Book Description

Ki-Adi-Mundi is a Jedi Knight of formidable strength and influence. On his homeworld of Cerea, most of the planet`s citizens are happy to continue their low-tech lives of simplicity, isolated from the Republic, but a growing voice calls for the advanced technologies brought by offworlders. When Ki becomes a strong voice of opposition for such development, he is falsely charged with murder and is swiftly drawn into a web of conspiracy and intrigue that could rock the galaxy to its foundations--a web that may have the vile crime lord Jabba the Hutt and the powerful Trade Federation at its center, setting the stage for Episode I --The Phantom Menace ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Uneven artwork but still worth a read.
This is 32.5 years before NH on my timeline Dark horse originally called this part of its Republic series. Republic series 1 through 6 was the Prelude to Rebellion TPB and takes place at -32.5 years before NH. Dark horse Republic series is now up to individual issue #58. Every 4 to issues is then made into a TPB combining the individual issues into one story. I usually wait for the TPB (don't know what it stands for). This comic is about Ki-Adi-Mundi (cone head) from the planet Cerea.

Prelude to Rebellion is the main story, and Vow of Justice follows. Prelude starts out very slow and the coloring and inks are all over the place. As for the story - It starts out like a childs Disney story. But when people start losing their heads, we know we are in the high violence world of comic books. The story slowly draws you in and I enjoyed having wadded through the beginning. It is a story about Ki the father of 9 daughters and no sons. Because on 1 child in 20 is born a boy, Ki has several wives. (Gee and Anakin couldn't even have a girl friend?). Seems Ki is having trouble with his teen age daughters, especially one who joins a rebellious group that supports technology coming to Cerea. The Cerea Council is anti-technology.

A secondary story, VOW starts when Ki is 4 years old and picks up 21 years later when he is 25 and returns from training with Yoda to seek revenge for his family.

These stories give us an personal look at Ki and his life and family. I wonder how he dies when Vader wipes them out, all of them.

This is not unusual for Darkhorse to not take the time to do a good job. It seems too bad, that the "talent" people write a story, and then the artistic people do what they are told, but then the bosses don't bother to put out a quality finished product. What I don't know is that if they took greater care and produced a higher quality product, would it sell more? Either way, understand what you get for your [money] evenly produced final product. They may have an excuse this time. The production dates on Prelude are from 1998 to 2000. Darkhorse may not have had the higher quality production techniques that became available later. But still, on the same page you have one picture of the old style, and one in the new style. Some of the art work is 2 (as in fair) but some is a 4 (as in very good). None of the artwork is a 1 (poor).

The New Face of 'Star Wars' comics
I'll start out by saying I was a huge fan of Stackpole's ongoing 'X-wing Rogue Squadron' comic series and I found the fact that it was cancelled due to low sales to be shameful. And by no means am I a fan of the New Jedi Order series, especially its beginnings. So you can see why I wasn't quite going into this with an open attitude.

In any case, this start to the new ongoing SW series its obviously different than the XWRS one. I'm pretty sure its the first Episode-I era comic, and it holds its own. It's a small-scale story, wich I tend to like, ostly based off of the planet Cerea. Its a pretty good glimpse into Ki Adi Mundi and makes him into more than a coneheaded freak. I was familiar with Strnad from the XWRS comics, and the overall writing is the same as it was in his arc there- good but not great. The art is a bit too jerky for my tastes, but it, too, holds it own overall.

One flaw I have here is that so much of it is action. The new ongoing series based on the Jedi are very different from the XWRS series in this aspect. In here you get whole pages devoted to single shots, whereas in XWRS they litereally crammed in everything they could to make it all work out and move along numerous storylines and characters.

The Jabba-Ephant Mon connection is pretty good also, and helps set up for the next piece of the Ongoing series. The main reason to read 'Prelude to Rebellion' would be to set up Ki Adi Mundi for his roles and learn more about what was once a background character. (One of the things I really do love about 'Star Wars.') The next installment, 'Outlander' is very good, so I reccomend this as a prelude to that. Not anywhere near the quality of the XWRS series, buts it just starting out. 'Outlander' points it in the right direction.

Return of the Conehead
'Prelude to Rebellion' is the first story-arc of Dark Horse's ongoing Star Wars series. This book introduces us to Jedi Knight Ki-Adi-Mundi (the conehead on the Jedi Council in 'The Phantom Menace'), before he's been raised to the Council. It is an interesting story of political intrigue, corrupt Republican senators, the criminal underworld, and the trials of a Jedi. It is fairly well illustrated, and quite well written too.

In the days before The Phantom Menace, the Republic is trying to convince Ki's backwater homeworld of Cerea to become a member. The elders of the planet, including Ki, do not want this change - they like the peaceful, beautiful, idyllic nature of their world. But the youth, of course, see the fancy offworlder technology, and they want it. When Ki's daughter's boyfriend accidentally kills another, the boy goes into hiding in one of the Republic's "Outsider Citadels" on Cerea to hide from local justice. There, Ki's daughter and several of her friends are "befriended" by Ephant Mon, an associate of Jabba the Hutt, and proceed to get into even more trouble. Ki finds himself having to track down his daughter, while dealing with domestic disputes and a world that's tearing itself apart.

As I've said, the art in this comic is pretty good -- while I've seen better, I've also seen much worse. The writing and dialogue are fairly crafty and effective, and this book presents an interesting take on the Republics politics that I'd not considered before. There is a fair amount of action - hand to hand, ship to ship, and some lightsaber slaying of some stupid creatures torn out of the movie 'Aliens.' Some of the scenes in this book came as close as a Star Wars comic ever has to tearjerker status (not that any has come *that* close). We get to see a little of Ki's background, we are introduced to some semi-interesting new droids, and we finally see a human, fallible Jedi. My biggest gripe about this book is that the beginning is too boring. I often have tried to re-read this comic, only to be dissuaded within a few pages by the slow moving opening. Unfortunately, this "collected edition" fails to collect the special online Issue #0, which had been promised by then-editor Peet Janes, a promise that was reneged because they didn't want to go to the trouble of reformatting it to fit the printed page. :(

In addition to the main story, we get a mini-comic entitled 'Vow of Justice.' Originally included in the releases of the comics to take up some extra space, this short tells a bit about Ki's youth (which contradicts some of what we learned in the main story), and introduces us to a mysterious Jedi known only as the Dark Woman, a Jedi who we will see more of in future comics.

Overall, 'Prelude to Rebellion' is a big, satisfying story. Fun to read, and introducing various ideas and concepts to the Star Wars mythos, this is a good addition to your Star Wars library. Recommended.

Good blend of action and character development
Okay, I do not normally read SW comic books, as they are now too complex and too tied to the books. I've read the old "classic books" and I treasure my TPM book. Now, finally they've churned out a good one!

It follows the Jedi Knight Ki-Adi-Mundi from the planet Cerea, who has some definite differences to other Jedi Knights: for instance, he has multiple wives and daughters. (Some of the scenes make me wonder if that's why some Jedi don't marry) This isn't all that's occupying Ki-Adi's very tall brain--a rebellious bunch are stirring on Cerea, and the treacherous Trade Federation from TPM is included in the mix. Worst of all, his daughter is swept up as well.

This particular author managed to create an unusually enjoyable adventure--action and character development (Ki-Adi and his bond-wife and daughter) are balanced very well. The drawings are slightly sub-par, but I'm willing to overlook that as some of the previous comic book stories have been rather grimly drawn.

It's not a lost chapter in the SW saga, but it is an enjoyable story that gives you the writer's insight into an important Council member. Wonderful!

Much, much better than the movie it precedes
Okay, I'm the author, of course I'll give it five stars!

Anthony Winn's artwork is great, and I'm proud of this story about the battle between hi-tech and low-tech, especially as it plays out in the heart and mind of Jedi Knight Ki-Adi-Mundi, at war with his own strongly-held beliefs to save his daughter, kidnapped by Jabba the Hutt's minion, Ephant Mon.

Jar-Jar Binks does NOT appear in this book. ... Read more

Book Description

Before the outbreak of the Clone Wars, the Jedi were involved in another major battle: the Stark Hyperspace War.Smuggler and pirate Iaco Stark's "commerical combine" has disrupted the production of bacta, the most important healing agent in the galaxy.By cornering the market on bacta, Stark hopes to amass a fortune.But other forces within the Republic have aligned themselves with the Trade Federation, and are hoping to use Stark's aggression as an excuse for military build up. It's up to the members of the Jedi Council to untangle the many deceits and intrigues and bring the criminals to justice before the galaxy is plunged into war! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent continuation of the Quinlan Vos storyline
This Comic combines issues 36 through 39 and losely picks up where the TPB DARKNESS leaves off. Given that the story mostly involves events that take place before the battle of Naboo I would put it at -32.05 BNH.

The story opens with Quinlan and his padawan Aayla Secura finally at the Jedi Temple for memory recovery. Windu begins telling the story of Iaco Stark and the hyperspace war that involved Bacta and Thyferra. The SHW takes place just before EP1.

The story is by Ostrander, one of my favorites and rates 4.5.

The overall comic design is a throwback to the old style comic strip stuff I thought we were past.

Design gets 3 stars. In fact, the poor design decision may be the cause for my partial dislike of the pencil and ink work. The pencil work is uneven with the main flaw being the poorly drawn rendition of Obi-Wan. The inking by Vecchia is 4.5 stars and could have been a 5 had the design been more like Darkness or the new TPB Clone Wars volume 2. Duursema's cover art is 5 stars.

The art of Foster is 2 stars.

Overall, this is a solid 4 star comic and highly recommended. It is a valuable addition to brilliantly conceived PRE-QUEL era work being done by Darkhorse and Lucas et al. ... Read more

Book Description

Trigun Maximum Volume 3 is intensity embodied - a front to back fight! Vash the Stampede and the mysterious Wolfwood versus the terribly resilient Gray the Ninelives and one of Yasuhiro Nightow's most curious villains, the completely frightening puppet master, Leonoff. The Gung-Ho Guns get harder and harder to beat as the philosophical tension between our two heroes grows daily.The Trigun Max manga includes many aspects and characters from the television show but places them in different situations at different times giving the reader a much more detailed and dramatic idea of who these terrible enemies really are and the rough challenges Vash faces every day. ... Read more

Book Description

On the night-world of Nivek, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker must first overcome the limitations of fighting in the dark before they can take on the dreaded Shadowmen! Meanwhile, Jedi Masters Mace Windu and Saesee Tiin discover that push can come to shove when using the Force to fight battledroids. And, fresh from leading an underwater assault against Separatist forces on the water planet of Mon Calamari, Jedi Master Kit Fisto and his remaining clone troops reach the surface to find a new threat awaiting them! Incredible action, hot art, and lightning-fast pacing are coming your way in this new take on the Star Wars galaxy! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The end is here
After taking us n the ride of our life, Warren Ellis is finishing of with a tone non can ignore.
IN the last attempt to find the truth and expose "the smiler" Spider Jerusalem is doing what he does best, recovering the truth no matter what may be the consequences.
The comic reads like a hurricane, jumping from scene to scene and bringing the chaos that rose with the election of "the smiler".

Spider Jerusalem is fighting against time, against his decaying brain and against forces that hold almost all of the cards.
Holding to the truth, his fists, his bowl disrupter and the chair leg of truth Spider is giving the fight of his life.

A marvellous ending to a brilliant work of literature and art

Ziv ... Read more

Book Description

It's the triumphant return of Transformers. Long thought dead by the inhabitants of Earth, we discover that the classic metal warriors of Generation 1 are far from gone. But where have they been for so long and why only now have they chosen to return? And who is the mysterious man called Lazarus and what is his plan? ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Amazing, but...
When I picked up the first issue of this series, I read the best single comic issue I have ever been lucky enough to get my hands on. Even today, I still think that the first 2 issues of this collection are the best comics I've ever read. The art is simply astounding - Nothing comes close. Period. And the plot slips nicely into the 20 unseen years between season 2 and the movie. The most promising start anyone could ask for.

But then something happened. It started to suck. A lot. All of the sudden, the world is threatened by a "virus" that the transformers have to fight. This "virus" spreads like a glacier and is apparently metal that grows. Yep, I'm not making this up. So in classic Ghostbusters-2 fashion, the transformers get guns that shoot jelly and fight the "virus". It's as corny and stupid as it sounds. And all the continuity is quickly thrown away (then totally abandoned in the follow-up series.)

Oddly, while all this is happening in the arctic, everything else is great. Optimus and gang are duking it out with the decpticons back in San Francisco old-school style. It's awesome. The dialogue is great, the structure, pacing, and design makes it feel like a really good movie. So what's holding it back? Well, it seems like Sarrachini is incapable of throwing away all the tired old camp and kiddy-ness of the original. Megatron is still as one-dimensional as ever, spouting his usual maniacal tirade and playing the role of generic and cliched mad scientist/world domination obsessed bad guy (not that he shouldn't be that character, but we've seen that from day one from Megatron. How 'bout adding something new?).

The book was most heavily criticized for it's human characters, which many claim bogged down the book. I couldn't disagree more. The humans don't hog much of the story, and add some reality and grounding to the plot. In response, the second book, "War and Peace", has no humans at all, and it really hurts the story. Without any humans, the bots are forced into the role of politics and intrigue, and it's as awkward as a cykill figure at BotCon. And the author lays it on thick, war and peace has so much politics and dialogue, I've had to read it 3 times, and it's still confusing.

So overall, the two Generation 1 graphic novels that have been published so far are well worth the price for the beautiful art and wonderful nostalgia, despite their minor scripting flaws. I think even non-fans can enjoy these books. Perhaps best of all is the high re-reading factor - because of the level of detail, these books will never get old.

Cool, but could've been far better
Like most males from my generation, I get decidedly nostalgic when discussing anything related to the Transformers. That is the main reason why I liked this book a lot, and it probably will be its main selling point. It's just great so see all the old heroes and villains from the classic cartoon back in action again.
Nostalgia aside however, I severley doubt this comic will attract many, if any, new fans to the series.

For one: the story isn't much to look at. It is a quite obvious attempt at making a more grimm and "mature" Transformers story, dealing with issues such as the human view on the Autobot-Decepticon conflict an so on. In theory, that could've worked really well, but in practice, it falls somewhat short of expectations. I won't bore you with details, but the human characters are still as blant as they were in the cartoon, the dialogue tends to get tacky and the reasons for the Decepticons to run amok on our planet Earth are even more vague than they were on the old series. As said: it is an obvious attempt at ginving Transformers some maturity, but unfortunatly, its failure to deliver that promise is almost even more obvious.

The artwork is quite good, as long as you don't examine it too closely. The way people are depicted, for one, is just downright poor. They are basically all generic, caucasian or semi-caucasian screen filling without much of a facial expression or obvious emotion. Since this series in essence revolves around giant, transforming robots beating each other senseless, this wouldn've been such a problem if humans hadn't played such an important role int his book.
The Transformers themselves look, in general, a lot betterthan the human cast. They still have the same basic look and design from the old cartoon series (hello again, nostalgia) but somewhat updated in the sense that the robots look more detailed and "bulky" and are therefore more believable as being massive, living machines. An actual improvement over the classic series, if you ask me.
Unfortunatly, on the whole the artwork on the robots usually either works great or doesn't work at all. Especially 1980's #1 role-model Optimus Prime looks either great or downright silly with sometimes enormously oversized lower legs. Sometimes, the whole "detailed and more bulky" thing backfires dramatically and makes the robots look like walking assortments of discarded car-parts. Finally, as some other reviewers have mentioned as well, there is a distinct lack of continuity in the artwork with the same characters having completely different faces depending on the panel they're on and so on.

Finally: some of the classic Transformers seemed strangely out of character. Optimus Prime seemed far more agressive than I remember him, Megatron seemed REASONABLE rather than megalomanic and Starscream dind't make a single attempt at overtrhowing Megatron as leader of the Decepticons. This last thing could be a major concern for the nostalgic twenty-somethings like me that seem to be the main target audience for this book.

So in short: it's a neat book for all you who like Transformers and mecha in general, but it could have been far better than it ended up being. A shame, but it's till nice to see the old crew back in action.

Okay But Not True G1
Beginning in late 2001, a huge wave of 1980s nostalgia has been sweeping the country. One product of this is a new comic book series based on the 1980s hit cartoon series, "The Transformers". It's a story about giant robots from the planet Cybertron engaged in a millions-years-old civil war, which has been brought to Earth. The war is fought by the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons. These robots can transform into things such as cars, tanks, jets, and guns. There were 98 episodes of the cartoon series. At the same time, Marvel had published a comic book series that ran for 80 issues (plus some crossovers in "G.I. Joe"). Then there was a 12-issue "Transformers: Generation 2" sequel series. These series occured in a different universe than the cartoon series and did the story their own way. In 2002, a new company called Dreamwave published a 6-issue "Transformers: Generation One" miniseries. The first issue became the #1-selling comic book of all time. The entire story arc is reprinted here in this trade paperback. So, how good is it? Well, it's okay. It occurs in 2002, three years before the events of "The Transformers: The Movie". On the positive side, the story is human-centric. I like that it shows what Spike and other humans think about the war. It was nice seeing an adult Spike and a very young Daniel. Carly is mentioned (but not seen). The artwork for the humans is good. On the negative side is everything else. The robot artwork is inconsistent. Dreamwave isn't sticking to the cartoon continuity or the Marvel continuity. This wouldn't bother me so much if they simply started the story from scratch with the Autobots and Decepticons crash-landing on Earth in 2002. Instead, Dreamwave is using a vague cartoon-like backstory and the cartoon's visual appearances of the characters, but they throw in a reference to the Marvel continuity's Buster Witwicky, and they blatantly contradict some of the cartoon's canon. For example, Megatron states that they haven't been back to Cybertron since first arriving on Earth. Did the writer expect the readers to forget all of the pre-Movie space bridge episodes and the space shuttle Autobot Omega Supreme, which were major parts of the show? Dreamwave is pretending that all of that stuff never happened, which is annoying. Megatron using human curses is very stupid and unlikely, considering how much he hates "puny flesh creatures". It comes off as a gratuitous attempt by the writer to make Transformers seem more "adult". On top of all that, this story arc is kind of similar to Marvel's "I, Robot Master" story. Transfans have dubbed Dreamwave's series "Neo-G1", and that's very appropriate. Dreamwave has expanded on this universe with their "Transformers: The War Within" 6-issue prequel miniseries, character profile books, and a new "Transformers: Generation One" 6-issue miniseries. So, is this trade paperback worth getting? Considering that Hasbro has recently taken away the Transformers license from Dreamwave and given it to Devil's Due (of the current "G.I. Joe" series), I'd say no. This is going to end up being a small, new Transformers universe. Even if you're a big Transformers fan, it's not essential. It's really nothing more than expensive, glorified fan fiction written by a fanboy.

Transform!!! Cuz, face it... they're BACK!
I loved the Transformers as a Kid and i still love them. When the comic book came out and i picked up the first few issues, i knew this was more than a retelling of the samwe old story...

As a "Instead, If this happened." sequel, Transformers holds together quite nicely... Keeping the classic themes of good verus evil but makign it a bit more adult. The Character designs have been updated with more detail and have not lost much of their old charms.

I am glad that Dreamwave have released a paperback of the sell out comic, the paperback also includes the 8 page preview comic at the start of the novel and includes a couple of pages as a preview of the Transformers Volume 2!!

for the price, it is well worth it, OLD TF fans will mostly likely already have this, btu if you don't, YOU SHOULD!!

Without a Doubt one of the finest transformers Stories ever.
I will this short and very brief. This has to be one of the most well written, epic, and interesting stories in transformers history. when I heard of this series I was expecting good things, and I was not disappointed in the least.

As a fan that has read EVERY U.S. Produced transformers comic ever published, Ive seen enough transformers cheesecake too haung me to my days. (Anybody remember carwash of doom? Roadjammers? King Con? Ick) And there is not the slightest ounce of cheese in this series. The plotting is quick and flawless. Moving at a believeable, yet breakneck pace. With interesting characterizations based on a mix of the comics and movies. Grimlock, in keeping with Simon Furmans View of him, is intellegent, and posessing of conscience. Optimus Prime Is a mix of the gung ho action hero the cartoon played him out to be at times, and the dedicated courageous leader burdened by conscience and a war that he despises; as simon furman wrote him. So those expecting this series too flow with only one continuity or another, will be disappointed.

The story is a bit of X-Files meets transformers. The Autobots won the war, with the help of humans, and while they were taking the captured decepticons back to cybertron, an explosion aboard the Ark II scattered both sides of the transformers accross the planet. Now Various transformers are appearing again, making random attacks, apparently being controlled by someone, or something. A Military agency contacts the one person that might have answers, Spike Witwicky, and asks him too help reactivate the one transformer they have managed too find. It doesnt take long for the autobots and Decepticons to reawaken, and continue thier war. With Tragic, devastating, and heroic results.

Never In all my reading of transformers comics, have I ever read a tale brimming with internal struggle, sacrifice, courage, and loss. Its a tale that doesnt end on a happy note for anyone. Yet displays gripping action with dynamic characterization.

Its also worth mentioning, though its been said a dozen times, that the artwork is an amazing treat. Its truly stunning and a wonder too look at. Depicting immense battles on a awesome scale, along with making the transformers truly look like immense, yet living machines. Im looking forward too more of pat lee's artwork as he continues too work on transformers.

Many transformer fans consider Simon Furmans Writings too be the only, must have writings of transformers chronology. But Chris saccriani And Pat Lee have proven to be a wonderful team, and Im looking forward too more of thier work.

Saccriani's writing is smooth, gripping, and always on character. ... Read more

Book Description

Sandman: The Dream Hunters won the 1999 Bram Stoker Award for Best Comic Book, Graphic Novel, or Other Illustrative Narrative as well as the 2000 Eisner Award for Best Comics-Related Book. Sandman: The Dream Hunters was also nominated for the 1999 Hugo Award for Best Related Book. ... Read more

Reviews (41)

Old story. New telling. This is what The Sandman is about
Roger Zelazny points out in his introduction of the Books of Magic, that the method of the the storytelling that counts. Instead of giving us another Sandman comic, Gaiman has told this new tale in a wonderful illustrated prose style. Gaiman's research is stunning, and Amano's artwork fits the series very well. It was strange to see a Sandman book without Mckean.

Gaiman returns in top form
This book has come at the end of a very long wait for fans of the Sandman series. It is classic Gaiman - Sandman transported into a mythic setting. Think Tales in the Sand, and Ramadan. Regulars of the comic book series might not be used to the abstract drawings of Amano but it is a refreshing style that suits the tone of the story completely. This is a stand-alone tale that will appeal to those who have had no contact with the Sandman series but those who are fans will find joy in spotting occasional regular characters in this new setting.

Gorgeous art
A stand alone entry in the world of Sandman graphic novels, this lovely piece is a pleasure to read. The story, based on a Japanese folktale, drags on somewhat in the labored way of folk and fairy tales, but it's mainly a framework for the real star here, which is the artwork. This is one I pull out occasionally and flip through just to see the pictures again. Lovely.

Exquisite art, exquisite story
The illustrations and story perfectly balance, both exquisite, haunting and beautiful. I've read through the story, looking at the illustrations on the way. I've also leafed through the book just to pore over the art, with the story in mind, knowing that more details will emerge with each study. Usually, you have to go to children's lit for this caliber of picture book; finally, here's a fully realized picture book for people who have experienced a bit more of life. I only wish it had been produced in a bigger size.

Did you know?
The story isnt't actually based on a Japanese tale, Gaiman made it up. ... Read more

Book Description

A twisted old man, gifted with extrasensory powers, silently holds sway over an entire block of apartments. The occupants are puppets for him to control. Life is his to give...and to take. But suddenly there is a new voice in his head, and before he knows it, a young girl with her own battery of psychic abilities has arrived to challenge him! Soon, the sprawling complex becomes a battleground between two minds possessing incredible, unimaginable power. Winner of Japan`s Science Fiction Grand Prix award, the first graphic novel ever awarded such an honor, Domu comes from the boundless imagination of Katsuhiro Otomo, renowned creator of the internationally acclaimed graphic-fiction epic, Akira. A work of rare strength, Domu is both visually stunning and emotionally gripping, a terrifying tale of the paranormal set amongst the human isolation of modern urban life. ... Read more

Reviews (19)

A Sci-Fi/Horror Thriller That Would Make A Killer Movie!
I started reading Dark Horse's Akira reprints a few months back, and having enjoyed the first volume, figured I'd take a chance (I generally don't like Manga very much...) and order Domu, seeing as how it was also created by Katsuhiro Otomo....

Well, I managed to get all of 20 pages in before I was totally spellbound. Domu tells the story of an apartment block in Japan that has been plagued by suicides and disappearances. A senile old man, with tremendous psychic powers, has been using the buildings inhabitants as his own personal playthings. (One particularly chilling moment has the oldy about to drop an infant to his death, and thinking "Just like a ripe tomato...")

His plans are disrupted, however, by a new arrival: A young girl with the same psychic gift. And soon, the apartment block is turned into their own personal battlefield, as the little girl seeks to ensure no one else falls victim to his depredations.

Otomo's story and art compliment each other perfectly- I had to read the book twice in one sitting: Once to actually READ it, another to savor the magnificent hyper-detailed artwork. The plot is like something out of a Stephen King story, and a GREAT Stephen King story at that. This would make an amazing movie. But could the movie possibly be any more heart-pounding than the book...? Naaah!

Not bad..Not too good either
I brought Katushiro Otomo's Domu with great expectations. The only other graphic novel that I had the pleasure of reading was Darkhorse's Batman Vs. Predator. That book exemplified the type of material I love to read; a story about people and situations we would never see in this world, but written with enough skill to make us accept and become interested in them.

Unfortunately, Otomo's debut lacks a certain something. Its not quite the suspensful thriller it promises to be. We have an interesting set-up; an old man who kills off unaware neighbours in his apartment block by controlling their minds and manipulating them into deadly scenarios (eg. ordering them to jump for the top floor, etc.). The body count is rising, none of the murders are solved, the cops are baffled and the residents are scared. A young child posessing the same power as the physchopathic murderer is soon onto his game and challenges him to a telekenetic battle that starts off as a slow, tactical duel but soon erupts into a blazing super-natural struggle with the existance of the apartment block hanging in the balance.

What Katushiro has failed to do is focus carefully on his main characters. They function merely as components of the plot but are difficult to believe as individuals. For example, there is no explanation as to what motivates the old man; he's just some crazy maniac who chuckles evily when he kills off his victims. And what about the girl? Katushiro forces us to accept that she is what she is without providing moments of development or background. She just appears, and before you know it, she's duking it out with the bad guy. I mean, where's the run-up or the build-up to the time she actually realises she must fight him?

Despite the lack of depth within the novel's protagonists, Katushiro redeems himself slightly with his excellent observations of inner city life such as the dull and domestic dialogue between mothers talking while their children play; the cops who gamble and urinate behind bushes and the clever representations of the lives of the apartment block residents, how they run parallel and how they coincide, the depiction of their habits, idiosyncracies and daily routines.

All in all, worth a look. Not thrilling, nor fascinating. But at the very least, interesting and definantly readable.

Domu
An entire crowded apartment building is horrifically disturbed when violent unexplained murders upset the humdrum activities of its day-to-day residents. Seemingly mocking the monotony of inner city life and the obsessions with diversions in society, Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira) injects a twisted old man into the fray maddened by intense telepathic abilities and an obsession with his own unique 'diversions'. Mainly the systematic slaughtering of his neighbors.

An unlikely challenger soon confronts the warped man-god. A young girl, a child of only about eight or nine has come to free the building of the terror. Armed with powerful telekinesis, their rivalry soon escalates into a massive battle nearly destroying the entire building.

My favorite is subtly depicted in the last scene. A silent test of wills between the two enemies amidst a peaceful playground setting.

It's obvious that Otomo loves exploring the lives of inner city characters that have very little to do with each other. Domu is one of his ealier works and should not be missed by any fan of Akira. This graphic novel is a 'single volume' and presents a quick yet very chilling read.

A Classic Manga
Domu is a graphic novel that combines great action, pathos, and some subtle commentary on urban Japanese life. The characters don't have a lot of space to develop, but seem to have a natural depth. It wasn't hard to sympathize with them, especially the dregs of society that inhabit the apartment complex the book is set in. These are the Japanese that we don't get to see very often, and that Otomo doesn't hide. This is a well-paced thriller with no missteps in the execution, which leads to an ending that gives you a lot to think about. The final scene is downright brilliant, and caps the Katsuhiro Otomo's recurring theme of powerful children. A great buy.

Better than Akira
I read Domu the first time in the middle of the night, and after a third of the book I had to put it down because it scared me so much. The characters felt so real and that made the horrible events all the more horrible; the teenager sitting by himself in the middle of the night, struggling with his homework.. The kids playing or bullying each other.. everything felt so real. I immeadiately liked Hiroshi and Etsuko, and every time the old man appeared I was scared that anything might happen to them. In my opinion this is Otomos best work. I read this right after I had finished AKIRA part 5 and I must say that Domu was better in every way. The characters in AKIRA are mostly cardbord, in Domu they act much more like real people. Don't get me wrong, I love AKIRA, but Domu is just better. I can't explain how much I liked this manga, It's the best I've ever read. Go read it, now! ... Read more

Book Description

In the first volume of Trigun Maximum, we caught up with Vash and watched him jump back into service for Peace and Love! But now the action really begins. Remember the Gung-Ho Guns? That modge-podge group of assassins born and bred to kill Vash? Well, they're the one's who're still alive and are still trying to kill him, and in Trigun Maximum Volume 2, we'll see the beginning of a whole new set of worries for our gunslinging mysterious nice guy. See the whole menagerie of freaky Gung-Ho Guns come after Vash in lots of crazy ways. The fun is really getting rolling in Trigun Maximum, taking you way beyond the anime and into new, dangerous territory. ... Read more

Book Description

Get ready for some electrifying light-saber battle action! Aurra Sing arrives on Coruscant with a mean streak, killing Jedi within the very shadows of the Temple. The Jedi Council must now decide how to deal with the infamous bounty hunter. Several Jedi Knights volunteer for the honor of bringing Sing to justice. But do they want justice or vengeance? It’s going to take more than a grudge to bring down an assassin with a reputation for killing Jedi. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

An Aurra Sing-a-long for fans
The Hunt for Aurra Sing is another commendable comic in this Ongoing series, one that has little substance aside from the fun read it is. With the primary storyline hunting down the Jedi killer like the animal she is, this comic lacks any other plots that could have made it more interesting.

This comic is closure for the Ki-Ad-Mundi, A'Sharad and Sing characters. Next up you have Twilight, and the focus under new artist teams shifts to Quinlin Vos and his peers.

Quality of art is comparable to Emissaries to Malastare---or at least its first half, before the art went out the airlock. Here, texture and illustrations are not of Twilight's superb quality but still stand out well. Aside from the saber blades, which are little more than single-colour sticks, shadowing and resolution is actually not so bad. All cover arts here, however, issue and TPB fronts, were terrible.

The dialogue varies between the cast, which incorporates the simple-minded Jedi hunters, the Quarren political retinue, and of course Sing's delightful self-indulgent lines. Cocky, sarcastic, brazen, you just gotta love her.

The prologue scene is typical of what you'd expect from this sort of comic, but being long enough it doesn't end too quickly and had enough emotional support to see it through. Sing taking out a Jedi team after her trail---an Anx and Kerestian (8 cheek noses) Jedi Master, starts the ball rolling. Interesting to see her reluctant to kill apprentices until they're old enough to face her; the little Twi'lek girl, now orphaned, appears back in the later Aayla Secura comic, a nice continuity touch by that team indeed.

The Jedi party after her hide acts like all Jedi of that era do: predictably naive and persistently outsmarted. But hey, if they weren't shot down, the plot couldn't progress, could it? For young A'Sharad, it's to account for the murderess that killed his father; for Ki-Ad-Mundi, it's concern for his master's welfare, the enigmatic Dark Woman; and Adi Gallia's lacklustre role here has her little more than a figurehead.

Did I say Dark Woman? You bet I did. She's back again, grinning in looks, with her own issue cover in the third. If Vader only slays her just before Episode 4, there's still two decades of timeline to have more of her. Hint hint wink nudge . . .

Overall, The Hunt for Aurra Sing will appeal to her fanbase, and particularly if you've already invested in Outlander and Emissaries to Malastare.

3.5 STARS - SEQUEL TO OUTLANDER
This is a review of ISBN 156971651X, called Star wars: Republic - The Hunt for Aurra Sing issues 28 to 31, released as a TPB by Dark Horse comics July, 2002.

This is a very good comic, but a step backward from the three that preceded it. The story by Truman is good, but the artwork is a step backward. The style is more cartoonish than what we have been getting in the REPUBLIC run of issues. The cover art is very dark and frankly, not very good.

The Jedi are out to hunt down Bounty Hunter - force sensitive killer Aurra Sing. Aurra is a rouge in the worst sense. She slaughters others cruelly and senselessly, and in fact she murdered Padawan A Sharad's father (see OUTLANDER).

The production quality, even if you don't care for the artwork itself, is awesome. Dark horse as of early 2002, even late 2001 has had great strides in producing great comic. They also seem to have been sensitive to the tradition of poor editing in the past, and they seem to do a much better job of helping the reader now who is who and who is speaking. My biggest complaint concerning the lazy editing was UNION. I see that Chris Warner edited that one. He is still editor-and-chief of HUNT but had an assist from David Land. Thanks for being more attentive for the fanatics like me.

The lightsabers. Some have criticized that the lightsabers in some comics were drawn to small. Looks like they may have overadjusted here because they look larger and I would say, more cartoonish.

I assume that the person who does the pencils is in effect the artist. I did not that a different person did the pencils here from the previous TPB's that I liked a lot. Lets just say that I really like the work of Jan Duursema, Magyar and McCaig, and am less a fan of the work of Robinson and Fabbri (though Robinson's art in Twilight as great).

The Ultimate Match
If Fett and Sing were to do battle it would likely make for one of the more interesting face offs in the Star Wars series. Like Fett there appears to be almost no way of stopping this huntress who collects the lightsabers of the Jedi that she has vanquished. And as far as deep seated hatred of other Jedi her anger can only be matched by the Dark Lord Vader himself.

In this graphic novel Aurra Sing has a posse of Jedi Masters, and even members of the council sent to finally take her out. One Padawan learner, a former Sandperson whose father was killed by Aurra is also included in the hunt. As these collections of graphic episodes go, this one is quite good, and will be especially appreciated for fans whose favorite sound is the snap hiss of a lightsaber and the mayhem that follows. Duels in this book even include opponents both fighting with a ligtsaber in each hand. This was shown briefly in Episode II, and I for one wish there had been more.

This series also featured some of the most haunting dark art that has ever appeared on the covers of the individual issues prior to there being collected in to this graphic novel format. ... Read more

Book Description

The Popbot Collection provides the first three books of Ashley Wood's ongoing Popbot graphic novel series in one handsome edition, in full color. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Weird, Weird, Weird
Even for a Vertigo/Grant Morrison title, this is strange.
First off I can tell you that if you are a fan of Vertigo or Morrison or Heavy Metal magazine, you will probably enjoy this. If you loved Alan Moore's Watchmen, or Frank Miller's Give Me Liberty you will almost definitely love it. And if you liked
The Matrix films there's a good chance you'll like The Filth.

As explained in the description, you have a regular, older-than-middle-aged guy who used to be a top agent in a top-secret organization known as the Hand. (Not Elektra's old employers; different comics company anyway) Now he's had his memory wiped and he lives quietly in England. Picture James Bond being brainwashed to believe he's a UPS driver in Des Moines, Iowa and you'll have a pretty good idea of what this setup is like. The basic premise of this episodic 13-issue collection is that the Hand takes care of all sorts of gnarly dangers to the world.
Ned Slade is an agent but he prefers the quiet life that they have made up for him, but now they need him back.
Among the other agents of the hand are a communist, human hating Chimp who can boast that he shot JFK.

Now that's the basics, but of course, nothing's ever basic in the world of Vertigo. Morrison tacks on some truly out-there stuff that is a bit difficult to understand, including a metaphysical breakdown of the fourth wall involving a spandex clad superhero who's tragically lost his way. Fans of the Doom Patrol will probably get this part -- I honestly didn't. A few re-reads may change that.

There are massive amounts of sex and violence. If the Filth were made into a movie, I don't know if it could get an R-rating. But the biggest stumbling block that readers may have is that by the 11th issue it just gets too murky, and the ending may leave some unsatisfied. But I will give it points simply for continuing to deliver the atypical, earth-scorching, rebellious attitude that makes Vertigo as valuable as it is.

The Hand Evokes
In an interview with Disinformation guru Richard Metzger, Grant Morrison claimed he had moved to Los Angeles to [sic] "change bull{-} into money, turn pure thought into pure cash." With Hollywood's recent trend of adapting the counterculture concepts Morrison excels at (recent examples including the plethora of debased Dick, the Matrix, etc.), the transitional move - physically and artistically - of this Glasgow native to the City of Angels probably seemed fortuitous at the time. And *The Filth* is, by all appearances, the hard(core) result of L.A.'s influence on this highly-assimilative pen-prophet: a po-mo epic of human frailty, sci-fi surrealism, over-ambition and gutter abandon, a metaphor-medicine for our junk-glutted species. Or so it attempts, at any rate.

It takes roughly ten pages for the story to erupt into utter weirdness. Before that mark we follow the life-pattern of one Greg Feely, a cubicle serf with a peculiar taste in pornography and a co-dependant affection for his cat Tony. One night he finds a naked black woman in his shower; he half-wittingly engages in a day-glo romp session with the vixen and Feely's 'para-personality' is stripped away to reveal his 'true' self, Ned Slade, a policeman - or, more technically, a garbageman - for the Hand, an underground organization which cleans up and disposes all aberrations, perversions, and social threats to the Status:Q. Unfortunately Slade is an amnesiac: due to a severe trauma during a previous assignment, he has regressed so severely into his Feely persona that he's now forgotten the details of his existence. . . or so he is told over and over by the mysterious minions of the Hand.

Like the Invisibles and other media of this nature, *The Filth* benefits immensely from a re-read or three (or, as I did, read the first four issues and start over) - information is given erratically, with purposeful intent, and certain visuals/dialogue will only make sense after one has progressed with the main text. Overall *The Filth* reminded me strongly of a Philip K. Dick novel, or more precisely a conglomeration of the Horselover's stranger entries like *A Scanner Darkly*, *Ubik* and especially *The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldrich*; the time-distortion/control-resistance/drugs/schizo themes updated with mainstays of 21st century pulp, particularly nanotechnology and the smirking post-modern deconstruction of genre boundaries (a literal deconstruction, in this case). Morrison is no copycat, though, and the Filth abounds with willful debauchery and overt bizarreness: a dope-smoking chimpanzee KGB assassin with a vocal distaste for human beings; nanotech I-Life existing upon a "bonsai planet"; brainwashed children compared to ants; and, among the more vulgar moments, a porn-star who possesses black semen of high fertility rate - a seed captured and transformed into a viral weapon by Tex Porneau, a film 'auteur' obviously based on Max Hardcore (the most overt L.A. reference in the book, IMO). Morrison tackles alternative dimensions, conspiracy theory, bacterial influence, identity crisis, comic-book critique (possibly a reaction to his stint on mainstream titles like X-men and JLA??), and much, much more in this kitchen-sink 13-issue series. But the question remains: does it _work_?

Unfortunatly, no. . . not quite. From a recent interview, Morrison states: "...The Filth can be seen [sic] a healing inoculation of grime. I'm deliberately injecting the worst aspects of life into my reader's heads in small, humorous doses of metaphor and symbol, in an effort to help them survive the torrents of nastiness, horror and dirt we're all exposed to every day - especially in Western cultures, whose entertainment industries peddles a mind-numbing perverted concoction of fantasy violence and degrading sexuality while living large at the expense of the poor of other countries." Yeah, I agree, Grant. However, while *The Filth* does bring up some nice points and climatic thought-caps to the wretched build-up of humanity at its nadir, Morrison neither captures the truly _worst_ aspects (censors wouldn't allow it, though any and all are easily accessible these days via the Pandora's Box that is the Net), and, more importantly, his revelations are too few, too far between, and too sparse in content to really make an effective impact. I blame the kitchen-sink approach. There is so much here to digest - not a bad thing in itself - but the side-tangent stuff tends to bloat and lessen the overall intent. The comic-book deconstruction elements are a good example, as they seem to me almost unnecessary. I understand what Grant was getting at here, in the metaphorical sense of perfect ideal/stasis superman vs. the corrosion of realty alongside the 'need for suffering' drive; I just don't feel he achieved it as well as he might have in so limited a space, so crammed a vessel. The art is nothing spectacular, either, very workmanlike and lacking most of the innovative framing and visual/symbolic depth of the *Invisibles,* although according to the author this was intentional.

It's difficult not to compare *The Filth* with Morrison's past conspiracy-theory magnum opus: when done so, I'm afraid this graphic novel really does far short of the mark *The Invisibles* set. But, as an artist myself, I fully understand and support the need to grow, to take a directional change. . . at least as long as it delivers in a new and interesting way. . . and this comic certainly does that in spades.

Four stars. ... Read more

Book Description

Mara Jade is beautiful, intelligent--and deadly! She is the personal assassin of the Empire`s dark overlord. But after the Emperor`s death, an unforeseen variable is about to enter the scene of her final mission, the assassination of the leader of the Black Nebula crime organization. Though her master is dead, Jade must complete her final mission...even if it costs her life! ... Read more

Reviews (26)

Definitely worth it. :-)
(First off to that reviewer who all but said anyone who loved Mara Jade had a mud-for-brains mentality: grow up. I don't care if you dislike Mara or not, but if you're going to flame those who do like her- at least justify your opinion somewhat, like the other anti-Mara reviewer did, or you're just as guilty of being as stupid as you say we apparently are.) Anyway: I adored this series; it's what turned me on to the comic series side of SW. The art was wonderful: almost exactly how I pictured Mara-- beautiful yet deadly and *not* a Pamela Lee-esque bimbo, and the other characters were done well too-- the artist's style fits in very well with Star Wars, IMO. The storyline gave a very good look at Mara's character, probably what I loved best about this series, and you can very easily see this woman developing into the woman we see in the books later on-- this probably in part to her own creator being one of the writers. It was well-developed and worthy of the previous work I've seen from Zahn and Stackpole-- oh heck, I'll just say it. I *loved* this series! :)

A rare comic that's a must purchase
Mara Jade: By the Emperor's Hand is one of those rare comics that has great art, smooth storyline, commendable dialogue and genuine depth. Co-authored by Stackpole and Zahn, two of Star Wars' more popular novelists known for quality output. The result here is another of their hits you expect when collaborative craniums work well.

The quality of art shines bright, considering the comic dates back to a period where quality and art are not what they are now. You can just tell efforts were made to add extra ice to this cream, the way the front credits were specially done. Characters and climates, scenery and locale, were all highly rendered and coloured well. This is definitely one of your more 3D-ish comics, and worth the purchase if just for that.

Dialogue is what you'd expect from usual Stackpole and Zahn efficiency: quick, creative and inventive. Mara's persona here, in her Imperial days, lends her a cool competence matched only by her slick lines. The support cast isn't left out, and while I haven't quite worked out who oversaw what issues, the authors are at their vintage best here.

What makes this comic stand out from the mediocre variety out there is its creativity and effort to give just a little more for readers. The sheer range of aliens is both amazing and appreciated, both the familiar denizens and all new ones just for a show here and there. Alien species ranged from the typical to exotic to comical. Mara's is never without a way of working, and the inventive methods of working past obstacles speak highly of the writers' imagination behind her.

The storyline itself is simple and enough: eliminate Black Nebula's crimelord, who fancies himself the heir of the recently toppled Black Sun criminal network. Having failed to kill Skywalker at Jabba's palace, this she does easily. Too easily; and when her Emperor master bites the dust, she resolves to finish the job.

Nice use of Isard and Pestage, and why Mara earns her wrath. Good to see a dark-skinned man, that Imperial tech. It's rather rare to get that in comics, when humans are predominantly fair skinned. Humour, of course, wasn't lacking. The bartender alien looked like that Dexter from AOTC, his voice easily imagined.

There were some faults to note, small but noticeable as they were. The facial likeness of Strok was given to other Imperial army officers, which can confuse readers at the end. The end page itself just sorted of finished . . . perhaps a bit too abruptly and not slow enough. Mara doesn't complete her mission till almost the last page.

Further more, she does an astonishing amount to self-thinking. Thought-bubbles were everywhere, which you will find common in books but sort of gave the bemused impression the lady sure speaks a lot to herself! Almost every panel had text in which, factored into the full 144 pages, slows down reading and makes for a long comic here.

While I had problems with Jabba "just" giving Mara a speeder to get away from him when she arouses his suspicions, overall, omitting this nifty slight of work is outright criminal, and with such high standards of excellence it's well worth your $$.

YOU WILL MARRY LUKE SKYWALKER!!!
This is a review of Mara Jade ' By the Emperors Hand a comic TPB which collects 6 issues. ISBN 1569714010 published Sept 1999 and made in Canada.

This is a beautifully done comic given the technology available at the time, 1999. Visually the artwork took the time to draw the panels at a higher quality level than was usually done in the late 90's. Artwork gets 4 stars.

Inking and lay out is a step up from, but still has the newspaper comic strip appearance. The inking and color selections are subdued so I grade at 3.5 because it lacks the richness that Dark horse is capable of, but not displayed in this comic.

Story but Zahn and Stackpole oh my' Story is worth any quibbling about art and ink, though this is a comic as in a visual story. The story is 4.5 and pulls the overall grade up to 4 stars.

This is written almost as a companion to Zahn trilogy that revived the EU. We also see Mara in Jabba's fortress. The cover shows Mara with a Red light saber, but she wields a purple one throughout the book. Old Red eye ' blue eye Isard is in this story.

JediMack! Only 4 stars? This is arguably the best comic produced in its timeframe given the technology that existed in 1999. The binding is superior, which is good because this book has been re-read and seen some abuse and was made well enough to take it. I must reserve 5 star ratings for the best of the best, and in future years dark horse starts producing comic that are jaw dropping gorgeous with rich coloring and awesome penciling.

Excellent! Fun and Interesting...
This has to be one of the most truly entertaining comic books I've ever read. The storyline is awesome, the graphics are awesome, and most of all, Mara herself is awesome. This story focuses entirely on her, (making it a definite must of you're a Mara fan at all) and follows her from shortly before the Emperor's death, to perhaps a year afterwards, long before she came to be in Talon Karrde's smuggler organization. After failing utterly in her mission to kill Luke Skywalker, Mara is determined to make it up to her master in the next one: destroy the head of Black Nebula (a branch-off of Black Sun). And this she accomplishes easily. Too easily perhaps? But all fades into the backround when her world comes to a violent end in the death of her beloved master... Far from just another depthless, action saturated drone, (though there is plenty of action) this is also in a lot of ways a character story, as it subtly let's us see other, kinder sides of Mara. Though at times she does some pretty awful, heartless things without batting an eyelash, we can forgive her because we know she has one. As I sais before, this book would be great for any Star Wars fan, though I would recommend being at least fairly well versed in the Expanded Universe, otherwise you most likely won't know who most of these people are.

Good Book for those who take the time to read it
What's the problem with Mara Jade? She's one of the best female characters in the SW universe! Who would you prefer, Admiral Daala, who rose to a high rank in the Navy despite the fact she doesn't know the first thing about naval combat? And just look at how Mara adapted- she did her job one way, with all of Palpatine's toys, then relearned her trade when those toys were robbed from her. What else do you want? An no brains? Read that escape from Isard and tell me that. You try to escape people who can control the air you breath. Or is it you were too lazy to read all of the text? But enough ranting and onto the review.

My appreciation of this book tended to grow the more I read over it. As I pointed out in my ranting, you have to read all the text and get a grip on the situation to fully grasp it. After reading through a lot of the scenes I've pretty mcuhed surmised that Zahn and Stackpole must have drawn out maps of a lot of the areas just to write the story, its so detailed. Very good work there.

Zahn and Stackpole are also my favorite authors, I should point out, as compared to Anderson and his horribly botched attempts to write dialogue. Whatever the case, if you bother to read it all and use your brain to some extent, you'll discover a lot of the scenes are very well written and mapped out. Kudos to Zahn & Stackpole for that.

The art is good, but I still find it to be a bit un-Star Wars-ish. I barely recognize any of the numerous alien species. that said, its still quite good and keeps a good sense of movement and lots of details. (Very important.)

As I said in my rant, its also important to note Mara's transistion. She goes from the Emperor's Hand with all of her toys and gadgets to Mara Jade, scavenging what she has and being a bit more creative.

And she does have a heart. She realizes the consequences of her failures and how they hurt innocent people. And that she has to make things right. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't that the whole point of the bloody thing?

Oh, yes. Reccomended. ... Read more

Book Description

It`s Star Wars: A New Hope like you`ve never seen it before! Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, Obi-Wan, and Darth Vader all drawn MANGA style! Taken directly from George Lucas` script for Episode IV of Star Wars, this book is masterfully drawn by Hisao Tamaki. This is one Star Wars book you won`t want to miss! ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Star Wars: A New Manga
I used to love Star Wars more than anything. It was the end-all, be-all of sci-fi. Then I started to read sci-fi books and watch anime. My opinion of Star Wars went down considerably. And over the years I saw the movies so many times I thought I would never want to see them again. Well, I am once again VERY excited about Star Wars...

What do I love about this Manga? Where do I start? First, this Manga is pretty much word-for-word exactly the same as the movie. Secondly, the art style is more than good. It's incredible. I never thought I could get into a comic book without color, but man this one changed my mind. Then there is the character designs.

Some people might not like their favorite Star Wars characters remade into anime-style characters with big eyes, but personally I REALLY dig it. I never really liked Princess Leia in
A New Hope, but man, get a load of what she looks like now! She just went from a character I didn't like to a fantasticly beautiful and deeply soulful character (well, that how I feel about it anyway).

Lastly, I will say that the action in this Manga series is truly amazing. From the first time a light saber lights up you will be amazed. If you love Star Wars you need this Manga. If you used to like Star Wars and now like comic books, check it out anyway.

Incredible!
Well at least this is a more complete version of the film than the American one, I'm a great lover of anime and manga, and you can be sure that I loved reading Star Wars in this highly expressive style, This volume features many scenes scripted that never made even to the Special Edition.

Certainly artist Hisao Tamaki took some liberties like changing a little bit of Princess Leia's look, but I can asure you that it looks great and true to the original style... hey! by the way if George Lucas got inspired to create Star Wars by watching Akira Kurosawa's films then you can be sure this is a wonderful adaptation!

Beautiful and entertaining.
This is a truly wonderful adaption. I love the style, and the whole thing is just so good you won't care that you've already seen the movie. It's like, you can really look over the good parts, taking in every detail. Thank God they kept it in black and white! The artist does an incredible job with shading and character likeness, and you can almost hear Mark Hamill's voice... This manga also includes a flash back and a cool pic of the sandtroopers on dewbacks. I'd recommend this for Star Wars fans in general, Japanese or American.

The Star Wars comic for people who hate Star Wars comics!
Remember when Star Wars was actually fun? When the merchandising didn't overshadow the actual movie? When Colonel Sanders didn't wield a lightsaber? If not, read the manga version -- and you will. Hisao Tamaki's adaptation is fluid, juicy, and funny, his mecha are solid, and his character design and depiction inject a familiar cast with new life. Simply wonderful.

May the Force (Manga Style) be with you...
A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, Hisao Tamaki made the best comic adaptation of a movie the US and Japan has ever seen. If you want something original...then your'e outta luck. But if you're a Star Wars fan, or just want something new...then you better get a copy of Star Wars Manga. It's amazing how movies and manga fit so well together(i.e. Neon Genesis Evangelion, Patlabor, Ranma 1/2, Battle Angel Alita, and Sailor Moon). The series throws in some extra goodies like the sandtroopers on dewbacks and a flashback.The text is based off of the script of the movie, so don't expect something out of the ordinary. (Everyone has memorized the script anyways), but what lacks in text that we already know make up in the stuningly visual art. From the menacing Star Destroyers to the scorched remains of Luke's aunt and uncle, it truly is something to read. The character designs are slightly modified, but don't worry, Princess Leia still has two cinnimon buns on her head. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Lee/Kirby build a legend
This book has better plotted stories than the 1st "Essential FF". However, the idea of the group fighting/breaking up recurs too many times as a plotline. Other than that, we get several excellent Dr. Doom stories-his origin and the "Battle of the Baxter Building" are classics. The Baxter Building story has a poignant moment when Reed Richards must decide whether to turn Ben Grimm back into the Thing (possibly forever). The Hate Monger, in his 1st appearance is a very provacative character for the era. The stories featuring Dr Storm and Gideon are pure melodrama best read only by completists. Plus we get 5 crossovers with other characters (4 in a row at one point)-Most of them carried by the misunderstanding that leads the FF to battle other heroes. However the Daredevil crossover is a classic. These stories function as filler before the next volume which should feature the premiere appearances of Galactus, Silver Surfer, the Black Panther and the Inhumans.

The Glory Days of the FF vs. Galactus and the Silver Surfer
Volume 3 of "The Essential Fantastic Four" is the one we have been waiting for because with issues #41-63 and Annuals #3 & $ of "The Fantastic Four" we are talking the period where this truly was "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine!" This is also where the FF have their greatest battle, against the threat of Galactus and his herald, the Silver Surfer, and Annual #3 presents the wedding of Reed Richards and Sue Storm. Those stories alone would make this particular collection required reading but during this period Stan Lee and Jack Kirby also created the Inhumans and the Black Panther, substantially adding to the Marvel pantheon. But the clincher is that having come up with the ultimate FF story (everything is anticlimactic after you essentially stop a god from devouring your planet) there is another classic multi-part story as Doctor Doom steals the Surfers cosmic powers. Actually, I like those stories a bit more (check out the classic cover for issue #60), but then it is hard for Lee to go wrong with any sort of Silver Surfer story at this point in history.

Also, from an artistic standpoint I think Jack Kirby clearly reached his heights as an artist during this period, but a large measure of credit also goes to inker Joe Sinnot, who replaced Vince Colletta. Just compare the drawings of the Thing in the first story to those in the last in this volume and the improvement is obvious. If you go back to the first volume of "Fantastic Four" repeats the difference is even more striking. Kirby was also experimenting with zip tones, using photographs, working in a lot more in terms of backgrounds for his panels, and indulging in splash pages in the middle of stories. When you think of how long Kirby had been drawing comic books at that point in his career, the fact that his artwork could suddenly improve so dramatically is astounding. In terms of artwork and stories, this is as good as the "Fantastic Four" ever got in its celebrated history. When I think of the FF, the stories in this volume are the ones I remember best.

Companion piece for this great graphic novel
As great as this graphic novel was by itself, I know of one helluva great companion piece in the form of a book entitled "The Adventures of Darkeye: Cyber Hunter" whose odd manner of having log-entries over chapters seems almost like the script for a graphic novel, even though it is in the science fiction/high-tech and cyberpunk genre along with books like "Cryptonomicon", "Snow Crash", "Prey", and "Altered Carbon". Very fast-paced and visual as well as being very exciting due to its action-packed pages.

The World's Greatest Comic Magazine lives up to the name
Here began the best years of The Fantastic Four. Writer Lee developed real (albeit sometimes hokey) characters (this is, after all, a comic book) who each spoke in a voice unique to them (often lines of dialogue were attributable even without the pictures), and artist Jack Kirby reached his creative Marvel peak. A must for any fan of the genre, but particularly for the FF afficianado.

These stories teach two important lessons about the collaborative medium that is the comic book (particularly the dramatic/action/adventure/superhero book). The first is the importance of writing. Yes, you can tell a story with pictures alone, and Jack Kirby was better than almost anyone else at doing that. It was, after all, Kirby's talent in this regard (along with Steve Ditko's) that led to the development of what came to be known as "The Marvel Method", with artists drawing and often plotting before one line of description or dialogue was written). But just as the sound era made John Ford a better director (THE IRON HORSE is a very good silent picture; STAGECOACH-- made only a dozen years later-- is a great film), likewise Stan Lee's dialogue made Jack Kirby's great art into a great comic book. You only have to read much of Kirby's later work (especially for DC). While incredibly creative, imaginative, and powerful in its artistic vision, the dialogue (written by Kirby himself) is often stilted and, unless adopting an obvious accent, lacks specific characterization.

The second lesson is finding the right inker. Joe Sinnott's inking of Kirby's FF pencils took everything to a higher level: a vast improvement over Vince Colletta's earlier FF efforts. Yet even this is situational. Colletta's inks of Kirby artwork on Thor was the perfect match of inker with penciller with subject, just as the Kirby-Sinnott collaboration was perfect for the FF (and just as Syd Shores' inks were perfect for Kirby's Captain America). Very few inkers are good for all artists on all titles (Frank Giacoa comes to mind as being able to do this, and maybe Tom Palmer, but not many others).

And so in Volume III of THE ESSENTIAL FANTASTIC FOUR, "The World's Greatest Comic Magazine" begins to live up to its billing. See for yourself.

Jack Kirby at his best!
This is not only an excellent book, but it is also a classic study at how important an inker is on the penciller. Starting in issue 44, Joe Sinnott took over as inker of Jack Kirby's work and the result is startling. Sinnott dramatically improved the art and brought out the talent that Jack Kirby has.
The stores themselves and mixed, but the Galactus tale still holds well including the introduction of the Silver surfer. My personal favorite is the battle with Dr. Doom after he stole