Marvel's popular Merc with a Mouth in an all-new ARRGGH * Hey hey, book readers, take off those big thick glasses - this is Deadpool speaking! Sorry Marvel, somethin' happened to your copy guy. Anyway, this is my first prose novel, and they got this dude Stefan Petrucha to write it. He's good people, he's written novels ( Ripper and Dead Mann Walking ) and comics (Power Rangers, X-Files ). But here's the thing: This book is about dogs. Dogs that turn into big nasty monsters. And then I gotta kill 'em. Thing is, I like killing people - the ones that deserve it, anyway - but I won't kill dogs. No way. So that's what we call a character dilemma. What - wait for the paperback? Who said that?! I'll gut you right now-
Stefan Petrucha (born January 27, 1959) is an American writer for adults and young adults. He has written graphic novels in the The X-Files and Nancy Drew series, as well as science fiction and horror. Born in the Bronx, he has spent time in the big city and the suburbs, and now lives in western Massachusetts with his wife, fellow writer Sarah Kinney, and their daughters. At times he has been a tech writer, an educational writer, a public relations writer and an editor for trade journals, but his preference is for fiction in all its forms.
This is a book based on the Marvel character. In this one, someone has infected puppies with an injection that allows them to change to unstoppable monsters. It is up to our hero to stop these monsters and the person behind this caper.
I had such a fun time with this. Story wise it doesn't deserve the four stars. But going into this book I expected endless quips and jokes with the wise ass main character. I expected fourth wall breaking. Basically I expected a joyous romp that can border on the silly side. It delivered on those accounts with no problem. At times I was smiling while reading this book and at other times I was laughing out loud and saying "yes" with the antics of Deadpool. The book was joke after joke but nothing ever seemed forced. Some of the jokes were juvenile but there were plenty of clever jokes too. The fourth wall dimension breaking was fantastic and I loved it. Appearances from some iconic Marvel characters just added to the fun. One scene I didn't even realize who it was until the reveal and it was delightful.
Obviously, this book is not to be taken seriously. It is meant for a fun time and it delivered on that account. I do not know much about the character besides the movies. If this is any indication of what it is like to read about an adventure with him as a character all I can say is give me more of Deadpool.
Deadpool fans will probably enjoy this book; I'm not a big Deadpool fan. I've given the comic numerous tries off and on, but usually ended up with feeling that the humor way out-weighed the story and that the humor was too juvenile and mean-spirited. I saw the first movie but didn't care for it much and have avoided the second. This prose iteration follows in the silly tradition of the previous versions, and though it's competently executed it doesn't rise above the earlier bits that put me off. It's like one of those mean or hateful jokes or sketches that make you laugh and then immediately feel ashamed that you did, and you hope that no one saw you. But if Wade Wilson is your cup of fish, then by all means dive right in.
Superheroes are hard to translate into prose. The genre works best in comics, secondly in animation. (and a distant third in film but most of which are actually bad).
This Deadpool novel is a worthy effort, combining the humor of the character with his fourth-wall breaking narration to make something quite entertaining.--and that almost works as an audiobook too. So it does as well as it can, but ultimately I'd rather read a comic or even watch a movie.
Also, should have had more R rated humor. That's what we expect of the character these days. Still, the author is very clever and witty, a whole lot of references therein. All in all a worthy effort, if you're a big Deadpool fan then I guess worth a read.
I was skeptical of how Deadpool would translate into a novel despite seeing it technically pulled off in fanfiction many times…and I was right to be skeptical.
Petrucha's Deadpool is a mix between Way's and Duggan's; actually it seems like he put Way's Deadpool in Duggan's settings. Some back story is explained but it makes it just more obvious that they were picking and choosing what they want to include about Deadpool; with the description of his relationship with Bob, the relationship we see with Preston, and the fact that he still has his "boxes" this takes place perhaps slightly before 2015's Battleworld and yet halfway into Way's run.
All that can be excused, he's a comic book character after all, but the premise of the book is horrible. There are a ton of puppies spread around the city that are about to turn into monsters so Deadpool has to catch 'em all. You have no reason to care whether he succeeds or fails so the book rests on the assumption that you'll be so engrossed in the prose that the plot is inconsequential, but that didn't go so well either.
The action is constant and well written which is a good portion of what you're looking for when you buy a Deadpool book of any kind but more than anything he is supposed to sell humor and that just didn't work here. Petrucha went for a very slapstick approach to his humor that he just couldn't translate from a comic book page. The fact that he had to constantly keep Deadpool talking to you and needed to incorporate two other voices in into his internal dialogue seems to be a burden to Petrucha, which it would be for anyone, many people even argue it never worked in the comic either. Most always any joke fell incredibly flat for me but as humor is subjective I'll say that I find Deadpool the most engaging and humorous when he's walking the line between carelessly silly and heartbreakingly depressing.
I will say that if you do still want to "read" this I would suggest the audiobook. The voice acting is extremely good and sells the joke slightly better.
Listened to the graphic audio version of this a few years back. Wacky comedy, fourth wall breaking, and tons of action. There are worse ways to spend an afternoon. Meant to listen to more marvel/dc GA books but never got around to it.
If you're a fan of Deadpool...from either the comics or the movies...then "Deadpool: Paws" by Stefan Petrucha is a book for you.
The "Merc with a Mouth" is at it again, this time as a mercenary for S.H.I.E.L.D. His task? Seeking out cute puppies. Sounds easy, right? Wait? Cute puppies? WTF?
Well, as it turns out, some of these "cute puppies" may have been biologically engineered to become nigh-invulnerable giant monsters who crave human flesh and have an appetite for destruction (as well as constantly spouting corny "monster movie/classic comics" catchphrases). Never fear, Deadpool has some stuff to spray on them to render them big piles of harmless goo--if they'll stop trying to destroy him (and lots of innocent kiddies and nuns) long enough to be sprayed into goo.
Deadpool makes the transition to the "novel" format with some initial difficulty. He has a few different voices bouncing around in his head, each represented by a different font. And he also has the tendency to lapse into hallucinations or inappropriate humor at just the wrong moment. While he does lament repeatedly for not having comics "splash pages" to show the epic battles he's in, he eventually gets down to business with only prose to depict his adventures.
Did I mention the famous guest stars? There may be appearances by a friendly neighborhood wall-crawler and a gamma-irradiated powerhouse with anger management issues. I refuse to name drop. But you probably get the idea.
The author handles being inside Deadpool's head pretty well. He manages to keep the outrageous action at least partly grounded in reality, even though Deadpool is an incredibly unreliable narrator. The action swings rapidly (though the action can't move as rapidly as Deadpool's mouth) between comedy, violence, adventure, and intrigue. But don't expect any of the underlying plot to make too much sense if examined closely. Just go along for the ride.
As I said above, if you're a Deadpool fan, this will be a great book for you. It's equally violent and absurd--and it manages to be occasionally downright hilarious.
This self-aware, 4th-wall-breaking adventure is pure silliness - and very enjoyable it was too. A lot tamer in tone than the films and comics, probably to bring it in line with the rest of the Marvel novel line, the merc with the mouth still motored on regardless. Told from Deadpool's point of view, we get to see just what goes on in the thing he calls a brain. Amongst all his tangents and waffle, there is an actual plot here, which really feature second place to Deadpool's ramblings. It was fun though, even if the finale was a little bit daft. I really had a blast with this one and am pleased to have read this one first.
Holy crap it’s Deadpool! Deadpool is sent on a mission by SHIELD to capture and neutralise some dogs that have been turned into monsters.
Very silly, very wacky. Fourth wall breaks galore. Everything you want from a Deadpool story. Some fun cameos from other Marvel characters and really fun narration from the merc with a mouth himself.
Enjoyed this one, a nice quick story about a man and man’s best friend…and demonic hell hounds…can’t forget about the hellhounds.
As many of you know, I am a huge Deadpool fan, and have been for at least 16 years. Hell I have Deadpool tattoo on my shoulder, never mind all the merchandise. SO yea I am a fan. So needless to say I had to pick this book up, I desperately tried to finish before the Deadpool movie came out, alas life got in the way. Still I enjoyed the book, despite it's flaws. Yes there are flaws.
From this point out consider everything spoilers.
First off, I was livid at first that the author went with the Daniel Way style Deadpool, where he had inner voices (which we now know to have been Madcap), with hallucinations...and yet the story takes place after "The Good, Bad and the Ugly" story arc as it involves Robo Preston. So I am not even sure if the story is "canon" or if it is set in it's own universe.
I am hoping for the latter due to a twist at the end of it of course.
The climax was the other issue, it made little sense especially since the "villain" that started it all turns out to be [spoiler Bob [/spoiler].
And yet (except the end), the story works. Is the story deep? Not really, you do get what you expect though. Which is Wade facing moral dilemmas while having a bombastic adventures through the Marvel Universe with some great cameos.
The author has a sense for Wade's voice(s) and understands that there is a moral center within the character
If only he didn't use so much of the Daniel Way version of Wade.
Still a fun intro to the Deadpool character to all the newbies out there.
Não é de hoje que essa séries de livros tem sido muito divertida de ler. Aliás depois que comecei ela, passei a ter resposta para aquela pergunta: Um livro que tez rir. E com esse não foi diferente, eu posso dizer até que esse foi o livro que mais me fez rir na vida. O Personagem mais debochado da Marvel é sim muito engraçado, e eu já sabia. Mas eu não esperava tamanho deboche, inclusive sobre o fato de estarmos lendo um livro é não uma HQ, sua casa de origem. O Personagem conversa com o leitor o tempo todo e faz tudo ficar ainda mais divertido!
this book was funny it made me feel like this book was made to entertain because it cannot happen in real life. I learned that Deadpool kills people that deserve it....And I would recommend this book to people who like Deadpool because it was about Deadpool.
If you're a Marvel fan or a Deadpool fan, you've got to read this! It's one hell of a ride. Such a fun, light read. It'll lighten up your mood & make you laugh multiple times. So much Deadpool goodness! 😃
This is exactly what you'd expect from a Deadpool novel, and Petrucha does a pretty good job of handling a character that is so visual in nature. True fans of the comics will enjoy this novel, but those who jumped on the bandwagon might find it hard to focus on what is actually happening.
Boring... I just couldn't get into it. Mind you, I've only seen the movies and not read the comics. But I like the movies and bought the book for hubby. I figured why not... Had to struggle to finish it.
When he first wrote a Deadpool tie-in novel back in 2015, writer Stefan Petrucha was still a year from the arrival of the movie Deadpool in theaters. But he would have known Ryan Reynolds was cast in the title role. Either Petrucha had a good idea forecasting Reynolds voice and view of the role, or both the filmmakers and Petrucha had a complete take on the famous “merc with a mouth” from the comic books. Either way for most of the Marvel novel Deadpool: Paws, the author gets Wade Wilson–the cancer-battling Weapon X experiment who becomes the wisecracking anti-hero known as Deadpool–exactly right. In fact there is only one scene in the novel that would have you step out of the voice of Ryan Reynolds’ incarnation of the character–when Petrucha has Wilson bad-mouthing Canada.
As part of Marvel and Titan Books’ release of a series of tie-in novels of the Marvel Universe (including Civil War, reviewed here at borg.com last month), they have issued a new paperback edition of Deadpool: Paws. Deadpool: Paws combines all the cringeworthy ideas you’d expect from a Deadpool tale. It’s a blend of Ace Venture: Pet Detective, John Carpenter’s The Thing, John Wick, and a twisted look at Dick and Jane, and, if you are a fan of Deadpool 2, take note: You’ll find that same balance of over-the-top humor, in-your-face-action, and inappropriately placed melodrama right here.
Whenever an author takes on the job of writing a tie-in story for a well-known character, and especially when the writer crafts the story in first person, readers will know quickly with even a misfire of one phrase or sentence whether the author knows what he or she is doing. If you read a lot of tie-ins you can catch the mistakes simply in dialogue. But Petrucha (who has written tie-in series from Nancy Drew: Girl Detective to The X-Files) mastered Deadpool’s audacity, raunch, snark, sass, whine, inner-monologue, repeated breaking of the fourth wall, and strange charisma, in every action and retort. He also throws in as many well-placed pop culture references as you’d find in an entire season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
The best parts of the novel find Deadpool wrestling with his own inner voice, and the story editor, and some other voice, and even more voices, and the reader, as he complains about the medium of a prose novel vs. the comic book medium. As with the movie version of the character, Petrucha supplies dialogue, knowledge, and high-brow references that are clearly above and beyond something Wade Wilson could ever come up with–somehow writers always do that to Deadpool and it almost seems like part of his trademark style. For another character it wouldn’t work, and yet for Deadpool Petrucha’s choices are right on target.
If you don’t want to see animals in jeopardy, even genetically engineered mutant dogs that turn into colossal Hulk-sized beasts, then definitely walk away from this one. For fans of the character that can overlook that part, they’ll find this novel to be as compelling as any comic book story in the Marvel catalog. It’s as true to the character as anything you’ve seen before. Plus you’ll see Deadpool encounter some familiar faces and surprise superhero appearances.
Deadpool has been one of the most popular Marvel characters of all time. He doesn’t die, makes great puns and has some really cool moves. What is even there to hate about him. Well, there might be. A little. Let me explain how.
The book Deadpool: Paws follows a plot which is action-packed and obviously has a lot of scenes and villains for Deadpool to deal with. The story starts with him rescuing or actually, saving a dog from dying while he falls off a roof with him because he was trying to steal it from the building. (I tried explaining the plot, you will have to read the book to get it.)
The dog turns out to be an alien which just isn’t dying and actually heals faster than our superhero, Deadpool. The story that follows isn’t as simple to explain either but you surely will find the multitude of references spread here and there across the book. From the cover to changing font sizes, the book is written as an entertainment device to keep you coming for it. You’ll know it as soon as you open the book because, as the book says, Deadpool didn’t expect himself to be in a book.
Yes, that takes me to the most interesting and also the problematic part of the book. It breaks the 4th wall in every possible way. The font changes, Deadpool talks about the book, real-life references in the fictional world and whatnot. It might seem really interesting to most people but I’m afraid that after a while I did find the experience kinda repetitive and losing the main motive of maintaining interest. That element doesn’t mess up in the comics, movies or even the video games. But in the novel context, it, as I feel, had to be done in a manner which is beyond what Deadpool is already doing. Okay, you’ll be enjoying it for the most time, but as moments you’ll feel like you didn’t want it to happen at some places.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read with a nice plot. If you want a book which is 100% different from any novel ever, or if you simply are a superhero fan, grab this book!
Traduction de l'anglais (États-Unis) par Cédric Perdereau
Voilà l'occasion d'écouter monologuer deux fois plus le célèbre Mercenaire Disert.
On zappe les images et on focus sur la rhétorique.
« — Je sais pas comment t'as survécu, et je m'en fous. Rends-moi le chien, ou je te décime ! J'éclate de rire. — Tu vas me détruire à dix pour cent ? — de quoi ? crache-t-il en tournant la tête comme s'il se vexait. — Décimer, boite de conserve, ça veut dire tuer une personne sur dix. Tu me crois pas ? » ---- (Page 10)
Une intrigue improbable qui se renouvelle sans cesse.
« — Eh, Bernardo ? Eh, mec ! — Quoi ? QUOI ? — Je te l'avais bien dit » (Page 14)
Un chien que DP aurait mieux fait de ne pas sauver ; -) … « — Aaaaaaaaah ! — Goom a faim ! Moi, j'aime bien quand un monstre vous tient au courant de la situation. Bon, j'aurais deviné où il voulait en venir, à la façon dont il actionne les mâchoires et porte Bernardo à sa gueule ouverte. Goom a envie de reprendre de la joue. » (Page 15)
« — Euh, vous n'avez pas d'interjections de douleur sur la planète X ? Il n'y a que des narrations concises et autoréférentielles ? « Goom a mal ! » « Goom est désolé ? » « Goom entre dans une spirale de honte ? » » (Page 20)
Des dialogues toujours aussi croustillants.
« Mais comme l'ont dit les Charlots (ou John Lennon, ou Hergé) : « La vie, c'est ce qui se passe pendant qu'on prévoit autre chose. » » (Page 54)
« Les bonnes soeurs commencent tout juste à lever le nez lorsque la bête annonce fièrement : — Je suis GOOGAM, fils de… Bon, bref. Je lui tire dessus. Il se liquéfie. Fin de l'histoire » (Page 100)
« Aujourd'hui, le chien est mort. Ou peut-être hier, je ne sais pas. Allez, les gars, vous ne voyez pas qu'il souffre ? C'est encore plus flippant que de regarder pleurer Hulk » (Page 127)
Une armée de chiots suspects, « pas si gentils » …
This book was okay. The pacing was choppy. The "fourth wall" breaks got to be annoying pretty quick, as did the "multiple voices." It had two "cameos" in it; while I felt both cameos were wasted one of them did have some (forced) funny moments. The book did have some moments where it made me laugh, but not many. After finishing it, it was just a big "meh" to me.
I realize for Deadpool fans, they will probably enjoy it [and, based on the other reviews, this is a safe statement to make]. I am not a Deadpool fan but thought I would give it a try. It had potential; I just did not like it, overall.
The cover was a nice homage to Jaws, though. I will give it that. I also enjoyed the "point" Deadpool does make about how a picture can be worth a thousand words (such as when he points out if this were a comic, he could save pages of alliteration by just showing one or two pictures).
I would rate it between 1.5 and 1.7 stars, but rounded up because of the elements I did like. Perhaps if I ever read it again, I will feel differently about it.
I chose to listened to the Graphic Audio version rather than reading the normal book, and thank god I did. It made what would have been a horrible book, into an enjoyable Deadpool experience.
Now it’s not the portrayal of Deadpool, or the jokes that made this book bad, those are actually pretty spot on. In fact, when it came to the fourth wall breaks, Graphic Audio actually went the extra mile to alter some of the jokes and take into account that it’s an audiobook and not a regular book.
Rather, it just has a bad story, plain and simple. The action scenes are great, and there’s the patented hilariously awkward conversations with characters that actually take their job seriously, and I loved the inclusion of Spider-Man. What bothered me was the annoying amount of puppy love, and that much of the book felt a little pointless.
BUT, let’s face it, nobody watches, reads, or listens to Deadpool for the story; you do it cause it’s Deadpool.
I found this audio funnier than Rocket Raccoon & Groot - Steal the Galaxy. It feels natural for Deadpool to break the fourth wall and talk about how he prefers the comic book medium over audiobooks. It looks like this was released a few months before the first Deadpool film, and there's even a reference to the movie deal. As usual, Deadpool's pop culture references and interactions with other characters are just all-around hilarious. And it's nice seeing him bond with puppies as he tries to prevent them from turning into monsters. There are also cameo appearances by two other popular Marvel characters, though I think this story still would've been fine without them. If you want a fun romp, then Deadpool: Paws might be the story for you.
So this started as a prose novel with Deadpool and puppies. Then GraphicAudio got ahold of it and spread their magic all over and BOOM! this Deadpool adventure becomes a major epic performance with puppies. Some evil villain knows Deadpool, in fact knows him too well. This villain knows Deadpool has a soft spot for puppies, so create a bunch of monster's whose larval stage is a puppy and Deadpool can't kill them until it's too late. With special guest appearances by Spider-Man and The Hulk, this is Deadpool at his best. Not only does he break the 4th wall as usual but in audibook form Deadpool tears down all the walls, ceilings and floors.
So i love Deadpool, love the comics, movie, even the game. This book is deadpool, no doubt but I hated this book so much! I honestly can't believe I finished it. The author was SO focused on sounding like deadpool he forgot to actually advance the story. The plot was paper thin. This is just page after page of banter which was great for the first quarter but by the end I was so ready for it to be over. Plus he's writes every character as if they are Deadpool. The character is funny because everyone else in the marvel universe is serious but here everyone is supposedly really funny and sarcastic. I wanted to love it so much but I just couldn't stand it
This book is a great comical monologue, perfect for dog and Deadpool lovers. Petrucha nails the Deadpool humour, heartbreak and homocides (the bad guys). The fight scenes and story are overall quite well structured, with the psychotic flashbacks wedged in perfectly. The use of his inner voices really help expand the conversations that Deadpool has, and also has a few cool guests which is always fun to include. The reason I dropped it 1 star was it felt a little elongated at times, particularly the middle section of the book. The beginning in the end were fantastic though. I would probably read this again.
So, this exists, and the world is a little better for it. It's Deadpool chasing puppies that turn into monsters, while complaining that he's in a prose novel and not a graphic novel. Petrucha's writing is really fun, and makes Deadpool work as a novel. Some of the monster chasing got a little redundant, but it wasn't that much. I hope he writes another one soon.
This is a epically done prose novel all about everyone's favorite Merc With a Mouth, Deadpool. It had me laughing out loud, literally, from beginning to the very end. I was actually sad when I finished it because I had no more Deadpool in prose style to read anymore. Deadpool of course knows he's in a novel and continuously talks to the reader with his signature humor. HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS NOVEL!
Anything deadlock is always fun and goofy. It's everything you would expect. It's interesting but not compelling. Lacks in some areas such as drama and caring for certain characters. The other super hero cameos were great. Just wanted more from certain characters when it comes to emotion. Still, if you are a hardcore fan of deadpool he won't disappoint you.
I did enjoy reading paws. There was enough humor and action to make the story work. The premise, that a mad scientist was releasing Puppies that can turn into Monsters seemed weak. But them most comic storylines are about the same. I also feel that the author was trying to cram to much of Deadpool's inner issues into the novel. It really messed with the flow of the story. But having Blind al in the story did help a lot
I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, especially the way it is written. Given the peculiarity of Deadpool, there was no choice but to write it in the way it was written. It does have some very nice quips.
Rendering vivid descriptions of all the comic book moments in just words and nothing else is a challenge. Stefan Petrucha did that very well. It was as if I was able to paint the pictures in my head.
Overall a fun read and a treat for Marvel (esp Deadpool) fans.