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crowyhead's review against another edition
4.0
This was a ton of fun. I felt like I "got" the concept of Planetary much better than I did with the last collection I read, probably because this is the first collection. :) The interplay between Elijah Snow and Jakita Warner is brilliant -- no one does snarky dialog like Warren Ellis. My current favorite line: "Why do I even have to say this? Why do I have to say 'get off the unique and probably alien living plinth that zaps the unwary'? What is wrong with my life that I have to say these things out loud to someone who's been in Planetary that long?"
jordibal's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
neven's review against another edition
2.0
I've heard that this gets better, but volume 1 really didn't make me want to find out for myself.
theartolater's review
4.0
Closer to a 3.5, this is a weird half-sci-fi half-super hero comic by Warren Ellis, who's generally awesome. Honestly? This was just okay, but once the broader mythology fleshes out a bit, it gets a lot better. I liked the second volume more.
becks_books's review against another edition
1.0
One of these days I swear I'll read something by DC that I like, but alas! This is not that day.
First off- the characters were really one dimensional. I couldn't tell what they were like or what their motivations were. maybe it's explained in later volumes but we get barely any information in this volume about what these people are like and why the hell I should care. So far there's this 100 year old guy who I think has super powers? He seems... standoffish. There's a woman with a weird asymmetric top that just looks way too tight to be running around finding space crap in, she also seems standoffish? Like the typical "badass girl" thing. No thanks. Also she has superpowers. Not sure which ones. And there's this guy who's there I think for comedy or something (hard to tell, it wasn't very funny) and he's the dumb one I guess. He seems to have powers too? I don't know. Everything was so badly explained. I just want to sleep.
The plot was very clunky- each comic is kind of a standalone story linked with the others, and I didn't like any of them. Most of them felt like they just weren't explained well enough (could also be I gave up paying much attention near the end so I really don't know what happened there) and the stories just ended kind of abruptly with no conclusion. I didn't understand what was happening most of the time and maybe I should re-read it and focus really hard (I won't be doing that) or maybe I'd understand it more if I knew more about the DC universe and really got into DC comics? (Probably won't do that either)
First off- the characters were really one dimensional. I couldn't tell what they were like or what their motivations were. maybe it's explained in later volumes but we get barely any information in this volume about what these people are like and why the hell I should care. So far there's this 100 year old guy who I think has super powers? He seems... standoffish. There's a woman with a weird asymmetric top that just looks way too tight to be running around finding space crap in, she also seems standoffish? Like the typical "badass girl" thing. No thanks. Also she has superpowers. Not sure which ones. And there's this guy who's there I think for comedy or something (hard to tell, it wasn't very funny) and he's the dumb one I guess. He seems to have powers too? I don't know. Everything was so badly explained. I just want to sleep.
The plot was very clunky- each comic is kind of a standalone story linked with the others, and I didn't like any of them. Most of them felt like they just weren't explained well enough (could also be I gave up paying much attention near the end so I really don't know what happened there) and the stories just ended kind of abruptly with no conclusion. I didn't understand what was happening most of the time and maybe I should re-read it and focus really hard (I won't be doing that) or maybe I'd understand it more if I knew more about the DC universe and really got into DC comics? (Probably won't do that either)
beyadob's review against another edition
5.0
Warren Ellis is a freaking genius. I loved Transmetropolitan to bits. Trees was amazing as hell. And now I finally got around to reading his best work ever - Planetary. And I am absolutely blown away by it.
Planetary begins a bit slow and takes the amnesiac route to familiarize the reader with the protagonist’s universe. What a wonderful, weird, glorious universe it is. Ellis uses some truly fantastic ideas here: a machine that creates realities out of fictional narratives and lets those characters cross over, a brilliant post-Gojira tribute, World War II supercomputer that can access other universes, and so on.
It’s also a stupendously awesome and different take on superheroes. I won’t spoil it for you here; I highly suggest you read and find out yourself. The characters aren’t immediately likeable, but that’s how they’re designed: with flaws and everything. Once you break the surface, though, you’re in for a wild cast of characters that you’ll learn to love and hate.
The writing is sharp and superb. No moments are wasted. The art complements the writing, drawing the characters in a realistic fashion while maintaining the standard comic book feel. It’s a brilliant package that must be enjoyed first-hand.
If I had the chance to wipe my memory and read this again, I’d do so in a heartbeat.
Planetary begins a bit slow and takes the amnesiac route to familiarize the reader with the protagonist’s universe. What a wonderful, weird, glorious universe it is. Ellis uses some truly fantastic ideas here: a machine that creates realities out of fictional narratives and lets those characters cross over, a brilliant post-Gojira tribute, World War II supercomputer that can access other universes, and so on.
It’s also a stupendously awesome and different take on superheroes. I won’t spoil it for you here; I highly suggest you read and find out yourself. The characters aren’t immediately likeable, but that’s how they’re designed: with flaws and everything. Once you break the surface, though, you’re in for a wild cast of characters that you’ll learn to love and hate.
The writing is sharp and superb. No moments are wasted. The art complements the writing, drawing the characters in a realistic fashion while maintaining the standard comic book feel. It’s a brilliant package that must be enjoyed first-hand.
If I had the chance to wipe my memory and read this again, I’d do so in a heartbeat.
lvfl's review against another edition
2.0
I've been wanting to read a graphic novel. And...I just don't get it.
kfan's review against another edition
4.0
Not life-changing, but really fun if you like stories where you really only get glimpses of super complicated back-stories. It's kind of cheating, I guess; we don't really get to learn much about the characters, the larger stories are really just a collection of hints that may or may not be related. It doesn't sound like it'd work, but it's still fun.
judd's review against another edition
5.0
Ellis begins his tour of comic book history, told in the form of a kick-ass comic book, naturally.
Super heroic archeology at its finest.
Super heroic archeology at its finest.