To avoid just lobbing up a list, we’re going to split our reviews into three categories. Since we’re on the electric internet, they’re going to be “OMFG!!!”, “Meh” and “WTF!!!”. What actually makes anything go in any category will vary. At the moment, the “Meh” includes anything that’s luke-warm as - y’know - we haven’t actually had anything which actually *is* a proper “Meh” yet. This will inevitably change.

PHONOGRAM #1: Without Your Permission.

OMFG!!!
Fractal Matter: “Phonogram has the potential to being one of the great comics of 2006. It will change the way one views magic, chance and the potential of art influencing life.”
Around Comics: “Phonogram is everything I could ask for in a book. Entertaining, original, intriguing and well-rendered. Based solely on those merits I would suggest it to anyone. However, with its deeper suggestions as to what magic really is and how it can affect us all, Phonogram has the chance to do what it discusses; use art to change how we look at life. Music is magical, and so is Phonogram.”
Newsarama: “Phonogram is a coming out party for Gillen and McKelvie. Previously glimpsed in anthologies and for McKelvie last year’s Long Hot Summer GN with Eric Stephenson, Phonogram is these two individuals, a comics two-piece band as it were, coming into their own and putting it on display for all to see. For their first single, I’d say it’s a hit.”
Steven Grant, Permament Damage, CBR: “Excellent pop culture-infected cross between HELLBLAZER and an Oni book”
IFanboy: “Pick of the Week”
Broken Frontier: “And when I listened, it was pure pop song brilliance, its voice distilled and evanescent, telling me more about myself than I thought I knew.”
The X-Axis: Grade: A. “Despite my nagging fear that this may be aiming at a rather niche crowd, it’s passionate and imaginative stuff. And even if it is a niche, it’s a niche that includes me.”
ComixFan: “As far as opening issues go, then this really is up there with the absolute best of them.”
The Fourth Rail: Best of The Week: “Phonogram is one of the most unusual and strongest comics Image has published in a long time, and I expect it will foster a cult following.”
Chud.com: “A surprising and stellar start”
The Savage Critic: “PICK OF THE WEEK: Either PHONOGRAM #1 or WASTELAND #2 are well worth your hard-earned comics dollars.”
The Onion AV Club: “So far, it’s wicked, witty fun, but the sense that Gillen and McKelvie really get how loving music can feel like a matter of life and death”
Silver Bullet Comics: “I have all the confidence in the world that this will turn into a great series with a large underground following, which I am now a part of. You might not be able to dance to it, but you’ll groove to the hipness and originality.”
Rave Magazine: “Deep down you know there’s more to music than pleasing combinations of sounds, and while reading Phonogram it becomes true”
Randomville: “And comics like Phonogram only prove that Image continues to publish some of the most original and entertaining comics on the market today.“
Noise to Signal: A+ “It manages to exceed my already high expectations”
Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa Metro: “Original and appealing” (JPK’s personal archive)
Mercurial Blonde: “It’s so fatsuck cantastic that honestly if you aren’t bum rushing your local grocery store and demanding that loaves of bread be replaced by stacks of this book, then something is lacking in your human condition and you should seek high grade medical assistance immedietely.”

Meh
Las Vegas Weekly: “This should be a series to watch.”
Jog - The Blog: “I could use some more kinetic kicks out of this potential energy, and I hope they can be yet converted.”
IGN: “It’s hard to understand Kohl’s power level or how he turns music into magic, because we never see it. That’s a big mistake for this first issue, which is otherwise a good read.”
Pop Syndicate: “Music as magic. Hopefully that concept will be more accessible in future issues because the first read is compelling enough to see where Gillen and McKelvie are going.”
Comics Should Be Good: “I would recommend you pick this book up”
Paperback Reader: “I read through this one twice, and I’m still torn about what kind of review to give it.”

WTF!!!
Still waiting for the one. But don’t take that as a challenge.

PHONOGRAM #2: Can’t Imagine The World Without Me

As always, less reviews for a #2. If you see any we’ve missed, do say.
OMFG!
Noise To Signal: “Deserves to be huge, and if you’re not reading it now then you’re only going to have yourself to blame when you realise what you’ve missed.” A+
PopSyndicate: “This is one of the strongest second issues I’ve ever read”
ComixExtreme: “Still one of the best books out there right now to me. I can’t say enough good things about the book.”
Comics Should be Good: “It’s all deliciously weird”
Comicboards.com: “If you like the Smiths, Oasis or - May God help your wretched soul - Kula Shaker, this comic is for you.”

Meh
Meltdown Comics: “He’s a skilled wordsmith and knows what he’s going for – I just want to be there emotionally instead of philosophically.”

PHONOGRAM #6: LIVE FOREVER

Oh, we haven’t updated this page for a while. Here’s the (almost universally positive) reviews of Phonogram #6 to show what people made of the end.

Chris’ Invicible Super Blog: “You heard it here first, folks: Phonogram is the best mini-series of the year.”
Greg Burgas, Comics Should Be Good@CBR: “If there was any justice in the world, Gillen and McKelvie would be well on their way to being comics stars.”
Paul O’Brien, The X-Axis: “…an ambitious series that succeeds admirably in its exploration of what music can mean. A”
Chris Murman, Silver Bullet Comisc: “That is this book to me. Kohl in the end learns that he’s not as old as he thinks, but not the kid he used to be. As it turns out, I’m David Kohl…minus the black eye makeup, of course.”
Paul Steven Brown, Comic Addiction: If you are a lover of music, especially Britpop, then you will really enjoy this series.”
B. Schatz, ComiXtreme: “This has been one of the best reads of 2006-2007″
Andrea Speed, ComiXtreme: “And for everyone that missed the series, there will be a trade out soon. Pick it up.”
Scott Cederlund, Pop Syndicate: “The unsung hero of Phonogram has to be Jamie McKelvie, who’s black and white artwork defines the world of Phonogram. He moves easily between reality and unreality, adding a disturbing realism even to the most fantastical images. The zombie Britpop is alluring and creepy at the same time and Beth remains such a sad creature that you can’t help but fall in love with whenever she appears.”
13 minutes: “The creators clearly have a passion for their material, and it’s downright infectious”
Adrian f. Zettlemoyer, Broken Frontier: “This is a truly amazing series, and you owe it to yourself to seek out the trade if you haven’t been reading. If there is a goddess somewhere, let’s hope she brings about a sequel.”