The Trip

A group of college kids on a desert-baked road trip take a Native American drug that unlocks their deepest fears. Now, if a teenager and his grandfather from the local reservation can’t find them in time, they’re going to have to face their own personal terrors, or be consumed by them! The Trip is an Indian drug fueled ride into horror!!

The title definitely doesn’t lie, this book is a trip and a half.  Now, teens tend to get into stupid stuff they’re not supposed to, drugs being one of them.  Always looking for that one high, just so they can escape their everyday problems, if only for a bit.  However, this is one high they never should have ventured to.  The Trip is a new graphic novel by Jesse Grillo, that focuses on six teens out on a weekend road trip through the deserts of New Mexico.  When one of them manages to score an old-time, Native American drug called Toloache, or Demon Weed, the group goes on a drug-fueled trip like no one has before.  It isn’t long though, before the high wears off and the after-effects starting kicking in, with devastating results.  If you ever wanted to deter someone from trying drugs, this book will do just that. 

So, I can honestly say I’m not entirely sure what to think of this one.  It wasn’t a terrible story, in fact Jesse and crew did a great job of illustrating how devastating the effects of this drug had on the six.  However, now that I think about it more, there’s a great underlying message about facing your fears before they get the better of you.  But, overall, the book just didn’t grab me personally,  it felt like a story I’ve read before, just another drug-trip-gone-bad scenario.  Unfortunately, I can’t really give any examples, but that’s just how this book comes across to me.  By no means should that discourage anyone from picking this up.  If you’re a fan of the cautionary tale, or of Jesse Grillo, then this is definitely the book for you.  Having said all of that, I really had no problem with it other than it just wasn’t for me.  It was bound to happen at some point when a good book comes my way and I just don’t respond to it. 

Although The Trip didn’t make much of an impression on me, it certainly did on the six hapless teens who were just looking for a good time.  There was much fear and loathing amongst the characters, but no, they definitely weren’t in Las Vegas, as this takes place in New Mexico.  So, hit up your local comic shop and make this The Trip that sends you to nirvana.  For more info on where to pick up this book, visit the Action Lab website.

Geek-o-Rama received a copy of this book for the purpose of this review. All thoughts, comments and opinions are those of the individual reviewer.