and Spencer’s, catering to fans of manga and Junji Ito. The story itself is called DeathWish. Chen, Adrian (17 February 2013). "When the Internet was for strangers". Salon . Retrieved 2017-02-08. It clearly had a lot of consideration and effort, and is something I would have on my coffee table to share with those I feel can handle the book and enjoy the art as I do.Peter Richardson: Since this was my first attempt at a comic, I wanted to work with a small cast. Each character is definitely a bit punk or anti-conformist in their own way. Each definitely has plenty of quirks. There aren't any straightforward characters with typical motivations here. Everyone, outside of the main antagonist, has a reason for wanting to die. So definitely not your average bunch. Version 5.0 improved upon 4.0 adding private galleries, the ability to "wink" other users, post "shoutouts", create "crush lists" (secret friends lists that reveal the crush connection if two users "crush one another), and search for users in your area (along with user vicinity recommendation). This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( October 2023) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Two of my favorite types of books (horror and manga) were combined in the graphic novel Zombie Makeout Club Vol. 1: DeathWish. As such, I had high hopes for this read and wish I could say it met my expectations. TW: This content contains mentions suicide, near SA, a lot of gore, body horror, and a whole lot of death.*!Unfortunately, this graphic novel was all style and very little substance. I shouldn’t have been surprised since this is a tie-in to a clothing brand seeking to appeal to anime and manga fans, but I was hoping for a little more from it. The author mentions in the afterword that he was inspired by classic Japanese cyberpunk films and I can definitely see the influence, it provides some context for sure for the experimental style, but I don’t feel that it translated well to the far shorter comic format. The story is almost nonexistent and rushes from scene to scene, the plot beats are explained in just a few short panels before moving on to the next character. What little story there is makes little sense, and the characters feel paper thin.