Lenore: Muffin Else Matters #1 Review
Writer, Artist, Colorist & Letterer: Roman Dirge
Cover Artists: Roman Dirge & Kit Wallis
Publisher: Titan Comics
Price: $4.99
Release Date: April 15, 2026
Death couldn't stop Lenore's huge spirit from returning to the little girl. She lives in her family's house with her friends Pooty and Ragamuffin. Along with the demon from Heck and the vampire reincarnated as a doll, the former Egyptian Pharaoh Taxidermy occasionally visits the undead girl.
Recently, another friend has resurfaced. He was enhancing his culinary skills by training with the muffin chefs in Europe. But when he got Pooty's call, Muffin Monster dropped everything to return to Nevermore. How will Lenore's life change now that the Muffin Monster has returned? And what happens when Lenore goes into cat withdrawals? Let’s leap into Lenore: Muffin Else Matters #1 and see!
Story
Lenore, Pooty, and Ragamuffin may have exceeded the average Human lifespan. Still, they're easily bored. So when their Xbox breaks, Pooty explores a new interest. But after enjoying the high life as a celebrated gladiator in ancient Rome, Pooty raids the Funsies budget whenever he sees something he wants. While Ragamuffin takes him to task for his selfishness, Pooty’s weakness pales in significance when Lenore gets the zoomies.
Ragamuffin may be a vampire trapped in a stuffed toy. Still, he cares for Lenore and puts up with Pooty’s antics. He often plays the sidekick in Lenore’s adventures. Both Pooty and Lenore may look the other way when Ragamuffin suffers misfortune. But in Lenore: Muffin Else Matters #1, Ragamuffin drives the story. He knows Lenore’s history better than Pooty and how to act when Lenore starts meowing, scratching, licking, and coughing up furballs. Pooty thinks the solution to Lenore’s dilemma is easy. But as they struggle to help their friend recover, the demon realizes how much he and Lenore need Ragamuffin to keep them grounded.
As a child, Lenore loved her family. But so long after they abandoned her, all she knows about them is the absence in her life that they should be filling. Roman Dirge’s story delves into Lenore’s past and explains the reason behind one of her struggles. It may not explain every mystery in Lenore's past, or why her family rejected her when she returned to life. But as Ragamuffin's authority on the occult says, sometimes, the past should remain a mystery in Lenore: Muffin Else Matters #1.
Art
Ragamuffin crosses his arms over his chest as he remonstrates with Pooty. The demon flings his arms in the air and points at his purchases. But mostly, he rests his hands on the purple marble-framed game table. When Pooty realizes how he has failed them, his head droops. The demon looks up when Lenore soars over the table. She crawls down the hall and leaps over furniture. Then she bounds onto a window seat. Frowning at the bird perched on a wooden railing outside, Lenore scratches at the window.
Roman Dirge applies a lavish palette of vibrant colors to Lenore: Muffin Else Matters #1. A diagonal checkerboard of purple, lavender, and beige wallpaper rises above the wainscotting that tops the maroon and coral stripes. Purple dominates the elegant rooms of her family's mansion. Red, pink, and blue also glow in the light shining through the gold-framed windows and the yellow lamps. At night, the former vampire lies in his bedroom on a red bedspread. When he ventures into the house at night, a green cast fills the walls, furniture, and people illuminated by his flashlight. And a glimpse of a green, blue, and yellow realm evokes Lenore’s meeting with Cthulhu.
Large uppercase black letters fill white dialogue balloons and colored paper scraps. Like the dark panel borders, the balloon and box shapes suggest hand lettering. Ragamuffin speaks into yellow balloons while braving the darkness with the yellow beam of his flashlight. An occult authority’s off-panel dialogue fills green balloons. White sound effects fill the darkness and accompany broken white lines, revealing how Lenore's affliction drives her actions. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a review copy.
Final Thoughts
Confronted with Lenore's dilemma, Ragamuffin reveals an unexplored episode of Lenore's history and how one friend sought justice for the undead girl. As Pooty helps him seek a remedy to Lenore's affliction, another friend comes to their aid. Whether dead or alive, friends stick together, and love never dies in Lenore: Muffin Else Matters #1.
Rating 9.8/10
To look inside see my preview of Lenore: Muffin Else Matters #1.
For what happened last time, see my review of Lenore: Blood & Money #1.
For how this series began, see my review of Lenore: Curse of the Beebee Yaga #1.
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