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geekwayne's review against another edition
4.0
'Divinity III: Stalinverse' by Matt Kindt with art by Trevor Hairsine is a cool take on an alternate history and what some are willing to do to set things right.
If you're new to this series, this isn't the best place to start. A powerful godlike being has messed up history. What has now happened is that during World War II, Russia took over Europe. It's now 2017 and the Americas have been Soviet colonies since 1995. A man named Colin King suspects that this is not the way things are supposed to be. He visits a man named Abram Adams who may be able to help set things right. The only problem is that Abram is in a psychiatric hospital.
The art is just great. I loved the way this book looked. The covers are some of the best I've seen. This is a 4 issue story arc, and it builds really nicely, but the ending felt like a bit of a let down. I am giving this 4 stars for a mostly good story and all good art.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Valiant Entertainment, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
If you're new to this series, this isn't the best place to start. A powerful godlike being has messed up history. What has now happened is that during World War II, Russia took over Europe. It's now 2017 and the Americas have been Soviet colonies since 1995. A man named Colin King suspects that this is not the way things are supposed to be. He visits a man named Abram Adams who may be able to help set things right. The only problem is that Abram is in a psychiatric hospital.
The art is just great. I loved the way this book looked. The covers are some of the best I've seen. This is a 4 issue story arc, and it builds really nicely, but the ending felt like a bit of a let down. I am giving this 4 stars for a mostly good story and all good art.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Valiant Entertainment, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
shane_tiernan's review against another edition
4.0
Consistently cool story and great art. Really glad I found out about this series. Also cool that it's set mostly in Russia, nice change of pace.
crookedtreehouse's review against another edition
3.0
The Divinity portion of the Valiant Universe hasn't been my favorite. But this story, about how yet another powerful Russian cosmonaut manages to change history so that the USSR becomes an intergalactic superpower, had me on board for the first three issues. It's sort of [b:House of M|105973|House of M|Brian Michael Bendis|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1619972145l/105973._SY75_.jpg|102154] meets [b:Superman: Red Son|154798|Superman Red Son|Mark Millar|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1298557533l/154798._SX50_.jpg|1950026]. A nice balance of explanation for how the world came to change while also advancing the story and making the universe genuinely interesting.
Unfortunately, for me, the final issue had one of those action sequences where there's too much Telling as the fighters state their motivations and reasonings and rehash the plot while they punch each other. It's very silly. And, while they obviously had to reset the universe at the end of the series, it wasn't in a fun or interesting way. I found myself wishing they could have told a longer story so that they could have a more impactful ending.
If you enjoy Elseworlds or Multiverse stories, as well as the regular Valiant Universe, you should check this out. I really did enjoy it quite a bit more than its predecessors.
Unfortunately, for me, the final issue had one of those action sequences where there's too much Telling as the fighters state their motivations and reasonings and rehash the plot while they punch each other. It's very silly. And, while they obviously had to reset the universe at the end of the series, it wasn't in a fun or interesting way. I found myself wishing they could have told a longer story so that they could have a more impactful ending.
If you enjoy Elseworlds or Multiverse stories, as well as the regular Valiant Universe, you should check this out. I really did enjoy it quite a bit more than its predecessors.
carroq's review against another edition
5.0
Disclaimer: I received a free ecopy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
What would the world be like if the Soviet Union had won? Not just the Cold War, but if they were successful going back to the end of WWI, it might look something like this book. It reimagines the Valiant universe in a Soviet dominated Earth.
To begin with, this isn't particularly friendly to new readers. It does give some background on the Divinity storyline, which has the most impact on this one of the other Valiant books. They fail to introduce most of the characters though. For someone already familiar with them, this book was perfectly fine. Others might find it off putting or hard to follow.
I love what they do with the traditional Valiant heroes, both in terms of characterization and art. The groundwork for the conflict was laid out in the previous Divinity books, so it is satisfying to see what happened to the third cosmonaut. The art is great. It captures the setting perfectly. Divinity III is a blast to read.
What would the world be like if the Soviet Union had won? Not just the Cold War, but if they were successful going back to the end of WWI, it might look something like this book. It reimagines the Valiant universe in a Soviet dominated Earth.
To begin with, this isn't particularly friendly to new readers. It does give some background on the Divinity storyline, which has the most impact on this one of the other Valiant books. They fail to introduce most of the characters though. For someone already familiar with them, this book was perfectly fine. Others might find it off putting or hard to follow.
I love what they do with the traditional Valiant heroes, both in terms of characterization and art. The groundwork for the conflict was laid out in the previous Divinity books, so it is satisfying to see what happened to the third cosmonaut. The art is great. It captures the setting perfectly. Divinity III is a blast to read.
villyidol's review against another edition
3.0
I read the last issue of [b: Divinity II|30279506|Divinity II|Matt Kindt|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1465608769s/30279506.jpg|50755139] again to get myself up to pace. It wasn’t necessary.
Things have changed drastically with the beginning of this last book in the trilogy. Giving us an alternate history in which the world is ruled by the Global Soviet Union.
Of course one or several of the three cosmonauts that, in the first two books, discovered something in deep space and then returned to earth with the power to change time and space has something to do with it.
But we do get a nice recount of previous events, which makes this third book pretty much stand-alone-readable.
So, what’s going on?
While not everybody is happy with their communist rulers, very few remain that actually remember the original timeline. But those are determined to restore it. They will need Divinity’s help, who’s now in a mental asylum. So first they have to make him remember and then get out of there.
A few other Valiant characters join in as well. But they too have to be convinced that something is amiss and that there’s an original timeline worth fighting for.
Taking into account the god-like powers of their enemy, it all builds up to an epic battle in the end …
… that never really happens.
What the …?! Yep. They just talk it over. Pretty sensible, actually. But maybe not the right choice for a comic book like this. Seldom have I seen something so anticlimactic.
Overall it was still fun, thanks to an interesting setting and the often very dynamic artwork. But ultimately it was a disappointment.
Well, apparently this trilogy is setting up another series in Matt Kindt and Trevor Hairsine’s [b: Eternity|37419720|Eternity|Matt Kindt|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1522575682s/37419720.jpg|59057885]. But I’ve read Chad’s review of that book and decided not to bother.
There’s a Divinity III spin off book, though, that’s apparently fun.
Things have changed drastically with the beginning of this last book in the trilogy. Giving us an alternate history in which the world is ruled by the Global Soviet Union.
Of course one or several of the three cosmonauts that, in the first two books, discovered something in deep space and then returned to earth with the power to change time and space has something to do with it.
But we do get a nice recount of previous events, which makes this third book pretty much stand-alone-readable.
So, what’s going on?
While not everybody is happy with their communist rulers, very few remain that actually remember the original timeline. But those are determined to restore it. They will need Divinity’s help, who’s now in a mental asylum. So first they have to make him remember and then get out of there.
A few other Valiant characters join in as well. But they too have to be convinced that something is amiss and that there’s an original timeline worth fighting for.
Taking into account the god-like powers of their enemy, it all builds up to an epic battle in the end …
… that never really happens.
What the …?! Yep. They just talk it over. Pretty sensible, actually. But maybe not the right choice for a comic book like this. Seldom have I seen something so anticlimactic.
Overall it was still fun, thanks to an interesting setting and the often very dynamic artwork. But ultimately it was a disappointment.
Well, apparently this trilogy is setting up another series in Matt Kindt and Trevor Hairsine’s [b: Eternity|37419720|Eternity|Matt Kindt|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1522575682s/37419720.jpg|59057885]. But I’ve read Chad’s review of that book and decided not to bother.
There’s a Divinity III spin off book, though, that’s apparently fun.
lukeisthename34's review against another edition
5.0
Boy, they really went for it here. I love that Valiant doesn't hold back on stories like this. Another homerun.
tmaluck's review against another edition
4.0
One of the best trilogies in comics, period.
Some of my reasons can be found at Book Riot.
Some of my reasons can be found at Book Riot.
librarimans's review against another edition
4.0
Basically a Valiant version of Flashpoint or Secret Wars, I enjoyed this quite a bit.
acidalia's review
3.0
I think I need to read the 2nd one before I really decide how much I like this one.
squidbag's review
4.0
Surprisingly good; early in the Soviet space program, they shot a guy "further into space than anyone had ever gone" and when he comes back (somewhat in an unexpected fashion) he has powers and there's a series of confrontations, some involving the previously established superheroes of the Valiant universe. Sounds boring and cookie-cutter, right? From this, Kindt and crew tease out a heartbreaking, non-linear, and exploratory tale about...well, a lot of things. I found this to be more engaging (in terms of talking about dimensional overlap and the potentially looping nature of the timestream) than the recently-read (by me) FBP. Vulnerable, raw writing and beautiful / intimidating visuals. Good comics.
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