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geekwayne's review against another edition
4.0
'Junction True' by Ray Fawkes and Vince Locke is at first the kind of nightmarish car wreck you can't take your eyes away from, but becomes even scarier as an indictment of modern obsessive relationships.
In the not too distant future body modification has become pretty extreme. Extreme to the point where surgery alters the body so that it can't live without a symbiote. Dirk Brody has found his love and this is what she wants for them. A unification that is a puppet dependent upon a host. This is what Dirk wants with his love Teralyn. That she never reciprocates those feelings to him, except in sex and violence doesn't seem to perturb Dirk. Dirk's friend Naoko is a blogger of the future. With cameras always on, she is learning of the horrors of what Dirk is about to do to himself and she is trying to stop him.
The illustrations are a bit hazy and unformed and I think they go brilliantly with a story about a man who is blinded by love to the point of mutilating himself and potentially dying. Naoko is that friend that sees what is happening and tries desperately to intervene, and Teralyn has her own motives. Ones in which love doesn't seem to play a part. It's a severe story to read and one you want to look away from, but you just can't.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Top Shelf Productions, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
In the not too distant future body modification has become pretty extreme. Extreme to the point where surgery alters the body so that it can't live without a symbiote. Dirk Brody has found his love and this is what she wants for them. A unification that is a puppet dependent upon a host. This is what Dirk wants with his love Teralyn. That she never reciprocates those feelings to him, except in sex and violence doesn't seem to perturb Dirk. Dirk's friend Naoko is a blogger of the future. With cameras always on, she is learning of the horrors of what Dirk is about to do to himself and she is trying to stop him.
The illustrations are a bit hazy and unformed and I think they go brilliantly with a story about a man who is blinded by love to the point of mutilating himself and potentially dying. Naoko is that friend that sees what is happening and tries desperately to intervene, and Teralyn has her own motives. Ones in which love doesn't seem to play a part. It's a severe story to read and one you want to look away from, but you just can't.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Top Shelf Productions, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
iffer's review against another edition
3.0
I liked this...I guess? I've said this before, but I really mean it this time. This one is weird.
Let's start with the easier part of the review. I liked the art, which incorporated watercolor and had a "Goth aesthetic."
Okay...and the rest. This book is about a lot of things all rolled into one, some of which I'm sure I forgot to list:
-Unhealthy relationships, including destructive co-dependent ones, and drug-fueled ones
-Complexity of biotechnology, ethics, defining what it is to be human
-Dumb young people trying to be "cool" and unique
-Social media and how it impacts trends and interactions
I don't know. If you're the type of person to be intrigued by the fact that this is f'n weird, and you won't be traumatized by a messed up girl taking advantage of a guy who is stupidly infatuated with her to literally make his life dependent on her as a parasite in order for her to unsuccessfully pursue power/chasing an elusive emotional connection or high/wanting to be a famous novelty, and the infatuated guy's best friend putting together an investigative journalism piece/documentary about why the technology is bad, and then taking revenge on the messed up girl, then read this.
Otherwise, pass. This is definitely not for everyone. I do appreciate that it's not like anything I've read anytime recently.
Let's start with the easier part of the review. I liked the art, which incorporated watercolor and had a "Goth aesthetic."
Okay...and the rest. This book is about a lot of things all rolled into one, some of which I'm sure I forgot to list:
-Unhealthy relationships, including destructive co-dependent ones, and drug-fueled ones
-Complexity of biotechnology, ethics, defining what it is to be human
-Dumb young people trying to be "cool" and unique
-Social media and how it impacts trends and interactions
I don't know. If you're the type of person to be intrigued by the fact that this is f'n weird, and you won't be traumatized by a messed up girl taking advantage of a guy who is stupidly infatuated with her to literally make his life dependent on her as a parasite in order for her to unsuccessfully pursue power/chasing an elusive emotional connection or high/wanting to be a famous novelty, and the infatuated guy's best friend putting together an investigative journalism piece/documentary about why the technology is bad, and then taking revenge on the messed up girl, then read this.
Otherwise, pass. This is definitely not for everyone. I do appreciate that it's not like anything I've read anytime recently.
daynpitseleh's review against another edition
3.0
I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is an interesting graphic novel, the artwork is different and the story is thought-provoking.
This is an interesting graphic novel, the artwork is different and the story is thought-provoking.
gen_wolfhailstorm's review against another edition
4.0
Junction True introduces us to a near future Earth, taken by storm with a new craze where, from what I understand, people ingest parasites into their body as a kind of high and for them to move beneath the skin in attractive patterns, as a form of body modification... However, with the faze hurriedly increasing, it becomes a mutilated and dangerous life threatening, sadistic act. The synopsis doesn't clarify much...
I decided to give this graphic novel a 4 stars because it's just so unique. The art style, especially, was something that I've not come across before, it almost looks as if water colour was used and gave a really striking compliment (with the hues used) to the story it went with.
As for the story, I found it totally unique too and I found myself understanding it and being able to follow the plot much easier than I was expecting, but at the same time I did find this to be so out there, it appeared almost ridiculous in nature. That sounds harsh, but I can't describe it any other way.
In this graphic novel, we're following a selection of the underground parasite users and take a trip into their twisted, sadistic world, which I LOVED! The main character, Dirk, was a pretty interesting guy and although he lacked major character development, it was still interesting to see his thoughts in favour of this craze. His friend, who's name I didn't catch, was definitely more my kind of girl and somebody who I would have preferred as a main character, although she still did have a lot of influence in the story. As for Teralyn... She was definitely explored the most as from the beginning we are really hearing the story from her... If that makes sense? She was interestingly cruel and I found a flaw: when Teralyn ordered Dirk to say ''we'' and ''us'', she still said ''you'' at times, but I guess it wouldn't be clear if she didn't... Still...
The ending was not what I was expecting but was eerily satisfying, and be warned: there are graphic images throughout!!!
Being a graphic novel it only took me a few hours to read through this and it was super gripping throughout, with no loss of intensity as it was shown well in image and text in the amount of pages it had. A suggested read for those who like darker, near future, twisted genres.
(Received in exchange for an honest review on Netgalley- does not affect my opinion.)
Pick it up, give it a go and enjoy! >(^_^)<
Gén
I decided to give this graphic novel a 4 stars because it's just so unique. The art style, especially, was something that I've not come across before, it almost looks as if water colour was used and gave a really striking compliment (with the hues used) to the story it went with.
As for the story, I found it totally unique too and I found myself understanding it and being able to follow the plot much easier than I was expecting, but at the same time I did find this to be so out there, it appeared almost ridiculous in nature. That sounds harsh, but I can't describe it any other way.
In this graphic novel, we're following a selection of the underground parasite users and take a trip into their twisted, sadistic world, which I LOVED! The main character, Dirk, was a pretty interesting guy and although he lacked major character development, it was still interesting to see his thoughts in favour of this craze. His friend, who's name I didn't catch, was definitely more my kind of girl and somebody who I would have preferred as a main character, although she still did have a lot of influence in the story. As for Teralyn... She was definitely explored the most as from the beginning we are really hearing the story from her... If that makes sense? She was interestingly cruel and I found a flaw: when Teralyn ordered Dirk to say ''we'' and ''us'', she still said ''you'' at times, but I guess it wouldn't be clear if she didn't... Still...
The ending was not what I was expecting but was eerily satisfying, and be warned: there are graphic images throughout!!!
Being a graphic novel it only took me a few hours to read through this and it was super gripping throughout, with no loss of intensity as it was shown well in image and text in the amount of pages it had. A suggested read for those who like darker, near future, twisted genres.
(Received in exchange for an honest review on Netgalley- does not affect my opinion.)
Pick it up, give it a go and enjoy! >(^_^)<
Gén
jamielynnlano's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. Well, it wasn't anything new per-se, but this GN certainly managed to tell a really captivating, and dark, story. Super-dark is more like it. It was definitely thought-provoking and I borrowed the book from my girlfriend, but I am thinking of buying my own copy just so that I can loan it out to friends who need a little dose of darkness.
v_v_'s review against another edition
4.0
If Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind was written by nihilists.
glitterandtwang's review against another edition
4.0
This is the best thing I've read from Ray Fawkes.
The idea of risky, illegal, futuristic body modifications isn't new, but Fawkes' particular concept and illustration elevate the plot significantly. This is the first book in a long time that has made me feel physically queasy. Definitely one I am going to be thinking about for a while.
And the book itself is beautifully designed. Usually I don't find that worth noting, but this was texturally pleasant to read — a nice reprieve from the distressing subject matter.
The idea of risky, illegal, futuristic body modifications isn't
And the book itself is beautifully designed. Usually I don't find that worth noting, but this was texturally pleasant to read — a nice reprieve from the distressing subject matter.
lmcox's review
2.0
Disclaimer: I received a free e-galley of this book from Netgalley.
I had no expectations going into "Junction True." I knew it was a comic, and I assumed it was sci-fi since I'd requested the galley, but it had been so long since I'd read the description that I no longer remembered anything about it.
So at least I wasn't disappointed. This is a fairly solid, middle-of-the-pack story about body modification and power. The main character, a woman named Teralyn, is telling the first several issues of the story to what appears to be her lover. She's telling the story of her largest, most significant body modification.
In this world, mods are common (in certain circles, called Neumods) but fairly dangerous. They're also generally not mechanical; they're organic, like aphid tears you can install in your tear ducts to cry psychedelic tears, or tapeworms you can eat to make yourself skinny, or small creatures you can put under your skin to make colorful patterns. Of course, being insects and parasites and bacteria and viruses, these things can do a lot of damage. Teralyn meets Dirk at a club and he instantly falls in love with her. She instantly sees how she can use him; she tells him she only wants a puppet, and he agrees to be that puppet. Together, they decide to undertake a dangerous, horrifying mod, one that has been done on few people because it's illegal: they will essentially install junctions into their bodies that will make Dirk's digestion dependent on Teralyn. He can't process nutrients except as she feeds them through their junction. If she takes drugs and connects to him, he will get high whether he wants to or not.
Dirk's journalist friend Naoko doesn't think this is a good idea. (Neither do I.) She documents the stories of people whose Neumods have gone horribly wrong, and we see those interviews throughout the story. Some believe the mods ruined their lives, others think that their deformities are just one of many possible outcomes of Neumods - they made an informed decision going in, and they'd make it again. But Dirk agrees to this true junction (so named because the junctions are true to one another; no other link can be formed with them) after knowing Teralyn only a little more than a week, and Naoko is concerned.
She's right to be. Teralyn has never exactly hidden her crazy from Dirk, but she insists that they only refer to themselves as "I" or "we," never "you," and only "Teralyn," not Dirk. Only Teralyn exists. It may not even be a week before she runs off, leaving him to starve.
At this point, Teralyn stops narrating her story, saying she doesn't know or care what happened to him. She assumes he's dead. But then, he and Naoko enter. Dirk is hooked up to a machine, his junction torn out, and asks to speak to Teralyn alone while a video records them. He tells her he only wants to be a part of her again, and then kills himself. His friends are not so kind - they forcibly remove her junction and connect her to Dirk's machine.
We see that the true narrator is Naoko; this is perhaps a book, or video-chronicle, of the story she is compiling. She feels guilt for what she did to Teralyn and spends the rest of her life caring for the now-invalid woman.
The story is haunting and dark. The dynamic between Teralyn and Dirk falls just short of disturbing because Dirk, to me, doesn't feel hopelessly in love, or like he wants to be controlled, or like he actually knows what he wants at all; he feels stupid. We don't get much depth from him and could do with more. I'm not a fan of 'love at first sight' or Romeo & Juliet stories, both of which this story works with, because they feel shallow. That's a good word to describe my general feelings toward the book: shallow. It wants to say a lot about power, sex, relationships, autonomy, but it doesn't have much to say about them, and it lays it all out on the page. The characters aren't substantial enough to make up for the the brief plot, either, so it's left feeling lacking.
The art is, at times, beautiful. It reminds me of certain issues of The Sandman, with its angular faces, blue-washed watercolors and populated backgrounds. But it's also visually dark, and while there's a good amount of detail, it gets lost in the darkness. There's a grimy feel to it, which is certainly intentional since this is a cyberpunk-y world, but it doesn't appeal to me very much.
A quick, solid read that certainly wasn't bad, but wasn't excellent.
I had no expectations going into "Junction True." I knew it was a comic, and I assumed it was sci-fi since I'd requested the galley, but it had been so long since I'd read the description that I no longer remembered anything about it.
So at least I wasn't disappointed. This is a fairly solid, middle-of-the-pack story about body modification and power. The main character, a woman named Teralyn, is telling the first several issues of the story to what appears to be her lover. She's telling the story of her largest, most significant body modification.
In this world, mods are common (in certain circles, called Neumods) but fairly dangerous. They're also generally not mechanical; they're organic, like aphid tears you can install in your tear ducts to cry psychedelic tears, or tapeworms you can eat to make yourself skinny, or small creatures you can put under your skin to make colorful patterns. Of course, being insects and parasites and bacteria and viruses, these things can do a lot of damage. Teralyn meets Dirk at a club and he instantly falls in love with her. She instantly sees how she can use him; she tells him she only wants a puppet, and he agrees to be that puppet. Together, they decide to undertake a dangerous, horrifying mod, one that has been done on few people because it's illegal: they will essentially install junctions into their bodies that will make Dirk's digestion dependent on Teralyn. He can't process nutrients except as she feeds them through their junction. If she takes drugs and connects to him, he will get high whether he wants to or not.
Dirk's journalist friend Naoko doesn't think this is a good idea. (Neither do I.) She documents the stories of people whose Neumods have gone horribly wrong, and we see those interviews throughout the story. Some believe the mods ruined their lives, others think that their deformities are just one of many possible outcomes of Neumods - they made an informed decision going in, and they'd make it again. But Dirk agrees to this true junction (so named because the junctions are true to one another; no other link can be formed with them) after knowing Teralyn only a little more than a week, and Naoko is concerned.
She's right to be. Teralyn has never exactly hidden her crazy from Dirk, but she insists that they only refer to themselves as "I" or "we," never "you," and only "Teralyn," not Dirk. Only Teralyn exists. It may not even be a week before she runs off, leaving him to starve.
At this point, Teralyn stops narrating her story, saying she doesn't know or care what happened to him. She assumes he's dead. But then, he and Naoko enter. Dirk is hooked up to a machine, his junction torn out, and asks to speak to Teralyn alone while a video records them. He tells her he only wants to be a part of her again, and then kills himself. His friends are not so kind - they forcibly remove her junction and connect her to Dirk's machine.
We see that the true narrator is Naoko; this is perhaps a book, or video-chronicle, of the story she is compiling. She feels guilt for what she did to Teralyn and spends the rest of her life caring for the now-invalid woman.
The story is haunting and dark. The dynamic between Teralyn and Dirk falls just short of disturbing because Dirk, to me, doesn't feel hopelessly in love, or like he wants to be controlled, or like he actually knows what he wants at all; he feels stupid. We don't get much depth from him and could do with more. I'm not a fan of 'love at first sight' or Romeo & Juliet stories, both of which this story works with, because they feel shallow. That's a good word to describe my general feelings toward the book: shallow. It wants to say a lot about power, sex, relationships, autonomy, but it doesn't have much to say about them, and it lays it all out on the page. The characters aren't substantial enough to make up for the the brief plot, either, so it's left feeling lacking.
The art is, at times, beautiful. It reminds me of certain issues of The Sandman, with its angular faces, blue-washed watercolors and populated backgrounds. But it's also visually dark, and while there's a good amount of detail, it gets lost in the darkness. There's a grimy feel to it, which is certainly intentional since this is a cyberpunk-y world, but it doesn't appeal to me very much.
A quick, solid read that certainly wasn't bad, but wasn't excellent.
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