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geekwayne's review against another edition
4.0
'Rapture' by Matt Kindt with art by Cafu is an odd fantasy graphic novel from the Valiant universe. This volume collects Rapture single issues #1-4.
Tama wanders the weird world of Deadside. She is a geomancer and has a powerful book to aid her. She finds reason to stop a tower from being built in Deadside and collects a team from Earth, including Ninjak, Punk Mambo, and Shadowman (aka Magpie). They are joined by a warrior named Rex and they are trying to stop someone named Babel who has found power in spoken words and wants to use them for bad things.
I really liked this trippy story. I'm really only familiar with Ninjak, but the other characters are all pretty equally interesting. I liked the blend of unique powers and gifts and how they are used. I really liked the lush art to tell the story. This was a really nice one to get to read.
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.
Tama wanders the weird world of Deadside. She is a geomancer and has a powerful book to aid her. She finds reason to stop a tower from being built in Deadside and collects a team from Earth, including Ninjak, Punk Mambo, and Shadowman (aka Magpie). They are joined by a warrior named Rex and they are trying to stop someone named Babel who has found power in spoken words and wants to use them for bad things.
I really liked this trippy story. I'm really only familiar with Ninjak, but the other characters are all pretty equally interesting. I liked the blend of unique powers and gifts and how they are used. I really liked the lush art to tell the story. This was a really nice one to get to read.
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.
jacobw's review against another edition
3.0
It was OK, had some good characters and some very forgettable ones. Maybe my rating is off because this is the only book in the series of characters I've read.
merrysociopath's review against another edition
3.0
Sarà che non sono un fan di Shadowman, ma questa miniserie-evento mi è sembrata sottotono rispetto al livello qualitativo che è lecito aspettarsi dalla Valiant e da Matt Kindt. Non è orribile, ma è accettabile, il che forse è peggio.
crookedtreehouse's review against another edition
3.0
Shadowman is my least favorite Valiant character, and the stories where Ninjak end up in The Deadside usually bore me, so I was happy to find how much I enjoyed the first issue in this collection, where we're reunited with the Geomancer as she makes her way through Deadside on a quest to stop an apocalypse.
Unfortunately, as the book went on there were too many flashbacks (all of which had a cool shift in art but whose stories were an exercise in diminished returns), and a disjointed pacing where I felt like the most interesting parts of a story were glossed over in order to give us pretty basic dialogue.
There were some great character moments, particularly featuring the kindness and ingenuity of Tama. I'd love if the book had focused more on her, and less on Ninjak, Punk Mambo, and Shadowman.
If you are someone who likes Shadowman, you should read this, as this book really should have had his name on the cover. He's not the most major character but he develops the most in this book. It's also the best use of him I can remember since the very beginning of the Valiant relaunch.
Unfortunately, as the book went on there were too many flashbacks (all of which had a cool shift in art but whose stories were an exercise in diminished returns), and a disjointed pacing where I felt like the most interesting parts of a story were glossed over in order to give us pretty basic dialogue.
There were some great character moments, particularly featuring the kindness and ingenuity of Tama. I'd love if the book had focused more on her, and less on Ninjak, Punk Mambo, and Shadowman.
If you are someone who likes Shadowman, you should read this, as this book really should have had his name on the cover. He's not the most major character but he develops the most in this book. It's also the best use of him I can remember since the very beginning of the Valiant relaunch.
carroq's review against another edition
5.0
Disclaimer: I received a free ecopy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I've been reading through as many comics from Valiant Entertainment as I can. They have consistently put out good books, so it isn't any surprise that I enjoyed this new miniseries. Like a lot of Valiant's books, it builds on what came before while trying to be friendly to new readers. This is a hard feat to achieve, but I think they did a decent job here.
Here's what I loved about this book. First, Tama. This is the current incarnation of the Geomancer. She came from the future in a box. Her attitude is wonderful. The creative team could have made this book really dark, but Tama keeps it light. Plus, she gets to set up the story and provides some hope. And she owns a book that tells the future and has ever changing contents.
Then there is what this book does for Shadowman (or Magpie, not really sure what he is going by these days). I haven't read all of his individual series, so there are a couple things about him that I only know vaguely from reading other books, but Rapture picks him up, dusts him off, and sets him on the path of being awesome. There is a lot of potential for the character at the end of this book, which makes me want Valiant to give him his own series again.
This story mostly takes place in the Deadside, which is kind of like purgatory. I've enjoyed all the books use this location. The sheer craziness of it makes it a lot of fun to explore. And I love the art. It takes advantage of the setting and mixes in the elements I would expect from other books featuring these characters. Could some new to Valiant enjoy this? Sure. But I think having some knowledge of the setting and characters would make this book more enjoyable.
I've been reading through as many comics from Valiant Entertainment as I can. They have consistently put out good books, so it isn't any surprise that I enjoyed this new miniseries. Like a lot of Valiant's books, it builds on what came before while trying to be friendly to new readers. This is a hard feat to achieve, but I think they did a decent job here.
Here's what I loved about this book. First, Tama. This is the current incarnation of the Geomancer. She came from the future in a box. Her attitude is wonderful. The creative team could have made this book really dark, but Tama keeps it light. Plus, she gets to set up the story and provides some hope. And she owns a book that tells the future and has ever changing contents.
Then there is what this book does for Shadowman (or Magpie, not really sure what he is going by these days). I haven't read all of his individual series, so there are a couple things about him that I only know vaguely from reading other books, but Rapture picks him up, dusts him off, and sets him on the path of being awesome. There is a lot of potential for the character at the end of this book, which makes me want Valiant to give him his own series again.
This story mostly takes place in the Deadside, which is kind of like purgatory. I've enjoyed all the books use this location. The sheer craziness of it makes it a lot of fun to explore. And I love the art. It takes advantage of the setting and mixes in the elements I would expect from other books featuring these characters. Could some new to Valiant enjoy this? Sure. But I think having some knowledge of the setting and characters would make this book more enjoyable.
jmanchester0's review against another edition
4.0
Wow - this cover is sick!
Huh. That doesn't sound like something I'd say. But I did really like this cover.
Interesting characters! But I bet I would have liked the story a lot more if I had known anything about them.
An interesting world, too! Again, it would have been good if I had known a little about it. But wait - this is in the Valiant universe! I have a few comics from there. I enjoyed reading the Faith series. I‰ЫЄm going to have to check it out some more.
It was a decent story. I like the tying in of the events of Biblical proportions.
And I really like the interaction with Amy.
If you know anything about these characters and these worlds, you might like this story. If you don‰ЫЄt, you still might like it.
Thanks to NetGalley, Diamond Distributors, and Valiant Entertainment for a copy in return for an honest review.
Huh. That doesn't sound like something I'd say. But I did really like this cover.
Interesting characters! But I bet I would have liked the story a lot more if I had known anything about them.
An interesting world, too! Again, it would have been good if I had known a little about it. But wait - this is in the Valiant universe! I have a few comics from there. I enjoyed reading the Faith series. I‰ЫЄm going to have to check it out some more.
It was a decent story. I like the tying in of the events of Biblical proportions.
And I really like the interaction with Amy.
If you know anything about these characters and these worlds, you might like this story. If you don‰ЫЄt, you still might like it.
Thanks to NetGalley, Diamond Distributors, and Valiant Entertainment for a copy in return for an honest review.
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