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This is a really awesome concept, and I like the idea so much that I am giving it a four star rating, even though it’s probably more deserving of a three. The characters are a little flat; Graham is the hero, but he’s kind of a bumbling idiot who sucks at communicating. And somehow always manages to pull through (everyone in the top two levels has a bracelet - why is he the only one who can manage to survive???) I do like the rebel girl, but they flipped her side too quickly, which cheapened her character. The idea of this ruling body is pretty awesome though. And the explanation for why no scary creatures are in the world. I love Gary and the scrubbers- they’re pretty awesome. The bear guy was just odd. Not sure why he was pulled from the gated place to help the Mars family? Also the names they chose for people was odd, Mars is the god of war, yet Galina from another family had more balls than anyone and actually faced the Hum dude. And how e did he not die? I am curious to see where by are going win Chronos though. I like mythology, so seeing the names, I’m wondering how they will tie into the characterizations of those myth. I plan to continue reading this as more episodes are released, but I’m not blind to its weaknesses. I’m just intrigued enough to want to know more. So I guess that makes it deserving of the four stars.
It took me a while to get hooked into this comic, as the first one or two issues of this collection jumped from one two-page glimpse into one part of the story to another, not providing enough connection or continuity for the reader who is just getting introduced to this universe. But it kept getting better and I loved how detailed and precise the illustrations are, so I give it four stars in the end. I really like Jason, the Bugbear agent. But I dislike that this is the end of this comic series for now, because I feel it had more in it than just these six issues.
I was hoping for something a little more convoluted. It seemed a pretty straight forward story; With a title like cryptocracy, I was hoping for more.
Between 3.75 and 4. I love conspiracy stories and "shadow governments" (all hail X-Files!) so I was excited to hear about this series. It read well, not too fast like a lot of comics today, and it laid great groundwork for a continuing series. Are we going to get more? Van Jensen's writing and Pete Woods' art blended perfectly together providing an in depth history with art that I enjoyed immensely. Two issues with the series come to mind. Pull back on the use of cryptids, with the exceptions of Jason the bugbear and Gary the Grey. I don't think we need a ton of mythical creatures each story. And please, for the love of Pete, change the font being used when the greys talk. My old eyes can't decipher it!
This is basically the Fantasy version of the superb sci-fi comic [b:Lazarus, Vol. 1: Family|18259637|Lazarus, Vol. 1 Family|Greg Rucka|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1393692086l/18259637._SY75_.jpg|25718702]. It’s about how nine families secretly rule the world, Illuminati style, making it an entry into both the Secret World and Secret History genres. There’s nothing mind-blowing here, it’s just a solid comic book tale with monsters and talking bears and stuff.
The art is mostly decent, but there are a few times where it’s unclear what’s happening because of the angles chosen. Artists should be less cutesy and more focused on the fundamentals when it comes to storytelling.
The art is mostly decent, but there are a few times where it’s unclear what’s happening because of the angles chosen. Artists should be less cutesy and more focused on the fundamentals when it comes to storytelling.
Really great, but I feel like they could have padded it a bit more and given some of the story a bit longer to develop. It's very fast, which is fun, but some of the mysteries or story lines exist for only two pages before resolution. While that can be very fulfilling, I enjoy it so much I would not mind some better pacing. Still great though.
The world is ruled by families who work behind the scenes, pulling strings, manipulating events to be what they want. Until a mysterious man named Hum begins to kill the family patriarchs in an attempt to bring about a dark prophecy.
Jensen and Woods have created a fascinating and terrifying world where conspiracies are more than just theory. I appreciate how they attempted to blend mythology with science fiction technology. Talking animals, aliens, dragons, and Mass Effect-like wrist holo-computers blend together to create an action-packed, no holds barred fight for the future of the planet. The fun part is, who are you supposed to cheer on?
While it appeared that this was a stand alone volume, the ending (no spoilers!) hinted at further volumes to come. Phew!
http://novelmyths.blogspot.com/2017/04/cryptocracy.html
Jensen and Woods have created a fascinating and terrifying world where conspiracies are more than just theory. I appreciate how they attempted to blend mythology with science fiction technology. Talking animals, aliens, dragons, and Mass Effect-like wrist holo-computers blend together to create an action-packed, no holds barred fight for the future of the planet. The fun part is, who are you supposed to cheer on?
While it appeared that this was a stand alone volume, the ending (no spoilers!) hinted at further volumes to come. Phew!
http://novelmyths.blogspot.com/2017/04/cryptocracy.html
I love a good secret society story as much as the next guy, and Cryptocracy is a strange one that is sometimes overwrought and other times pretty great. And sometimes there’s a talking bear. Still, there’s a lot of weirdness here, and it’s a multigenerational Illuminati-style tale, so it’s hitting a lot of my notes even though it might not hit yours.
If this is something you think you’d be into, you’ll probably like it, but I wouldn’t necessarily take a flier on it if you’re iffy on this genre.
If this is something you think you’d be into, you’ll probably like it, but I wouldn’t necessarily take a flier on it if you’re iffy on this genre.
An interesting concept and story. Read this as part of Book Riot's Read Harder 2018 Challenge. Normally I wouldn't gravitate towards graphic novels, but this was a nice surprise, even if I wouldn't likely read more.
There's going to be more of these, right? There has to be, this was epically fascinating, and I *have* to know what happens!
Real rating: 4.5 stars
Real rating: 4.5 stars