George A. Romero’s The Amusement Park by Jeff Whitehead, introduction by Greg Nicotero, art by Ryan Carr, lettering by Marshall Dillon, edited by Sandy King

Storm King Comics, 2025

ISBN-13: 9798988728573

Available: Paperback

Buy: Bookshop.org

This graphic novel adaptation of George A. Romero’s previously lost 1973 film The Amusement Park comes from a collaboration between Storm King Comics, jointly owned by John Carpenter and Sandy King, and the George A. Romero Foundation.

Businessman William Lincoln returns to Pennsylvania and has a chance encounter with an elderly man in a small coffee shop. The impatient young man is drawn into a conversation about the history of the amusement park that used to stand in that very spot. The more William learns from the old man, the more uneasy he becomes.

Rather than a lighthearted tale of a typical amusement park atmosphere, the old man relates a story full of pain, sorrow, and loneliness. He simply wanted to visit the grand park one more time, to revisit childhood memories and surround himself with youthful joy and excitement. Instead, every interaction with younger people in the crowds shows the impatience and hostility directed at the elders in the park. Rides and other attractions place the aged in embarrassing and hostile situations. Everything is a reminder of how the mind and body deteriorate with age. As he makes his way through the park, he remains unaware of the looming figure that follows him on his journey.

The horror lies in the struggles the old man witnesses or is subject to himself. We all know someone aging, or who is well into their golden years. Some of us may be there ourselves or quickly facing what is to come. Both the film and this graphic novel sit with you, make you take in some uncomfortable facts about our flawed political system and how it affects healthcare; social reform; housing; and many other issues essential to us all, not just the elderly. That is simply where the systems, and our lives, end.

Whitehead’s adaptation differs from the film, but not in any way that detracts from the message. Carr’s artwork is incredibly effective, especially regarding the pain, emotional and physical, the old man experiences as he makes his way through the amusement park.

This graphic novel could fit in multiple places in a library collection, but the first one that comes to mind is Graphic Medicine. While that is not the sole focus, there are significant panels that address the current United States healthcare system and its failings.

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker