Book Description

'Mos Eisley spaceport. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.' And you've never seen Mos Eisley look quite like this! It's the second issue of Star Wars: A New Hope -- MANGA, artfully rendered by the hand of Hisao Tamaki. In this issue you'll visit Mos Eisley, witness the destruction of Alderaan, and be present as Han Solo confronts Jabba the Hutt. It's Star Wars like you've never seen it before! ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Han Solo at Jabba's palace: taken from the script of G.Lucas
It's like seeing the movie. Incredible drawing and a story line taken for the original script of George Lucas. A must- buy book for all fans of Star Wars. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Is there anyone cooler than Boba Fett? Like a cross between Clint Eastwood and Chow Yun Fat--but with a jetpack and kneepad rocket dart launchers--Fett has always symbolized cool, quiet power. If Fett wants you, you're as good as got (that ridiculous incident over the Great Pit of Carkoon in Return of the Jedi notwithstanding).

So any book or comic featuring his royal Fettness had better be good. Fortunately, our boy gets his due in this quality Dark Horse collection of three previously published comics (Bounty on Bar-Kooda, When the Fat Lady Swings, and Murder Most Foul). The story, by John Wagner of Judge Dredd fame, is by no means brilliant, but it's clever enough to rise a cut above the more schlocky Star Wars spinoff fare. What really sets this collection apart, though, are the moody colors and expert composition of Cam Kennedy (Star Wars: Dark Empire). From our favorite bounty hunter nonchalantly capping some thug without even turning around to breezing through the defenses of a H'unn's criminal stronghold, Death, Lies, and Treachery is classic Fett. --Paul Hughes ... Read more

Reviews (11)

Shrapnal`s review
Boba fett didn`t die in the pit of carcoon. He escaped after finding out about the inteligent life form inside the salaac. That`s why he was able to be written about in this extreme comic book. Action is kept up through the intire book. It prooves Boba Fett`s skill and power. I love the literature that is used by all of the main people. Boba fett`s calm atmosphere makes his killings seem athentic to his personality. YOU GOTTA READ THIS BOOK!

Mindless drivel
This book has high points and low points, but the latter, unfortunately, far exceed the former. Which is a shame because Boba Fett has the potential to be such an interesting character and should fit right into the comic book forum. The art in this book was not horrible, but the color scheme -- the same unnatural conglomeration of greens and yellows and reds used in the Dark Empire series, is dull, ugly, and silly. The characters, especially the Hutts, are portrayed as nothing more than morons, and the action (what action?), is slow, pointless and uninteresting.

There are a few little bits of neat dialogue and interesting character insights into the galaxy's most feared bounty hunter, but, just to give you a general idea, it took me three or four tries before I could actually force myself to read this one through to the end. A part of this is because, even though this book is long, it isn't as unified a series as most of the others, and each of the three issues represented here are 48 pages, so they start seeming long and drawn out in their own right.

If you absolutely love Boba Fett, don't buy this one...it'll ruin him for you. If you, however, fancy yourself a Star Wars collector, then I guess this is a necessary addition to your bookshelf. And to end -- a chronological note. This book is officially supposed to take place after Fett's exploits in Dark Empire I & II.

Meh.
Nothing to notable here. The plot was overall quite shaky, with an inconsistent mix of humor and action. Cam Kenndey's art is its usual.... uniqueness. Like it or not, it will take some getting used to.

The stories are odd and at times rather ludicrous. Overall, if you want some nice Boba Fett/bounty hunter action, look for 'Enemy of the Empire' and the 'Shadows of the Empire' comic.

A great book with a strange atmosphere.
This book (for me) was fun to read, but at the same time it had a kind of dreary, black atmosphere. This isn't really a shortcoming, since it was meant to be there to give the book the kind of dreary "death, lies & treachery" feeling that its title suggested. This it did very well, especially with that dull colouring scheme that many people here have complained about. For my part, I didn't mind it at all for I thought that it fitted exactly the atmosphere of the places that this book went.

Overall, this book is unusual compared to most Star Wars books. None of the characters can really be considered the "good guys" except for Magwit, who only appears in one part of the book and is not really a major character. Another reason that it's unusual is that it focuses on a completely different part of the Star Wars universe; the dark, unsafe outskirts. And the final reason is its atmosphere. "Death, Lies, & Treachery" really does describe both the book's storyline and the book's atmosphere. However, this book is still very enjoyable, and the few comic moments that there are are made much more enjoyable when you come to them straight from the serious atmosphere of the previous strip. Anyway, I gave this book a "4" instead of a "5" simply because of it's slightly depressing atmosphere. However, I think that while in the atmosphere that this story required, the book couldn't have been made much better.

Long Live Magwit!
Magwit was my favorite character in this one. He's like the Star Wars equivilent of a hobbit. Though the part he plays is a somewhat small one, it was still the best(in humor and action). I hope someday that he'll make another appearence in a Star Wars comic(maybe with a bigger part or alongside a more important character like Luke Skywalker or Han Solo). ... Read more

Reviews (18)

Just plain good
Where some comics have taken the summer blockbuster movie aproach to comics, i.e. The Authority, Alan Moore decided to do Top Ten a different way. As a TV cop drama. And that's always a good thing. There are subplots and mysteries that go through the whole "season" with all the drama to go with it. Believe me, if you're into the super hero type genre, then definitely try out Top Ten. I mean, the name, Alan Moore is more than enough to check it out. But if you need more proof, how about the amazing art talent to go with it? Sure there are two artists for the book, but one's a layout artist, while the other is finishing. And for me, that's usually a bad thing, but for Top Ten, you can't even notice a difference. The art is amazing, and the character designs are outrageous. I mean, did you see the guy with a dog head? And the concept for the book itself is not something you'll see in a regular comic. A world full of super powered people, with only a super powered police to serve and protect. Yep, it's NYPD Blue with super powers. Buy it.

Readable but Average Comic By Someone Who Is Usually Better
If you didn't tell me that Alan Moore wrote this, I'd never guess. Compared with almost everything I've read by him - even with its cousin Promethea - it's shallow and simple. Many of the characters really didn't grab me, especially the obstensible main character, Toybox. Some of the characters are almost stick figures. The occasional parodistic reference to older characters, such as the Fantastic Four or the JLA, seemed just silly instead of funny. The mysteries that the cops of Neopolis solve, however, are generally engaging, and two or three of the cops did come across as intriguing. Still, as Moore works go, this is slight.

The saving grace of this comic is the art by Ha and Cannon. The heroes might not be much to read about, but they are something to see, as is the city of Neopolis.

If you want to read top-notch recent Alan Moore, though, try early issues of his Promethea series. And for a trip to a city that is similar to Neopolis in its one-foot-in-the-future look but with a lot more in the way of great characters and story, lok for Dean Motter's Terminal City TPB.

Hysterical!
This is what would happen if everyone had a power. This is the sort of "Law and Order" or "NYPD Blue" you'd get. Only funnier. It reminds me of the new online game "City of Heroes" in a way, except I doubt the game has anything as useless as swelling up like a balloon as a power, or producing lots of sand all over the place.

Ok, so it's not gonna win any "Most Dramatic New Comic of the Year" awards. It's not grim, depressing, real, or awe-inspiring. It's fun and funny and tough and cool, and I loved it. It's well written, and well drawn, and a little bit raunchy (there are lots of hookers so it kind of has to be).

It's also totally accessable to almost everyone, which some of Moore's other work isn't. It uses the sort of TV style we're all familiar with to make it seem closer to us. I like it a lot. So it won't stay with me and haunt me like some of Moore's other stuff... but not everything has to haunt you to be good.

deiciding superman
like most children ,i liked superman when i was a kid,untouchable ,invincible and faster than a speeding bullet.but when i grew up,i relized how bogus and unreal he was,him and the rest of the flashy glittery and holier than thou superheros-except for some, like tim burton's batman and azrael-so you can imagine the sweet revenge feeling i had reading this book.
you have superheros who are bums,politicians,pizza delivery boys,prostitutes,pornqueens,policemen and sex offenders.and that's their real identity.
the story follows neopolis-the superhero city-daily life,nypd blue with superhero cops.
too bad their is a book 2,i wish if they could release it in one book ,like watchmen.
alan moore rules!

Superhero cops in a superhero world
Alan Moore has a knack for overwriting a mediocre premise and turning it into something special. In the past, he would take someone else's comic and completely rethink it. The result was impressive, forcing you to look for the hidden potential in nearly any character or comic book series.

This time, he created his own mediocre premise: a city where everyone is a superhero. He focuses on the police station, where caped crusaders have to deal with criminals of all kinds. Even the petty thieves and drunks can fly, shoot laser beams from their fingertips, and read your mind.

Instead of writing a bunch of high-powered fist-fights, he has the characters interact. It's more of a soap opera than anything else. He even gets away with a woman-and-dog romance that is strangely touching.

Ultimately, this book is for long-time superhero comic readers like me. It's fun to read an adult version of the old superhero genre. If you've never read superhero comics, this will both bore you and overwhelm you. You'll see a LOT of detail, but hardly any of it will make sense. But it's still worth a try, no matter who you are. ... Read more

Book Description

Dark Horse Comics presents the latest volume of Star Wars: A Long Time Ago... featuring classic Star Wars stories not seen in over twenty years! Originally printed by Marvel Comics, these stories have been re-colored and are sure to please Star Wars fans both new and old. Volume 3 collects issues 39-52 of the original Marvel run and begins with a re-telling of The Empire Stikes Back and continues past that to adventures such as "Droid World" and "The Last Jedi." Before midi-chlorians, before Jar-Jar Binks, these are the continuing adventures of Lucas’s first star-faring team in a freshly imagined universe. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Great follow-up story marred by bad rewrite
I consider myself a well read fellow. With that in mind I say in all honesty that Moonshadow is the most moving and important books I have ever read. Having first read the story as a teen in 1985 I identified strongly with the honest story telling of the transition of boy to man. Now this volume adds to the first by adding a story of Moonshadow's adult years. It is as brilliant and moving as the first and all the more meaningful to me now as I am maturing, as well.

HOWEVER: Be WARNED! The ending of the first story, Moonshadow's jouney to awakening, has been vandalized with a rewrite. The last pages have been stained with changed dialog and excessive narration that dilute the meaning and convert a thoughtful exploration of the transendant into a parade of cliche's. I recommend this book for the additional Moonshadow tale but, to get the full value from this wonderful tale one needs to seek out the original volumes with the original text and meaning.

Better reading
A very good read, especially for people who like a lot of Vertigo works (especially Neil Gaiman works). It's kind of a mixture between a Science Fiction story and a Fairy Tale for adults which takes you to many different roads and shows you the intergalactic journey of a boy who has had no contact with the outside world ever and is suddenly put out in the real world, with his only knowledge being the stories he read in his books of Orwell, Tolkien and Shakespeare. With great painted art by John J Muth (Sandman) and written by J.M. DeMatteis (Spiderman: The Child Within

Startling work, a unique masterpiece.
I'd finally tracked this down, as I'd lost out on collecting the entire series when it first appeared in 1985 (for some reason I never bought them... my loss). I wasn't ready for the storyline. It didn't resonate in the sixteen year-old that was me then, but there was something about the watercolors by Muth that did.

After art school, I found myself abandoning oils and turning to watercolors. I could work quickly and didn't require as much ventilation, but watercolors are infintely harder to master than oils. I still hadn't returned to "Moonshadow". My awakening was still yet to come.

Years pass and now I hardly ever paint, or write. I did something in goache recently for my Wife, and something clicked in my head, tiny but definitively. Ping! I found the "Compleat Moonshadow" for sale here, and bought it.

After two days of reading (fighting a chest cold), and respectfully closing the book at its end, I can be thankful I'd found the book, and know now my own awakening had begun. Thank you, Mr. DeMatteis and Mr. Muth, for making this book. It means more to me than anyone but you could ever know...

Fred

Compleat Indeed!
My first experience with Moonshadow was some years ago, when a comic-adhesive friend of mine (to say he collected them would be an understatement - he seemed rather to magnetically draw them to his person) found the solitary first issue of Moonshadow in a bulk buy of his. We were both instantly fascinated with the caprice of the Gi'Doses, the wild characterization, and the whimsical tone. At the time (long before graphic novels of any kind were commonplace in our experience), we languished that this, like so many other series we had encountered piecemeal, would probably never be assembled into a single storyfor our enjoyment, and we would never learn what became of the story. Imagine my joy when, only recently, I stumbled upon the Compleat Moonshadow in a local bookstore. Gritting my teeth, I shelled out the dough, drove home, and read the entire story in one sitting. Bleary-eyed, I sent a message to my friend (the one above), informing him of the excellence of the series. A few notes of actual detail: the art is spectacular, a watercolor spread consistent in its ability to create forms carrying significant meaning even when 'abstract.' The narrative, as silly as it is serious, presents the reader with names and places so wacky they allow a childhood sentimentality, even while covering such mature topics as sexual innocence, the horror of war, and the evils of greed. Finally, the writing is, shall we say, large but no overwritten. It may tax the vocabulary of some readers on occasion (something I like, but know is not everyone's favorite), but it expresses complex ideas with as few words as possible (indeed - few words are rarely enough to cover such themes!) Overall, a touching and heartfelt story that ranks very high on my experience of comics, graphic novels, and other pictoral mediums.

A work of art
I am reading the reviews people wrote for this book, and I am seeing some one star reviews, and I am wondering, "What are these people thinking?" So I am here to tell you that THIS COMIC IS AMAZING! It is the best comic ever made - better than Watchmen, The Dark Knight, Cages, Sandman, Maus, Love and Rockets, etc, etc. Moonshadow surpasses them all! It is so good that it easily qualifies as a "real book" and should be required reading on College campuses across the country. I have read Moonshadow over and over during the past ten years or so, and I always enjoy it. The reviewer before me complained about the changed ending, and yes, the previous ending was better. But all we are talking about is two pages! And anyway, Moonshadow is about life and the paths we take - the ending isn't important; just how we get there. And believe me, the adventures Moonshadow, Ira, etc take before they reach their conclusion are fantastic...this is work filled with the beauty of life, and everyone alive should read this book. It is a work of art that has had a profound effect upon me, as well as many others. Find out for yourself and be amazed ... Read more

Book Description

Within these pages you'll find bizarre investigations into haunted trains, Nazi war criminals, vengeful spirits of drowned witches and an imprisoned sewer goddess as well as an all-new short story by Mike Mignola with Catwoman artist Cameron Stewart.Featured creative teams include Miles Gunter and Michael Avon Oeming (Bastard Samurai) along with Mike Mignola; artist Guy Davis and writer Brian Augustyn (Gotham by Gaslight); Geoff Johns & Scott Kolins (The Flash); and Joe Harris (screenwriter of Darkness Falls) and his X-Men collaborator Adam Pollina (Big Daddy Danger). And if that ain't enough we've included a sketchbook featuring all five artists! ... Read more

Book Description

Nagano's Sci-Fi Epic continues! Sopp tries to figure out a name for the dragon nymph that revitalized everything about his super powers. The crew is spotted by Di-Barrow's troops. While highlighting it, they literally run into Atropes, who disposes of their pursuers. While Sopp is recuperating, he dreams of his first years of infancy and how he recovered from his comatose state. Barrow continues his search-and-destroy mission, but Atropes has some tricks up her sleeve. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Beautiful...
This manga is interesting, really long, and so beautiful. The drawings are elegent and kind of dream like. You wouldn't think they would work as well with this kind of story as they do. I highly reccommend this volume for all manga fans.

I wish I could give this more than five stars!
Newtype and Animage are my favorite anime mags, and now I get to read the amazing FSS manga that appeared in them! For years I stared at the pictures and tried to imagine what they were saying to each other...well, not any more. Now I get to read about the adventures of the Headliners, Fatimas, and the Emperor, all in English!

This is a must for any manga collector to have, serious or not! You won't regret it!

Finally---It has arrived!
I have been purchasing Newtype for years, and have always wanted to read The Five Star Stories. But I am just learning to read Japanese, so it was slow going (when it went at all.) But now, thanks to the wonderful people who printed this English language version, I can now read the story that I have admired for so long!

The art is superb, the story is exciting, and the characters draw you in and hold you there. I like how Mamoru Nagano has mixed the mythology of various countries and combined them with the technological driven dreams of our time. He has put an interesting spin on a cliche'd situation, and that is great! Kudos to you!

It may be hard to understand at first, but once you get into it, it's great!

I would love to be able to describe the plot to you, but I'm not sure I can remember that much of it. That's not to say that it lacks a plot--my memory is just incredibly bad.

Anyway, try it for yourself! The books are relatively cheap (at least where I bought them, so that's a plus.

Terrific art, gripping story, entrancing characters, and mythology all together in a reasonably priced package? What more encouragement do you need? ... Read more

Book Description

The hit animated TV shows Beast Wars and Beast Machines introduced a whole new generation to the Transformers - a race of robots able to shift form and become vehicles, weaponry and hardware. Now, at last, the original stories of those ‘robots in disguise’ can be seen again in their world-shaking glory.

The war with Unicron reaches its apocalyptic conclusion, but even if the Transformers win — they lose. Their world, Cybertron, is coming apart, shuddering in its death throes, the fragile alliance between the Autobots and the Decepticons is on shaky ground, and the inhabitants of Earth tremble before the power of the utterly insane creature known as Galvatron. With Optimus Prime missing in battle it might finally be the day when all hope is gone! ... Read more

Reviews (3)

good story but so rushed
unicron arrives and this battle was legendary it shocked me that unicron ate brainstorm the way he did and scorponok's death was kind of sad too, the movie was'nt this drAMatic with the unicron battle this was way better opyimus prime desposes of hi q to destroy unicron and prime knew what he was doing when he let hi q go he knew his spirit or whatever tf's have would transfer to hi q anyway the rest of the story grimlock leads the bots again he loses his transformation powers the effects of nucleon then the disputes with him and prowl are timeless prowl was pissed that grimlock was the leader and grimlock knew that peace between him and the autobots was a mistake bludgeon wqould have been a good leader if he would have had more spotlight too bad megatron killed him in gen2, megatron returns here too along with ratchet and megs meets galvatron and then they kill shockwave and ratchet crashes the ark to earth again where they all seem to die however galvatron escapes and goes insane only to be knocked offline by fort max while the autobots head to klo to fight the cons only to be destoyed cept grimlock and a fw others but a newly resuercted optimus prime along with the neo knights and the last autobot save the day and defeat the cons while bludegeon goes to exile.

It's Nostalgia-riffic
An epic storyline and awesome artwork make this a must have for any fan of the Generation One comics. Buy it!

A Great Transformers comic book collection!
This Transformers graphic novel collects Marvel comics US Transformers#75-#80! This comic books were written by fan British fan favorite writer, Simon Furman! The Artwork was also done by British fan favorites, Geoff Senior and Andrew Wildman! They were the creative team behind the success of the Marvel UK Transformers comic books series! Transformers#75 features stunning artwork by Geoff Senior! Unicron arrived to destroy Ceybertron! Many Autobots and Decepticons die! What happened to Thunderwing and the Creation Matrix?! How does Scroponok handle threat of the Chaos-Bringer, Unicron! How does Powermaster Optimus Prime ultimatly stop Unicron from destroying Cyberton?! The Next four issues lead to final issue, Transformers#80! The Civil War is over! But how do the Autobots stop the Decepticons Without their leader Optimus Prime to lead them? Who is the Last Autobot and how is he responsible for the destruction of Cybertron and Optimus Prime's ressurection?! Find out! Buy these wonderful Titan books! Highest Possible Recommendation! ... Read more

Book Description

From 1967 through 1979, Gold Key published the first Star Trek comics, totalling 60 issues in all. Now Checker collects and reprints these classic tales. This volume is the first of nine editions and collects issues 1-8. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

A Wild, Wonderful Ride
If you love to read, buy this book. If you love science fiction, buy this book. If you love comics, buy this book.

Nobody Gets the Girl is a daring, innovative, exhilerating ride. This is the kind of book you've been hungry for, the kind you can't put down even though it's 2 in the morning and tomorrow you have the most important business meeting of your life. Nobody Gets the Girl grabs you by the lapels and whisks you away on a fabulous, unforgettable journey.

There's been a great deal of talk lately about the way James Maxey has skillfully blended the genres of science fiction and comic books. Believe the hype, fellow readers. James Maxey has captured the joy, the momentum, the grandeur of the most exciting comic book between the covers of Nobody Gets the Girl.

I used to think that the comic book was a singular medium, that there were certain things a comic can do that you won't find anywhere else--city-wide battles, colorful splash pages, heroes in flight high above the Earth, ...costumes, etc. Yet James Maxey has proven me wrong.

It's all here, folks. It's all here, and more. Nobody Gets the Girl isn't just a prose comic book, it's also an inventive science fiction novel, a romance, a character study, and the most original use of quantum physics I've ever come across.

Nobody Gets the Girl also has the best characters I've seen in ages. How can you go wrong with names like Panic, Pit Geek, Sundancer, The Thrill, Rail Blade, and Nobody?

Every author enters into a pact with the reader. The author is saying, "If you read this, you will be entertained, informed, delighted." Too many writers fail to uphold their end of this deal. Well, James Maxey delivers.

So buckle up and take a few deep breaths. This is one wild, wonderful ride.

Just when you think you've got it figured out...
This novel has a definite comic-book feel, with larger-than-life heroes, villians and situations... but don't expect the plot or characters to be limited to simple bold colors, there's *lots* of shading here. I must have 'figured out' this novel three times while I was reading it, and I was ever so slightly (but critically) wrong each time. The plot always remained one step ahead of me, with just a *bit* more twist than I expected. I read lots of SF, and seldom find as many genuine surprises as I found in here.

There's also plenty of hard-hitting superhero action inside, including one scene that tops anything Superman (or any nemesis of his) would ever dare attempt... you'll know it when you see it, and it *will* force you to think.

I made the mistake of picking this book up at bedtime, and ended up missing *lots* of sleep. I read it cover-to-cover in one sitting. Open it only when you've got some time to spend!

A Fun Ride
I had reservations about the book at first since I am not a comic book hero fan, but I sure had fun reading this story. The premise was very intriguing and I thought Maxey handled it well. How do you explain an invisible man? The humor was so tongue-in-cheek that I bit mine quite a few times. The villians were so absurd they were laughable. If you are looking for action and laughs give this one a try.

Entertaining novel
James Maxey paints a colorful, imaginative portrait of an unwilling superhero amid other heroes who have serious issues.

The plot was engaging, the characters interesting if not always likeable, and the moral themes were complex. Don't let the broad heroic strokes fool you - this story has a lot of layers.

There were, however, a few glitches: there's a romantic situation which seems to spring from nowhere, and as a result I really couldn't buy it. Since the romantic situation is closely tied to the overall plot, this created a bit of a problem for me. I also felt the protagonist needed a bit more fleshing out - I felt that some of his actions were out-of-how-I-perceived-his-character; in retrospect I have the feeling that Maxey simply did some mental shorthand that not all readers will grasp.

But don't let those put you off buying the novel - it's a lot of fun, and it'll make you think. I'm looking forward to more of Maxey's work.

Funny, Imaginative, Couldn't put it down!
I found this comic book novel to be a wonderful play on the imagination. Humorous, fast-paced, and full of wacky gadgetry galore, I laughed, cried, and wondered my way through this intensely engaging story. Maxey skillfully leads you through an "almost" normal world, populated with some exceptional people. The twists and turns in this plot caught me by surprise every time, until I gave up on trying to guess where it would take me and just rode the roller coaster ride through to the spectacularly odd end. ... Read more

Book Description

It's a western, it's sci-fi, it's punk, and it's popular. It's Trigun and it's become one of the most popular anime in America. But before it was animated, it was a manga. And now Dark Horse has finally brought that manga to America! Continuing our foray into the world of non-Westernized manga publishing, Trigun promises to be entertaining with its huge guns, signature characters, wild shoot-em-up action, and funny writing.Vash is a nice guy, but everyone wants to kill him. An enigma of a man with a coat full of bullet holes, he's widely feared because of the destruction left in his wake. And he's also highly valued for the price on his head. But he's no easy man to kill. Of course, that doesn't stop people from trying. What's his mission? Where's he from? This volume may have the answers to those questions, and more. See what you've been missing in the video, visit Vash in true black and white coolness. Finally, Trigun is here! ... Read more

Reviews (16)

A slightly different beast...
The Trigun manga differs significantly from the anime, but they both share the supercool characters, great visuals, and mix of action, drama and humor that make Trigun unique. The action is hard to follow sometimes in this volume (I've heard that subsequent volumes get better), but the world of Gunsmoke makes more sense (and this after only one volume), and the book is a lot of fun. I hesitate to call either the manga or anime 'better'-- especially since the manga's still going on-- so just enjoy them both!

If You Like The Anime, You'll Like The Manga!
Even though it costs $15, it is a great (I want to say book, but it's not...) overall. Trigun #1 features four episodes from the anime series: #5: Hard Puncher, #7: B.D.N., #8: And Between the Wasteland and Sky, and #14: Little Arcadia. It is GREAT!!

Trigun- The very best
Before i began i must tell you that i believe that Trigun is one of the best series ever vreated. I really enjoyed this book, it is the first in the series and is definetley one of the bests. This book introduces all of the characters and it has awesome action! If you like lots of action and guns then you should buy this book!!

Great Manga, A Real Must Haver
This is by far the best manga I have ever read. It is a great blend of action and comedy and unforgetable characters. It isn't that much different than the anime, only slightly differing in some parts. It contains the original manga form of the first few episodes (those with Brilliant Dynamites Neon and the Nebraska Family ending with Meryl and Millie saving "without help" the plantation) and they are portrayed quite well. The artwork although in the very beginning is of a slight less quality than the anime early in the Manga. Those of you out there with a Wolfwood Legato or Knives obession shouldn't worry about this volume, as these characters are yet to appear. Bottom Line Anyway you want this Novel if you like Vash at all.

Excellent!!!!! ^.^
S'been a while since i've last read a good manga this big by Dark horse, but I loved it. Too bad Wolfwood or Legato weren't in here. ^^; Anyways, it lost on star because all of the sound effects were in Japanese, but other wise it's a book that every Trigun fangirl should own! ... Read more

Book Description

The Incal is the world-renowned tale from creators Moebius and Alexandro Jodorowsky. The tale begins with a young John Difool, as he tries to survive riots and poverty in the days before the Presidential Cloning. It is here that John must learn to be his own man, as he is slowly drawn into events of cosmic proportions. It is fitting that Janjetov, who studied under Moebius, will illustrate the first two trade paperback collections. The Incal series of books will reprint the COMPLETE story, including a masterful computer re-coloring of every page. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Spider strikes again
The latest TPB of this fantastic series features a pretty big plot point for our bowel-disrupting hero, Spider Jerusalem. This is definately NOT the book for an unsuspecting reader who is new to transmet to purchase. You'll want to start from the beginning.

That said, it's obvious from the stories in this volume that the series is coming to a final end. It has ended for all of you who bought the issues themselves, but for late-comers such as myself, you'd better start savoring the time you spend with Spider as much as possible.

The meat of this collection is the 4 part story featuring a huge storm, which thrusts Spider into a deep coma. We meet one of the Filthy Assistants father, and gear up for the last dozen or so issues of the series. Issues 43-48 are reprinted in lovely colour, a great cover, and the standard vertigo TPB fare. Transmet stops at issue 60, so you'd better pay catch up before the we hit bottom! ... Read more

Book Description

Venom's back and has popped up near the Arctic Circle, leaving a trail of dead bodies in his wake in this big-budget, sci-fi/horror roller coaster ride. Now able to change human hosts in the blink of an eye, he's on the run from mysterious clandestine forces, each with their own agenda for the deadly, elusive alien. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Uh...Well....
As a fan of Venom, I'm a tad biased, so I don't totally HATE this book... in fact, if a few things were different, I might actually consider it pretty good.

First of all, the art is simply UGLY. It doesn't fit the tone at all. I've heard that Herrarra has done much better work on other titles... here his work looks like Humberto Ramos drew it while riding on a four-wheeler. And while I'm at it, I do NOT like how Venom looks as big as the Hulk. This is why I wasn't 100% satisfied with the art in Paul Jenkin's "The Hunger" storyarc (by Ramos).

And hey, why didn't Marvel collect this in digest form? Haven't they done that with their other Tsunami titles? Ugh. Hell, they could collect all 18 issues of this series that way, and I'd buy it in a heartbeat. Oh well. At least Mark Millar is reinventing Venom in his Marvel Knights Spider-Man title. The new costume is pretty cool... I'm out

Oh, Marvel...what have you done?
Venom.The very mention of that word has many different meanings for many different people.But for most of us Spider-man fans, Venom is synonymous with a nightmarish, sadistic monster that nearly ended Spider-man's webslinging career on more than one occasion.But that was the past...unfortunately Marvel's trend of inking and penning less-than-stellar story arcs for its classic characters has hit Venom harder than it ever has.

Many fans thought Venom was ruined when he became the 'Lethal Protector' and received a short run of several limited series...a few of which were quite good, but most of which were rather ridiculous.However, Venom: Shiver certainly takes the cake.The combination of writer Daniel Way and illustrator Francisco Herrera simply do Venom no justice whatsoever.

For starters, the art is horrific.It looks like something out of a cheap Saturday morning cartoon...Venom is apparently a shapeless, amorphous blob that ranges from being about the size of a man to the size of a small elephant.The characters are all blocky and disfigured, with little detail save for the exaggerated bumpy and misshapen faces.Oddly enough, the cover art for each individual part, all included in this TPB, was rather outstanding.Why such great work wasn't applied to the actual comic is beyond me.

As for the story...well, if you've ever seen John Carpenter's 'The Thing'(1982), then you basically don't need to read this comic.To say it was inspired by it would be understating it...to say it blatantly ripped it off would be much more accurate.Everything from the arctic setting, military base with a 'secret project', to the mysterious dog, to the mistrust among the people...everything just seems completely ripped from Carpenter's cult horror classic.And to top it all off, Venom is apparently being chased by the Men in Black...except this lone agent is a robot from another planet.And it now seems that the Venom symbiote must survive by leaping from host to host, draining the host of all of its body fluids and killing it to survive, but also mimicking the host to keep itself disguised(again, a blatant rip off of The Thing)...funny, but that sounds more like a parasite than a symbiote.I guess Eddie Brock's bond with the alien that we've known for the past 2 decades didn't count?Or maybe this just happened over night...who knows what they're trying to do.

Overall this is one of the worst Marvel stories I have read in years.The Clone nonsense with Spider-man turned me off to Marvel back in 1997, and if I wasn't such a fan of the Punisher, Captain America and The Ultimates(Avengers retelling), then this garbage would once again completely turn me off to Marvel Comics.Shame on you Marvel, for ruining another classic character from my era.Bloody, bloody shame! ... Read more

Book Description

In the year 2068, the Brain Computer (created by humans to be the core of a machine-driven Earth,) has created Selenoids, androids far surpassing the ability of humans. A virtually perfect society has been designed with just one virus in need of elimination: humans! This is the story of Ash Ramy, one of the few surviving humans in the Revolutional Organization bent on freeing earth from Selenoid rule. In a world of cold, hard machines, is an impossible love mankind’s last hope? ... Read more

Reviews (1)

It's all about the art this time..
I have to admit, I'm less and less impressed with the magic/kabbalistic mysticism that's become almost the entirety of the plot. I was actually offended by some of the content this time around. The art however, is worth the wade into the weird. Each of the issues collected here has a different visual scope and color scheme in keeping with the journey motif going on; Very blue and Van Gogh circa "Starry Night" at the beginning, a stylized monochromatic stone garden for Arcadia, flat red-dominated iconographic murals for Babylon, and by the time Promethea reaches 'Heaven' everything is given over to bright whites and muted golds. The lovliest is the split story from chapter six that shows Christian and Muslim versions of Promethea, both existant at the time of the Crusades - each panel has half a woman rendered with the appropriate geometric or iconographic motifs, fitting seamlessly together. ... Read more

Book Description

After Darth Vader`s narrow escape from the destruction of the Death Star, the Dark Lord is consumed with a desire to find the Force-strong young pilot who fired the fatal shot. For Luke Skywalker represents the heart and soul of the Alliance, and perhaps, for Vader, he represents much, much more. The book`s first printing features a foil-stamped logo and special bonus fold-out poster by Gibbons and Angus McKie. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Not bad, but I've seen and read better
'Vader's Quest,' fills an intersting story niche for the die-hard Star Wars fan. The story is set in-between Episdoes IV and V and chronicles Vader as he goes about hunting down the gunman responsible for the destruction of the Death Star - Luke Skywalker. There is very little in the way of new character revelation or backstory to draw much interest but the plot itself manages to be serviceable just enough to keep readers chugging through all 80 pages or so.

Artwork is just plain odd
This TPB is one you will love or hate. The pencil work at times is chillingly awesome. At other times it will make your face crunch up in a grimace!. The tipoff is the truly odd drawing of Luke on the cover. The inking, binding and other production features are excellent. I have seen Dark horse try this cartoon quality art style and I don't care for it. Some of the middle pages had washed out colors. Bottom line is that I enjoyed the story and some of the art work enough that it overcomes the bizarre pages so I give this 2 stars.

"Luke Skywalker - Darth Vader" 1st round
The title says it all... if you ever wondered how did the dark Lord of the Sith ever find out about Luke being his son, this is the book you've got to read...

Not the Expected
I'll say this here and now. If you're looking for a story that dives deep into Vader's past, examines various aspects of the Dark Lord, and features a riveting storyline packed with Darth Vader at his best... You're going to be disappointed. In my opinion they really should have advertised this book differently. Yeah, Vader is an important character and all, which is rare in SW lit, but you don't really get any big revelations.

It is quite different from your standard SW tale, though. Take, for example, Tom Vietch's 'Dark Empire' or Stackpole 'In the Empire's Service.' (I stress that excellence of the latter.) In any case, the story and art are quite different from these two more dark, rugged tales. The story has a fiar degree of humor, as well as very very nice, dramatic moments. The scene at the end in particular is classic, most notably for the shot of Vader standing at the hangar entrance in the moonlight with two rows ofd identical troopers behind him. Very nice and probably the best art moment in the book. The art itself is a bit of a mix. While it lacks detail and possesses a somewhat cartoonish quality, it also has a nice cinematic quality. The coloring is also quite effective. Overall its a very different story than the afformentioned, very series tales. The story is by no means very heavy or deep, but at the same time it's interesting to see Luke still a young naive farmboy instead of the boring, perfect old Jedi he turns into later on.

The gem of this comic has to be the story of Jal. It helpes to add a feel of realism about the Rebellion and defines its early movement fairly well. Once again, a different face instead of a tired old one is always welcome.

For die-hard Vader fans, I reccomend that you resist the urge and consider skipping this one. But for fans of a different tale that goes into some depth about the Imperial-Rebel differences, give it a shot. It's not an excellant comic, but it remains steady throughout. If you want a nice change from the norm than I reccomend this book. However, if you want to see some high-quality Macan scripting I reccomend 'X-wing Rogue Squadron: The Phantom Affair' and indeed the rest of Stackpole's exceptional series.

I do like having things explained to me
I have never been entirely certain just what the heck Vader did to find out about Luke Skywalker between "A New Hope" and "Empire Strikes Back." This is actually more of a four-star review, but I am awarding it an extra star for being one of the few SW comic books that I like.

This follows a post-ANH, pre-ESB storyline. The artwork is actually pleasant to look at--I found myself savoring the images. Yes, Luke and Vader do a few things that are out-of-character, but book writers have done worse to Luke (poor Luke... poor poor Luke!).

It's a fairly simple story on the surface, a fairly light story with little of the unrelenting misery that is sprawled throughout the bloated stories that fill the SW comics. This one is fresh, new, enjoyable, and has the added bonus of being drawn in a manner that is highly reminiscent of SW itself, colorful and pleasant.

It's not the greatest story ever written, but it sure is better than most! If you like Vader and/or Luke, be sure to check this comic out! ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Entertaining but lacking.
I've heard a lot about Warren Ellis' "The Authority." I've been wanting to read it for a while, but I decided to pick up his Stormwatch work, as I know that is preceded Ellis' newer series. I this up the other day and read through it fairly quickly. If it is anything, it is slick and entertaining. I really love the art, cuz I'm a sucker for that slick superhero jazz. The characters and their powers are unique and interesting, to say the least. It is also clear that Ellis had a very definite plan for where to take this series. What it is lacking is a certain depth of storyline. Each issue is a completely self-contained story, which is fine, but they feel a bit rushed. They all probably could have been better served over a 2-issue story arc. Still, the characters are intriguing, as are the ideas of doing good at all costs and the ends justifying the means, two common themes with which the stories flirt. While I've read a lot of reviews bashing the pre-Ellis Stormwatch material, it would probably be helpful to get a bit of a summary of what went on before, just to acquaint yourself with the particulars of the characters and the world which they inhabit. Still, an altogether entertaining, if light, collection. I look forward to reading more Stormwatch, end eventually getting right into the thick of the Authority.

Warren Ellis is making me buy comic books!
In the beginning, StormWatch was a monthly series from the WildStorm imprint of Image Comics - a creator-owned company all the flash & dazzle comics illustrators formed in the early Nineties. In the beginning, StormWatch was a blatant copy of The X-Men created by one of the most famous artists associated with the X-Men, Jim Lee. In the beginning, StormWatch was written and illustrated by Jim Lee. In the beginning, StormWatch sucked. A lot. For three years.

Then Jim Lee called Warren Ellis and said something to the effect of, "Please help me. I'll let you write it any way you want as long as it's good and people will buy it." Ellis probably replied something to the effect of, "That's such a stupid idea I'll do it just to surprise people. But watch out, I'm going to write it the way I want."

StormWatch: Force Of Nature collects the first six issues of Ellis's eye-opening run on the series. Picking up right after a member of the team turned traitor and almost got everyone else killed before being taken out himself, Ellis decides that this is a great chance for a new beginning. The group's leader, after finding out that StormWatch's charter as a U.N. sanctioned and supported emergency security force has become a decidedly more sinister arrangement, decides that if they are going to set up to fail, they might as well suspend all the "rules" of superheroic engagement and do some lasting good on the way down. "A band-aid on a cancer" is what he calls their previous efforts, and sets out to do something about it.

Ellis proceeds to throw out half of StormWatch's cliched superheroes in favor of three decidedly unusual characters of his own creation: Rose Tattoo, a speechless psychotic with superhuman weapons accuracy; Jenny Sparks, the alcoholic "Spirit of the Twentieth Century"; and Jack Hawksmoor, a multiple-abductee whose body has been genetically re-engineered by aliens as the perfect urban organism. Not your father's superheroes.

Ellis takes this book and these characters and places them in moral dilemmas out of one's worst nightmares and gives consequences to their actions. The results are ugly, ethically disturbing and riveting to read.

Tom Raney's art, while in keeping with Jim Lee's established visual style, is simply unsuited and unable to keep up with the whirlwind of intelligence, cynicism, and psychological subtlety that Ellis's scripts require. That's okay though, because you can almost see Ellis carrying the book on the writing alone -- and succeeding.

And this is only the beginning. Force Of Nature is more than StormWatch 2.0; it's the prologue to The Authority Ellis's truly ground-breaking evolution of the superhero team. This collection feels like the first act of a gripping performance.

It's the sort of thing that gives you faith in comics again.

It's dark...It's ugly...And oh it's so good
I had never heard of Stormwatch before but I had heard of Warren Ellis that was enough for me to buy this book...It was also it seemed enough for me to love it. Ellis's take on the world of Stormwatch is not the touchy-feely world that is often associated with comic books. It is set in the dark near-future with the Stormwatch team carrying out international police actions under the authority of the UN. The writing is great clearly up to Ellis's standards but it is the characters themselves that make Stormwatch so memorible. Jenny Sparkes and Jack Hawksmooor were my favorites. It's an original work and as the first of four collections definitely worth reading.

Superheroes with stones...
That's what StormWatch is. Didn't begin that way, however. Before Warren Ellis began his run on this title, it was exactly an Image book: X-Men ripoff superheroes spewing unbelievably bad dialogue while fighting cliched villains. Need proof? Take StormWatch's grim, bald Weatherman/Commander-in-Chief Henry Bendix, put him in a wheelchair and sit him next to the X-Men's grim, bald leader Charles Xavier. Need I say more?

It's here, however, that Ellis begins his assault on the superhero status quo. Most folk picking up the four StormWatch collections will be doing so because of the strength of its new, cult-favorite spin-off, The Authority, which acts to redefine superhero comics on a monthly basis. In Force of Nature, with the additions of the scenery-chewing Jenny Sparks, "The Spirit of the 20th Century", and Jack Hawksmoor, "The God of the Cities", Ellis makes a move away from the standard heroes with stupid codenames, who wear, as Ms. Sparks puts it, "those damnfool spandex body-condom things" --- to reluctant (and incidentally, well-dressed) men and women who do what they do because they want to change the world. This volume is, in essence, the first step in changing StormWatch, an ineffectual "band-aid on a cancer" as Weatherman puts it, into a fighting force for a better tomorrow. Into The Authority, bluntly.

Ellis' three main drawing points are his mad ideas, his utterly cool dialogue and the epic scope of his stories. These are all present here, but not to the extent that they are in The Authority. The six individual issues collected herein are each a stand-alone story instead of one or two massive, multi-part storylines, and that's one of the minor complaints I have with this, and the second StormWatch volumes. When I read a TPB, I expect a full, large and complete story, not a handful of several 24-page mini-stories. You can, however, do a lot worse than reading Warren Ellis' stand-alone comic stories, and each tale does have an element or a theme that leads onto the next one, so it's not as jarring as single-part story collections often are.

The first story deals with Weatherman recruiting new members into StormWatch, and eliminating old ones. He divides the team into three parts: StormWatch Prime, Red and Black; the latter of which contains Jenny Sparks, Hawksmoor and Shen Li-Min currently of Authority fame. In their first battle, SW Prime does battle with one of the most original super-villains in quite a while. Chapter two has Fahrenheit, Hawksmoor and Hellstrike (the team's requisite amusing Irishman) tracking down the murderers of an ex-StormWatch member, only to stumble across a far-reaching conspiracy directly concerning the team. Chapter three sees Black battling a team of super-powered racist police officers (don't let Giuliani see these... he'll get ideas). Chapter Four deals with a passenger jet downed by a terrorist missle, in a story that sows the seeds of a future Authority arc. In Chapter Five, we get to see a day in the life of StormWatch recruitment officer Christine Trelaine. Finally, Chapter Six is a look at the kind of widescreen, double-splash-page action that we'll come to expect from The Authority, as Tokyo is destroyed by genetically-engineered super-children, whose creator has a personal tie to StormWatch officer Fuji.

This realistic take on a United Nations-sponsored hero team is a great, fun ride, with sinister overtones of twisted politics, grey morality and dangerous ideologies. These are real-world superheroes, and Ellis portrays them as such, succeeding in the nigh-impossible task of taking an assortment of bland Image characters and turning them into dedicated soldiers and flawed, fascinating people. Tom Raney's art is wonderful (though he seems to conserve his best work for the covers), a combination of the energy and detailing of StormWatch creator Jim Lee and the pacing and figure styles of manga-influenced artists like Humberto Ramos. Also helping Raney out on the penciling chores are Pete Woods (of Deadpool fame) whose humorously-slanted art works wonders in "Black", especially Jenny Sparks' witty dispatching of a hormonal hotel clerk; and Michael Ryan, an Image veteran.

If you're a fan of Authority (and if you're not, order the first collection, Authority: Relentless NOW), read this book. Force of Nature, along with the other volumes of Warren Ellis' StormWatch run, provide great stories, art and insight into beloved characters, even if it isn't up to the standards Ellis would set for himself later.

A must for fans
I did not come to this stories when they came out, so the paperback has given me the option to read them without the pain of ordering back issues. Warren Ellis is quickly becoming a figure of the size of Miller, Gaiman and Moore. For those who like superheroes who really face important problems and not just the "save the universe (again) scheme" this is for you. ... Read more