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geekwayne's review against another edition
3.0
'Orphan Blade' is a graphic novel that looks like it's for younger readers, but it's got a level of violence that makes it not for the Avatar audience.
A world attacked by kaiju finds a way to defeat them by creating a set of weapons from their bones. Hadashi is a young boy who wants to be a warrior. When an accident maims his hand, he finds himself set on a different course. Fate has a role to play, and he finds himself the target of strange kaiju and a group of assassins. Will he be able to become the warrior he always wanted and to make the sacrifices he needs to?
I was not expecting the story in this book based on the cover. The cover looks like an animated cartoon, but contains a story that is quite dark at times. It's very violent, but I did like the use of finishing moves (like in Mortal Kombat). Art by Jake Myler is good. The book is dedicated to writer M. Nicholas Almand, who died in 2013. Overall, I liked it.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Oni Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
A world attacked by kaiju finds a way to defeat them by creating a set of weapons from their bones. Hadashi is a young boy who wants to be a warrior. When an accident maims his hand, he finds himself set on a different course. Fate has a role to play, and he finds himself the target of strange kaiju and a group of assassins. Will he be able to become the warrior he always wanted and to make the sacrifices he needs to?
I was not expecting the story in this book based on the cover. The cover looks like an animated cartoon, but contains a story that is quite dark at times. It's very violent, but I did like the use of finishing moves (like in Mortal Kombat). Art by Jake Myler is good. The book is dedicated to writer M. Nicholas Almand, who died in 2013. Overall, I liked it.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Oni Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
droar's review against another edition
2.0
Weird little book. The art is nice and vibrant, especially the sections in the blighted areas, but the plot is all over the place. Like the opening is about a Kaiju (which sounds way more interesting honestly) Then we jump to students in a dojo where the master is drunk all the time for about 20 pages. Then we do thief stuff, then bounty hunters show up, and it's all a big mess. The character's relationships are all donked up to, character change sides for seemingly no reason and I think 2 of the main character kiss at the end with no warning or lead up. Overall, quite Meh.
jljaina's review
2.0
Almost 2.5 stars but not quite there. I wanted to like this, I really did. The artwork is fun and playful and reminded me a bit of Avatar: The Last Airbender. Sadly the story did not live up to it's end...
The first thing that hurt this was right at the beginning. The prologue. I could not read it! The font style and size caused my eyes so much pain attempting to read it I just skipped it. So this comic and I were not off to a good start. One I get past that however, it seems to pick up. Playful artwork, expressive characters....I was happily reading along for awhile
Then things get very muddled and violent. Habashi, our main character, gets a short that he uses to defeat monsters and suddenly he is wanted by a deadly assassination team. Now I am a manga fan, as many may know from my other reviews, but this is some far fetched violence even by those standards. I mean, one girl can have body parts removed (including her head) and still be alive and fighting! The children assassins are probably the most twisted and disturbing. I mean, these are young kids (maybe 10 years old) off killing people in a horrible, nightmarish manner while their parents stand by, cheering them on. Crazy!
The setting of this book seems to be more a feudal era of Japan based on artwork, but we have characters of all nationalities. It is honestly an impressive blend in a way yet is seemed more like overkill. I got the feeling it was done to as a stance to the no one can take offense and so the author would not be viewed as potentially prejudice. It just didn't fit to the rest. Same with the very last scene of the book. Suffice to say I didn't see that coming nor did it fit. I felt it was more a statement over anything else. Also the style of speak often did not fit to the time period. I hate seeing modern expressions where they do not belong.
So ultimately I felt this books purpose, age group, time era, era was a jumbled mix. We went from what started to look like a middle grade comic to a violent 'Battle Royale' feeling that is for older teens/adults. So many other things just did not piece together in my mind. So many things went by unexplained properly and I ended up having more questions than answers. The reason it ALMOST gets 2.5 stars (verses only 2 stars) was the artwork. It is well done.
*I was loaned a digital copy of this comic in exchange for a fair and honest review.*
The first thing that hurt this was right at the beginning. The prologue. I could not read it! The font style and size caused my eyes so much pain attempting to read it I just skipped it. So this comic and I were not off to a good start. One I get past that however, it seems to pick up. Playful artwork, expressive characters....I was happily reading along for awhile
Then things get very muddled and violent. Habashi, our main character, gets a short that he uses to defeat monsters and suddenly he is wanted by a deadly assassination team. Now I am a manga fan, as many may know from my other reviews, but this is some far fetched violence even by those standards. I mean, one girl can have body parts removed (including her head) and still be alive and fighting! The children assassins are probably the most twisted and disturbing. I mean, these are young kids (maybe 10 years old) off killing people in a horrible, nightmarish manner while their parents stand by, cheering them on. Crazy!
The setting of this book seems to be more a feudal era of Japan based on artwork, but we have characters of all nationalities. It is honestly an impressive blend in a way yet is seemed more like overkill. I got the feeling it was done to as a stance to the no one can take offense and so the author would not be viewed as potentially prejudice. It just didn't fit to the rest. Same with the very last scene of the book. Suffice to say I didn't see that coming nor did it fit. I felt it was more a statement over anything else. Also the style of speak often did not fit to the time period. I hate seeing modern expressions where they do not belong.
So ultimately I felt this books purpose, age group, time era, era was a jumbled mix. We went from what started to look like a middle grade comic to a violent 'Battle Royale' feeling that is for older teens/adults. So many other things just did not piece together in my mind. So many things went by unexplained properly and I ended up having more questions than answers. The reason it ALMOST gets 2.5 stars (verses only 2 stars) was the artwork. It is well done.
*I was loaned a digital copy of this comic in exchange for a fair and honest review.*
michelle_neuwirth_gray9311's review against another edition
2.0
I was really turned off by the amount of swearing in this kids graphic novel. Also, the plot felt a bit disjointed.
tiamatq's review
2.0
This book had some good premises, but felt unfocused. Was it an alternative history book? A coming of age story? A romance? Horror? Bad-ass combat for people who love video games? Someone overcoming a disability? It has elements of all these genres, but doesn't really incorporate them all into an effective story. It felt disjointed in both storytelling and in the intended audience. While the art, plot description, and initial story seem aimed at young teens, it makes a very abrupt turn into gore. Suddenly we're seeing over-the-top limbs being sliced off, beheadings, and cannibalism. Which just left me wondering... Who is this written for? While it wasn't for me, I think the artwork is strong and the coloring is excellent. This book showed promise, but I think it could've done with better editing and tighter writing. I was sorry to see that the author had passed away before the book was published.
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