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hornyforbooks's review against another edition
2.0
The art was pretty, but I just couldn't bring myself to care about the story. to be honest I DNF'd about 2/3 through. Its not particularly mind bendingly weird or out there either.
woowottreads's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 stars, but I'm not going to round up to three, because I'm not sure entirely how I feel about this. Some parts I liked, some parts were baffling and awkward, and some parts were just--well, there were a few things that characters did that didn't quite make sense with how they square at the end. I'm looking at you, Zephyr.
ryter89's review against another edition
3.0
The plot seemed really loose and without direction. Maybe I just didn't get it? This didn't seem like reading a story but more like reading chunks of time put together in some kind of order that could be seen as chronological. One issue didn't flow into the next. Definitely not my favorite Matt Fraction. Gabriel Bá's art was great like usual. All in all I didn't love it but I didn't dislike it.
zerobot's review against another edition
3.0
Eh. Style with no substance doesn't quite explain it, but I'll be darned if I can find much motivation for anything the characters do here. I appreciate a lean story but even lean animals need some connective tissue.
And there are entire chunks that seem to be missing. Spoilerish, but how does the main character escape the three girls and end up arresting the robot making guy? I re-read that portion several times and I can't figure it out.
Someone (I know who) once said that you know you are watching pornography when you see the entire transition from one place to another. I think, despite all the sex, this comic could learn a bit from porno.
And there are entire chunks that seem to be missing. Spoilerish, but how does the main character escape the three girls and end up arresting the robot making guy? I re-read that portion several times and I can't figure it out.
Someone (I know who) once said that you know you are watching pornography when you see the entire transition from one place to another. I think, despite all the sex, this comic could learn a bit from porno.
aych's review against another edition
4.0
A more accessible version of Michael Moorcock’s Jerry Cornelius.
skolastic's review against another edition
4.0
Tough to tell whether this is a 3, a 3.5, or a 4. It has a lot going for it - Fraction is allowed to really go off the rails here, leading to some genuinely hilarious bits, and Bá is perfectly matched to the subject matter here (everything looks like hyperstylized concept art for a 60s or 70s spy thriller, which is perfect). I think that as time goes on and the story gets more complicated, though, it loses a lot of the charm that the first few stories have and just becomes obsessed with running down the dumb trope checklist. I'm going to give it a second shot, though.
nharkins's review against another edition
2.0
Mess.
Total mess.
Funniest thing was DeVries Technical Institute being the supplier of mooks/henchmen working for evil organizations.
I've liked Gabriel Bá's art since Finn lent me [b:The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 1: Apocalypse Suite|2795053|The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 1 Apocalypse Suite|Gerard Way|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327877097s/2795053.jpg|2820826] a few years ago, although Cassanova being drawn as a beefcake Mick Jagger/Richard Ashcroft is a little weird.
As for Matt Fraction, I liked the afterward/letters section at the end of each issue much better than the comic itself. He talks about his influences, and he's clearly a bright guy who's super-into the spy genre and innovative storytelling techniques, but I think he's been ruined by the film 'Primer' (I used to say "If time travel was possible, someone would've killed Einstein." I'm now changing it to Shane Carruth).
A small gag was had at the reader's expense with Newman Xeno's identity, but those points in cleverness will all... unravel... when he eventually does reveal it. A face in bandages is effectively equivalent to Chekhov's gun: it's gotta go off sometime.
Total mess.
Funniest thing was DeVries Technical Institute being the supplier of mooks/henchmen working for evil organizations.
I've liked Gabriel Bá's art since Finn lent me [b:The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 1: Apocalypse Suite|2795053|The Umbrella Academy, Vol. 1 Apocalypse Suite|Gerard Way|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1327877097s/2795053.jpg|2820826] a few years ago, although Cassanova being drawn as a beefcake Mick Jagger/Richard Ashcroft is a little weird.
As for Matt Fraction, I liked the afterward/letters section at the end of each issue much better than the comic itself. He talks about his influences, and he's clearly a bright guy who's super-into the spy genre and innovative storytelling techniques, but I think he's been ruined by the film 'Primer' (I used to say "If time travel was possible, someone would've killed Einstein." I'm now changing it to Shane Carruth).
A small gag was had at the reader's expense with Newman Xeno's identity, but those points in cleverness will all... unravel... when he eventually does reveal it. A face in bandages is effectively equivalent to Chekhov's gun: it's gotta go off sometime.
rabbithero's review against another edition
5.0
This book is buck-ass wild, in the way things like Tom King's Batman (for instance, see my next most recent review) could never manage. The sheer joy at being an unfettered Comic Book is delightful, and the script and art read and feel like Jack Kirby making a spy-fi sex romp. What a comic!
neven's review against another edition
2.0
Not my thing. Another comic with nice art and a frenetic, trying-so-hard, saying-nothing story. I stopped caring halfway through.
jamesdavidward's review against another edition
3.0
It's got a slight edge of over-complexity you sometimes get from early work, but Fraction is a marvellous writer, the art from Ba (and Moon) is beautiful, and despite my slightly sniffy star rating I will happily recommend it to anyone who's intrigued by the premise. Do rest assured that it gets clearer as it goes on.