A Ghost Arm Made of Angry Ghosts
Writer: Oliver Mertz
Artist: Alex Diotto
Colorist: Oliver Mertz
Letterer: Taylor Esposito
Editor: Jung Hu Lee
Publisher: Oni Press
Release date: September, 2026
A Ghost Arm Made of Angry Ghosts Review
A Ghost Arm Made of Angry Ghosts by Oliver Mertz (W/C) and Alex Diotto (A), is a surreal slice-of-life mystery graphic novel that’ll bend your mind, bring you to tears and send you spiralling as you contemplate mid-panel – “what the hell is going to happen next?” Despite it being unlike any graphic novel I’ve ever read, if I were to recommend it to anyone, it’d be for comic book readers who enjoyed Black Hammer, Action Journalism or King of Nowhere. For the tone, the surrealism and the batshit-crazy concepts.
Oliver Mertz injects us into an alternate-world where most of the population has superhuman abilities. But instead of turning to fighting crime or trying to make the world a better place – most of these people with superhuman abilities turn to living their lives as they normally would. Minus the usual tropes of being able to fly, turn invisible or blow themselves up the size of a kaiju.
Speaking of turning invisible, A Ghost Arm Made of Angry Ghosts follows Ari, who has a superhero for a neighbour, a dad who’s caught in a loop of dying and resurrecting, and his best friend, Maya, a local punk who tries her very best to be his emotional support. That is, when Ari’s power of shedding his skin and turning completely invisible isn’t rearing its ugly head at the most inconvenient times. The superhero, Jamie aka “Gamut”, ends up faking his own death and this sends Ari on the most likely of mysteries as we learn that Jamie was leading several double lives.
When Ari tries to help Jamie, he ends up dying for real, leading to the introduction of “his brother,” a man completely identical and with aspirations of becoming a politician. Convinced its just Jamie up to his old tricks again, Ari and Maya attempt to expose this fraud – with help from film student, Sona. Whether this new personality, Vincent, really is just Jamie continuing the ongoing charade is something you’ll have to figure out at the end of the story. What is clear: an unknown assailant is starting to kill off people connected to Jamie and that spells danger for Ari and his friends.
Along the way, Mertz introduces us to themes and subplots that are equal parts bizarre and harrowing. He leans into the surrealism with Ari’s arm getting severed on numerous occasions and taking on a life of its own before being re-attached. Achieving a certain level of sentience. There’s the somewhat-immortal loop that Ari’s father is caught in where he’s living his last day as a cancer sufferer, dies and then resurrects – fated to experience death over and over again.
The real emotional pinch isn’t just that Ari has to process the ongoing suffering of his dad. It’s the memories he cycles through – of the good times they had together pre-cancer. Of a time when they used to hang out and watch Star Trek: The Next Generation without a care in the world. In fact, you’ll find numerous references to the pop culture zeitgeist – purpose fit for Millennial or Gen X readers. Star Trek, The Thing not The Thing From Another World, Minor Threat, the list goes on. This comforts you and put you at ease as the whirlwind surreal mystery spins further out of control.
What I love about A Ghost Arm Made Of Angry Ghosts is the division of duties between Oliver Mertz and Alex Diotto. Diotto’s art is a punk-ridden millennial masterpiece that feels DIY in the very best possible way. The style of artwork doesn’t feel beholden to a certain period of time and feels like it could’ve been made thirty years ago. Which suits the 1990’s setting.
Mertz’s choice of palette reinforces this position. By choosing colours that are the polar opposite of a standard 2020s superhero comic book, he’s flipping the bird to devices, social media, and influencer culture. He’s embracing what made the 1990s so great. The shading takes it further. During moments of shock and awe, we zero in and feel Ari’s emotional stance and we’re with him all the way. We experience the highs and lows of a depressed kid, one who loves his punk rock, and comes to embrace his superhuman ability the further into the graphic novel you venture.
Score: 9/10
Read A Ghost Arm Made of Angry Ghosts by Oliver Mertz (W/C) and Alex Diotto (A)
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