Fight Club has been such a prolific film and novel for such a long time, to so many people. It’s what made me love Chuck Palahniuk and have him become my favorite writer. After finishing the film you don’t get the sense that there’s more to the “Cornelius'” story. He purges Tyler Durden from his system and lives happily ever after with Marla Singer as the world crumbles around them. If you haven’t read the novel, things go a little different. The Narrator still shoots himself in the cheek like he does in the movie; but then ends up in a psychiatric center. While there, he sees orderlies and nurses with bruises and bandages and they are eagerly awaiting the return of Tyler. You get the impression that Tyler is gone, but only temporarily. THIS ending, is where Fight Club 2 continues from.
This review will contain SPOILERS from here on out. If you don’t wanna know, check out some other sites that will give you 
a nice overview of the plot. For the rest of you, enjoy the mayhem.
As I mentioned, this is a direct sequel to the book. It takes place ten years later and ‘Sebastian’ as he’s calling himself at this time, is living a miserable life. He has to pop pills to get through the day and it’s driving a wedge between him and Marla. They are now married with a 9-year old child that Marla had while Sebastian was in the mental institution. She’s missing Tyler, the madman she fell in love with; and decides to take matters into her own hands by replacing Sebastian’s pills with sugar instead of drugs.
This begins the re-emergence of Tyler. He’s appearing whenever Sebastian sleeps and when he’s under hypnosis with his psychologist. Tyler has been building an empire and molding the entire world into what he wants, 55 minutes at a time, three days a week. I couldn’t have been more thrilled with this plot device and the return of Tyler to the world. As one of the most dynamic characters in fiction, it was great to see him back.
I knew that Chuck had originally worked with Matt Fraction to bring his then-novel to life into comic book form. You can tell that the groundwork that was laid out really benefited the author, as you can literally tell this is a Chuck novel. The panels read like one of his books and there are a lot of “Chuck-isms” that come through in the writing.
Teaming up with Cameron Stewart (Batgirl) was also a genius idea, as I couldn’t think of a better artist to bring the comic to life. As this is a sequel to the book and not the film, the interpretations of the characters match the book descriptions of the characters more than Edward Norton, Brad Pitt, and Helena Bonham Carter. There was also something that I’ve never seen before in comics. There are spots where the words and panels are cut off by huge graphical versions of pills and rose petals that serve to enhance the comic. These are things that could never be done in a traditional novel and really made me connect with the characters and story even more.
Overall, this comic exceeded my every expectation. Before even reading any of the preview pages, I had pre-ordered multiple variant overs. You can learn more about them HERE. Dark Horse was the perfect publisher to take this comic to, as they’re unique style fits with Palahniuks writing and Stewart’s imagery perfectly. I encourage anyone who is a fan of the original Book or Film to get your hands on this comic. There’s an amazing page at the beginning that serves as a questionnaire to join Project Mayhem and encourages all of the readers to guerrilla market Fight Club 2 everywhere. They tell you to email [email protected] and send in your photos and letters to the publisher. I think this is a fantastic marketing tactic and puts you right back into the world of Tyler and Sebastian.
I loved this comic and I hope you do as well. If you do participate in Project Mayhem, feel free to include your pictures in our comments section or by emailing in to [email protected]. We’d love to see them. You can pick up a copy of Fight Club 2 by visiting Dark Horse‘s website, Project Mayhem website, or from Chuck Palahniuk’s site. Read it, spread the word, and remember that you just broke the first two rules. Look for the comic to hit stands on May 27th!
