Freaks in the Heartland is a creepy story about a boy and his little brother. Gristlewood is a very rural, small community of farmers deep in the heartland of the US. Something terrible happened to this place a few decades back and they are paying the price for it now.I wish I could say more but it would ruin the story. Greg Ruth's illustrations are wonderful in showing a deeply disturbing town. There is no question the author and the artist want the reader to think who the real freaks are? Not

Great art mixed with confusing and honestly boring storytelling. I dunno if Niles is just not the writer for me.

This is a gorgeous package. Good job, Dark Horse, on the fabulous cover*, end papers, extra matter, full color illustrations... yes, please, this is lovely.I also warmed up to Ruth's illustration style (cf. my thoughts on The Lost Boy) when in color. Even though the colors here are muted, adding that element makes his work feel more edgy to me. More like the impressionistic elements are intentional, and not an indication of a lack of skill. I'm sure this story was a much different experience whe...

Good art, crap writing/story, there’s a reason why you’ve not heard of this one - I feel like this is essentially what 90% of my comics reviews boil down to. And it also applies to Freaks of the Heartland! Set in rural ‘murica, stereotypical hillbillies (“You sassin’ me, boy?” *drinks ‘shine*, hits wife, repeat) keep their mutated offspring in barns until they decide to rid the world of Satan’s spawn one arbitrary day. Except one boy decides to set loose his freak brother and the pair go about t...

A compelling read! Interesting and unique art and engaging story. I was hoping for more background and character development but I still enjoyed it!

Not really horror....more like side show freaks hidden in barns and shit. Nothing was explained....sigh.

Terrific artwork, finely crafted story, gloomy setting, great atmosphere and sympathetic characters, what more can I ask for?

Dark story about mutant children in rural America. Artwork is great, makes you feel desperation and loneliness of that place. Great comic book overall.

Overall I really liked Freaks of the Heartland, the harrowing artwork compelled with some very scary/disturbing/sad themes made for some pretty intense reading. On the flipside however I found the plot a little undernourished. After a strong build-up to the introduction of the existence of 'freaks' a little too much was left to the imaginationSPOILERS going forwardsWhile I like a little ambiguity it was hard to get behind the conclusion, what exactly happened to the 'Freaks' did everyone just go...

This was my first graphic novel, aside from comic books and Heavy Metal as a kid. But the cover caught my eye.I loved the graphics in this novel! The colors reminded me of the movie Sin City. Beiges and tans, gold, black, with striking orange and red splattered throughout. The colors of fall.The faces were very expressive, and one of my favorites was one that did not make it into the finished product (as it was deemed too "scary" for the character to gain the sympathy of the reader), but it can

Trevor has never left the rural farm that he shares with his timid mother, domineering father, and freakish-giant younger brother Will. When a neighbor's pig is killed and Will's father subsequently decides to end his son's life, Trevor and Will escape and try to leave the valley. Before they get far, they uncover the grisly secret that the valley's families have hidden for years.Freaks of the Heartland is a short book, a surprisingly quick read, with great big panels. The art is heavy on gray a...

Steve Niles and Greg Ruth tell a moving story about mutation and mercy in the hinterlands of the American Midwest. Somewhere in an unnamed town, a monstrous six-year-old boy named Will lived hidden away in a barn, while his older brother Trevor waits for the day when his abusive and violent father finally puts a bullet in Will. When Trevor and Will flee for their lives, they uncover a great secret at the heart of their small, isolated community that at first brings horror. But very soon we see t...

Freaks of the heartland is a graphic novel about family secrets, monsters, and brotherly love somewhere in the rural midwest. Young Trevor's life is a hard one - his father is a cruel bully and his mother has been beaten down until she is hardly more than a shadow. His six-year-old brother, Will, is a freak, monstrously huge and monstrously deformed. He is kept chained in the barn to keep him from prying eyes and to hide the family's 'shame'. But Trevor loves his brother and does his best to pro...

Another goodie from Steve Niles. I will give most horror comics a go, but with Steve Niles you can trust you will be getting an interesting and original story. The story is wistful, disturbing and strange but really quite affecting. While Steve Niles is the reason I gravitated towards this one, the artist is a revelation for me---Greg Ruth's artwork is gorgeous. Painterly and emotional, I looked forward to each and every panel. I will definitely be on the look out for more of his work. Highly re...

Trevor looks after his little brother Will who is treated like a dog by his father. Will is some kind of hulking mutant. When his father decides to take care of Will once and for all, the boys go on the run where they discover a dark secret about the valley they've grown up in. I love the relationship between these two brothers. The story is quick with only a couple panels per page. Greg Ruth's art was frustrating. Some pages set the mood of the story perfectly. Others, I couldn't tell what has

Freaks of the Heartland collects issues 1-6 of the series written by Steve Niles with art by Greg Ruth Will is a 6-year old who lives in the barn behind the house, hidden away from society. Will towers above his younger brother, has freakish strength, and many other unnatural abilities. When Will's dad has decided that Will should no longer be in this world, Will's brother decides to free him and run away. This book is haunting but tells a warm story of brotherly love. The art perfectly captures...

A really powerful story about secrets kept and buried, and love of one brother to another, done in sepia tones to help with the claustrophobic feeling of being trapped in the small town paranoia.

Generally I avoid graphic novels, believing “they’re not my thing.” But I chose to read this one because of the title and description; and I am so thankful I did. Talk about reader’s hook! The first page or so grabbed me; and the art is delicious-very evocative-where in a novel I would normally look to the description to understand setting, here it’s right in front of me, and so well drawn! Between the art and the text, I literally experienced cold shivers throughout the book. If THIS is what gr...

The idea was enjoyable enough, Greg Ruth's art is stunning and reminds me of Tyler Crook's watercolour work on Harrow County. But the violent sequences had me absolutely lost in splashes of incoherent colours.Also, the story just stops without any real resolution.Overall pretty to look at had some interesting elements but ultimately it failed to pull the trigger.

The art is really the only thing going on here. The story don’t make one dang lick o’ sense an’ it ain’t got no ending’. The characters, see, is alla buncha them clee-shays ‘bout rednecks an’ whatnot. Maybe if there were a hint of a theme besides “don’t treat people who look different from you badly” I’d be inclined to overlook the non-ending. It just feels like Niles saw he only had two pages left and went, “Welp, best rap this up.” Seemed mostly okay until then.This is exactly the kind of stor...