What the Press is Saying About ZED: A Cosmic Tale

"It’s a real balancing act to keep slipping the very adult themes in and letting the world view stay consistent, but Gagne is true to his vision. This is may be the most gentle comic about wiping out civilizations you ever read and the cognitive dissonance that sets in as your brain lines up the subject matter and the representation is half the fun of it." Read full review.
- The Beat

"Those familiar with Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet will have been exposed to Michel Gagne’s work previously. His art style is clean, with soft shading and uniquely inventive worlds. The dialogue for the most part is snappy and well paced with nothing extraneous in the mix to bog it down. Panels are cleanly set, dialogue is well inked offering an easy read that taxes the readers sensibilities rather than have them struggle with cluttered layouts. The art is one of the most compelling factors to this series – it’s surreal at times but just so well made! Zed: A Cosmic Tale manages to do so much with it 280 pages. The book shifts from cutesy, to touching, to menacing, to horrific scenes of extermination with such beautiful and effortless ease" Read full review.
- Game Fiends

"Zed is, for all intents and purposes, a comics storytelling masterpiece." Read full review.
- Talking Comics

"ZED has that perfect mix of innocence and brutality that makes it feel substantial enough for kids and adults to fall in love with. This is how classics are made." Read full review.
- The Daily Planet

"The action, suspense, and larger questions about the nature of life are very well done particularly when paired with the reworked art. I highly recommend ZED to anyone that likes their science fiction with tongue in cheek humor and action." Read full review.
- Sharon the Lirairian

"A Great Offbeat Space Adventure. 86 out of 100" Read full review.
- Evil Squid Comics

"This adorable sci-fi comic book wades into some pretty dark and menacing territory. And, that seems to be the most important detail of this comic. It is never just one thing. The most striking thing in Michel Gagné's Zed: A Cosmic Tale is the art. It is surreal, complex, and gorgeous. The art style, much like the book as a whole, bounces back and forth between cute and sinister. What is so impressive is not how effectively Gagné summons cuteness or menace (incredibly effectively), but how quickly he can shift from one to the other." Read full review.
- Fanboy Comics

"Definitely give Zed a read, and thank me later. Just don't pass it on to the kids until they're a little older and can handle getting their tiny souls scarred for life a little better. It really is an uplifting and beautiful story when all is said and done." Read full reviews.
- Shut up and read something.

"Zed really was amazing to experience. 5 out of 5" Read full review.
- Thinks Books

"ZED: A Cosmic Tale is a fun science fiction story that combines adorable characters with heavy, depressing subject matter but in a feel good, entertaining way. And lets be honest, he’s just too cute to pass up!" Read full review.
- Black Ink Books

"The whole story is full of dark humor. The things that happen are a bit too epic and a bit too out there, this ends up lending the story a darkly humorous edge. I really really enjoyed it. It’s quirky, goofy, and totally off the wall. It is delivered in a way that is high quality and top notch." Read full review.
- Karissa's Reading Review

And then, there's this one review which rates the book 0 out of 5!

"There is blood, gore, violence, treachery, and so much anguish that reading this would probably put a kid into therapy." Read full review.
- The Armchair Librairian

The Original Series Published from 2001 to 2012

 Before ZED: A Cosmic Tale became a book, the whole story was first laid out in comic book form over a period of eleven years. The comics are quite a bit different from the book and showcase an evolution in the art style. If you want to see how ZED came about, make sure you check them out!

Reviews of the original ZED Series "So Sad, so cute, so macabre." -- Rebecca Salek, Sequential Tart "...it's a title I wholeheartedly recommend for those who enjoy the fantastic potential of childlike imagination with a pleasant adult spin" -- Ray Sidman, Comics Buyer Guide "Gagne is a ruthless writer, gently building a house of cards for the reader and intentionally swiping at it to excite our empathy and excitement." -- A Comic A Day... "That unsettling shift back and forth from innocence and darker elements means this isn't the all-ages book it appears to be on the surface, but it does make for a weirdly mature and fascinating read." -- Don MacPherson, The Fourth Rail "ZED is a book to keep an eye on. It's a lot of fun to read, with a visual feast for the eyes." -- Augie De Blieck Jr., CBR "You will love this new series, ZED is deliciously twisted, funny, epic and endearing at the same " -- Mick Martin, Comic Book Galaxy "There's something incredibly appealing about ZED; his plight is troubling, his inherent goodness is moving, his suffering is poignant. Most of all his story is compelling; once you've given ZED a " -- Cliff Biggers, CSN "...Dr. Seuss with a bodycount. ...I can't recommend the trade highly enough." -- Randy Lander, The Fourth Rail "...ZED is in the childlike yet mature tradition of the best French graphic albums, with a bit of gentle anime and a lot of warped imagination thrown in." -- Adam McGovern, The Jack Kirby Collector #37 “thoroughly enjoyable...” -- Craig Lemon, SilverBulletComicBooks.com "Great art and a wild story..." -- NeedCoffee.com "Imagine the innocence of Bone given an injection of Jack Kirby..." -- Frank Plowright, The Slings and Arrows Comic Guide "Highly entertaining and very well drawn...” -- Bud Plant “ZED is an impressive little book, a straightforward, eye-catching sci-fi yarn worth pickingup.” -- Matthew J. Phillion, The Small Press Magazine “Gagne balances humor and tragedy throughout the tale, making the reading sublime.” -- Ed Cunard, Comics World News "A Fascinating Read" -- Andrew Duncan, 4-Color Review "Odd, beautiful and fun." -- Jeff VanderMeer, BookSlut.com Click here to see ZED pinups by some of my favorite artists. ZED gets animated! After posting the cover of ZED #8 on line, I was contacted by animator, Dean Dodrill, asking if it would be OK for him to do a little animation clip inspired by the cover. A couple of months later, I got this wonderful little film. Click here for more. If you would like to link to this page, feel free to use one of these banners: 234x60 234x60 120x37 120x37