Victor Lavalle’s Destroyer by Victor LaValle, illustrated by Dietrich Smith

BOOM! Studios, 2018

ISBN-13: 9781684150557

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition, comiXology

Victor LaValle’s Destroyer is set in a world where Victor Frankenstein is real, and so is his Creature. Having survived by living under the frigid environment of Antarctica, he becomes angered when a whaling vessel invades the waters and sheds blood of the ocean creatures he is seen swimming with in the first pages. Here begins the journey of the Destroyer, his only goal to eliminate humanity from the planet.

But Destroyer isn’t simply the story of Frankenstein’s Creature and his revenge. At the center is Dr. Josephine Baker, who herself is a descendant of the Frankenstein family, and her resurrected son, Akai. He had been gunned down by the Chicago police after a paranoid woman called them insisting a Black man was brandishing a firearm in her neighborhood. Dr. Baker brought him back using nanotechnology, plus a little of her ancestor’s methods. Two scientists, Percy and Byron, believe they’re searching for Dr. Baker to protect her from the Destroyer, but they discover their mission may be greater than they thought. Add to the mix Akai’s estranged father, the Bride, and a ruthless agent who will stop at nothing to get her hands on Dr. Baker’s creation, and you have yourself one amazing story.

LaValle does not shy away from sociopolitical commentary in Destroyer. Strong themes in this graphic novel include misogyny, racism, and police brutality, all of which are timely and necessary topics. LaValle expertly weaves a tale of modern-day United States fear and hatred with the original Frankenstein story using elements and names familiar to readers of Shelley’s original work. The artwork supplied by Smith creates the perfect accompaniment to a gripping story.

I watched a keynote given by LaValle during the Library Journal Library Con Live! 2018 where he discussed the graphic novel. I highly recommend seeing him speak if you have the chance.

Contains: blood, gore, misogyny, police brutality, racism, violence

Highly recommended

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker

Editor’s note: Victor Lavalle’s Destroyer is on the final ballot for the 2018 Bram Stoker Award in the Graphic Novel category.