Secrets of Camp Whatever: The Doors to Nowhere – Chris Grine, Writer/Artist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: Chris Grine’s Secrets of Camp Whatever was one of the most pleasant surprises of 2021, an offbeat summer-camp graphic novel following a hearing-impaired pre-teen named Willow who was sent to a bizarre camp to help acquaint her to a new town. It worked—just not how her parents intended. Run by a bullying and buffoonish camp director and populated by workers who all seemed to be a little… off, the story soon revealed many layers as Willow wound up pulled into a conspiracy endangering the many magical creatures hiding in the woods. A kindly vampire groundskeeper became an ally, as did a gentle giant of a Bigfoot, a wise old witch, and three gnomes piled on top of each other posing as a human cook.
The first book was full of twists, including the fact that Willow’s roommate Molly was actually secretly Camp Director Tooter’s daughter and reluctantly playing both sides. Surprisingly, Molly is mostly absent from the second volume as the story veers away from the camp—she seemed to be forgiven and part of the cast again by the end, but the story this time focuses entirely on Willow, her friends Emma and Violet, and their new ally the werewolf boy Rand. Camp is over, Willow’s birthday is right around the corner, and this installment brings much bigger threats than a crazy camp director trying to hunt a bigfoot.
The vampire Elric, who has become Willow’s instructor in the ways of the supernatural, turns out to have a much bigger role in the town’s history, and the main threat in this volume comes from hundreds of years in the past—a deranged man so obsessed with seeking power that he even threatened his own family. While he died, curses don’t die so easily—and today his legacy is carried on by sinister figures around the town. That’s mostly in the form of Dr. Henry Person, the bizarre manager of the town’s historic museum, filled with kitschy exhibits. He was only a bit player in the first one, appearing in one scene to creep out Willow and her family, but here he turns out to be a rather creepy and intimidating figure who knows how to manipulate people out of the loop.
Much like the first book, this feels like a puzzlebox of sorts, with Willow and her friends being sent on little sidequests that get them closer to solving the mystery and unlocking new powers. Each of Emma, Violet, and Rand get to play a key role and explore some elements of their history. Willow is a compelling lead, and one of the best parts of the original book was the way her partial deafness became a “superpower” in some situations—allowing her knowledge of sign language to unlock doors that would otherwise be impossible. That’s downplayed here, but it’s still present, and I think that bit of representation will be incredibly important to kids living with hearing loss.
If Secrets of Camp Whatever: The Doors to Nowhere has one weakness, it’s that it’s very much a middle chapter. It’s not possible to read without having read the original—it’s so deep in lore that I chose to re-read the original before digging in. And it also ends on a cliffhanger promising a thrilling third chapter. It’s also significantly darker than the first installment—while the first book featured age-appropriate chills, this one has darker villains and a very stark reminder that there are real stakes to this supernatural war the kids find themselves pulled into. For those who are already invested in this series, this is a pitch-perfect second chapter. For those looking to start, get that first volume and dig in—you’ll definitely be glad you did.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
