[OLD] God of War (WildStorm/DC Comic) - Not Even a Change of Publishers Can Stop the God of War

This comic has been re-reviewed. Read it here: https://trophyunlocked.blogspot.com/2024/03/second-look-god-of-war-wildstormdc-comic.html

As hype for God of War III increased, it was announced that the publisher Wildstorm, whom we have discussed before, would do a 6-issue bi-monthly (in this case every other month) tie-in comic, simply titled God of War, its release coinciding with that of the game. This is a comic I read as it was coming out, although it was also through this comic that I witnessed the downfall of Wildstorm; in the back of issue 5, there is a letter stating that the Wildstorm universe was not only going to end, but also be rebooted (this may have been foreshadowing DC's New 52 relaunch, which includes Wildstorm material), but even then I was genuinely confused when I noticed that issue 6 was released by DC, which I took to mean that the larger company ate Wildstorm. Anyway, this review marks the third time I have read this comic, twice through DC's trade paperback collection, and while it isn't perfect, it's still one heck of a comic.

The story of the comic, written by Marv Wolfman (you may know him for DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths), takes place simultaneously before and after the first God of War, each following Kratos as he seeks the Ambrosia of Asclepius, a plant that possesses magical healing powers. In flashbacks to the past, we learn more about Kratos' past, including what lead to pivotal events in his life presented in the first game's flashback sequences. After a few readings, I still believe Marv Wolfman captures the spirit of God of War quite nicely, with text boxes resembling the narrations present in each game and the dialogue feeling natural, especially Kratos', whose dialogue sounds like exactly like something he would say. On top of this, Wolfman seems well-researched with God of War and Greek mythology in general, providing a rather interesting plot twist in later issues of the comic. However, both times I read this as a whole, I noticed a couple of continuity errors, though they are entirely isolated to the dialogue; one instance has Kratos remembering a bit of dialogue a little differently than when it was first spoken, and the other involves the dialogue from one character changing slightly between the end and beginning of the last two issues. In addition, the story assumes you are already familiar with God of War, evidenced by the very first page, so it's best to play the first game at the least before reading.

Next is the artwork. The covers for each issue were provided by Andy Park, a concept artist for the God of War series, and they are simply gorgeous. Mostly they do display something that will happen in each issue, but each cover is still epic and badass in their own right, being something you might tempted to tack to your wall. The interiors by Andrea Sorrentino, however, are another story. I'm not saying her art is terrible, but it could have used a little fixing up before being published. If I were to describe it, I would say it's sort of like Schrödinger's artwork: simultaneously well-done and poorly-done; on one hand Sorrentino's art is very good, with a photo-realistic art style that fits the atmosphere of the games it is based on, along with character designs and locales appearing as though they were ripped straight from them; on the other hand, they can be considered bad because they appear, as others have put it, muddy, making it difficult at times to make out what exactly is going on, including telling the difference between past and present. In this case, you may have to read the book a few times before you are able to see all the nuances of the artwork and fully appreciate the effort that went into them and tell where the team intended a transition; once you are able to tell, the comic becomes better as a result. If I were to compare Sorrentino's interior art here to those of other Wildstorm comics discussed on the blog, I would say they are somewhere between the spectacular Ratchet & Clank interiors (clear and distinct) and the god-awful Mirror's Edge interiors (scratchy and incomprehensible).

Overall, the God of War comic is a must-read for God of War fans. The writing is amazing and stays true to the God of War atmosphere, but the visuals, while matching the style of the games, seem to have needed a little bit of polishing up before release. Aside from that setback, the book is a fantastic read and is definitely worth your time. What has fascinated me about the God of War series is that it has (so far) been able to tell an excellent, mature story without resorting to heavy swearing, and this book continues the trend. However, even with the art the way it is, it still gets pretty visceral, and with some of the creative choices made in this comic, I would suggest following what the book itself suggests and make sure you are the right age (in the Mature crowd) to be reading this comic.

I would like to get to the rest of the God of War series at some point, so let's hope the world doesn't end tomorrow before I get a chance to do so.

Mirror's Edge (Comic) - A Broken Mirror

Since I've already taken a look at the Mirror's Edge video game a couple of weeks ago, I've finally gotten around to talking about the comic based on it published by Wildstorm, a former imprint of DC Comics. Since I didn't buy the individual issues when they were first published, I did end up getting the trade paperback, which I was able to read in one setting. I understand that DICE collaborated on the production, even using the same writer as the game, but for me it serves as a good example of the varying quality one can expect from video game tie-in comics.

Story-wise, the comic is supposed to serve as a prequel to the events of the game, exploring Faith's background and how she became a Runner. In theory, this is something that should be able to work, given that Rhianna Pratchett also wrote the game. It's a good opportunity to take the depth that wasn't in the game and potentially add some through the comic to explain more of the world the game is in. In practice, this doesn't really pan out all that well. To explain would require me to talk about it in stages, the first being how Faith becomes a Runner in the first place. It is consistent with the source material, utilizing the same backstory and showing us her training and getting accustomed to her new life while establishing how she interacts with others in her profession. On a lesser note, we also learn how and why Faith got her tattoos. This is the point where the comic sort of works, but it unfortunately is unable to carry the full weight of a six-issue miniseries.

The other stage would be revealing more about her family. Her sister Kate is at this point just starting out as a CPF officer, a cop for a city we still don't know the name of. The interactions they share are realistic in the context of the universe, but even though it supports the relationship they have in the game, this plays second fiddle to the real mystery surrounding their parents. What truly drives the comic is that someone is interested in Faith's dad for some reason, so she goes on a quest to find out where he is. She eventually does, confronting him about just what happened during and after the Libertas rebellion movement he lead. The answer is admittedly interesting, but it didn't really make me care about the character that much more. Talking about the mom for a moment, we find out that she was a great scientific mind and created the macguffin of the story, a highly advanced computer chip. What they end up doing when they discover the attention it attracts while in their possession makes sense, but it didn't turn out that exciting to watch (they just give it to the company that wants it).

The one thing that makes the comic nearly unbearable to read however is the artwork by Matthew Dow Smith. I have no experience with his other works and no clue how popular he is, but the way he tries to mimic the style of the game is simply awful and almost qualifies the comic as part of our survey of horror (but in a different way). It removes the flair from the action, important photos are rendered incomprehensible and there are no expressions on any of the characters; if you know what "dull surprise" is, then you already have a good idea of the art at work here (seriously, there's even a scene where Faith and Kate are thrown by an explosion and they still don't display any real emotion). In a startling contrast however, the covers for the comics are really good to look at, giving a sense of action or even scale in a way that the interior art simply couldn't. In an equally startling move, the trade paperback omits the cover of issue five and doesn't even have concept art for it, removing a proper transition between chapters four, five and six. Quality control at its finest.

Cover Art for Issue 6 (as seen in the trade)

In the end, I have mixed feelings toward the Mirror's Edge comic. Mostly it's underwhelming, with a halfway decent story marred by terrible artwork. Even then, the story doesn't have much depth to it and is only good for filling in the details of Faith's past, a path I would only tell big fans of the game to run along. If you're curious about picking up the trade however, just to see what Mirror's Edge is, then I would tell you not to let this be your first exposure to the series and find a different path to the end. In a time where video game comics have the potential to actually be good, it's sad that this simply can't deliver.

[OLD] Ratchet & Clank (Comic) - The Loss of 1 Dimension =/= Loss of Quality

Following up from the Future Trilogy in the Ratchet & Clank series, comics publisher Wildstorm released a six-issue miniseries, simply titled Ratchet & Clank, in the years of 2010 and 2011; this was shortly before Wildstorm was swallowed by the much larger DC Comics. Since I was not familiar with the franchise at the time, I never actually picked up any of the issues, but now that I have played the games I decided to read it through the trade paperback, published by DC. I wasn't exactly sure how easily something like Ratchet & Clank could be translated into comic book form, but surely enough it does not disappoint one bit.

After saving the fabric of time and space from Dr. Nefarious, the titular Ratchet and Clank are back on the planet Veldin, working on a hover vehicle when Captain Qwark, who is now the Galactic President, arrives to inform them that planets have mysteriously gone missing. Without any idea who the culprit is, the duo suddenly find themselves in the middle of a planet jacking of Veldin, making their escape after an attack by heavily armed robots. They soon learn, after being taken prisoner, that the man behind all this is former Galactic President Artemis Zogg. It is then up to Ratchet and Clank to not only save Veldin, along with all the other stolen planets, but also find out exactly how Zogg has been stealing worlds in the first place.

The story of this miniseries, aside from the basic premise, is very much like that of a Ratchet & Clank game, thanks to writing of T.J. Fixman. Fixman not only captures the spirit and tone of the games perfectly, but he also manages to slip in the usual style of humor as well, making for some truly hilarious moments throughout the story. That is not to say there is a lack of tension in the plot, of which there is just the right amount to not completely take over and still keep you going. The dialogue is written especially well, since I could hear the main characters' voices in my head as I was reading their lines.

Speaking of which, the characters that appear in this comic are primarily from the Future Trilogy, with a couple of surprise appearances by ones from previous games, including from before said trilogy. Though Dr. Nefarious is mentioned a few times throughout the story, he never makes any sort of appearance, although fans of Mr. Zurkon can safely rejoice.

The artwork of this comic is, to put in one word, incredible, perfectly complimenting the story and capturing the style of the games while putting a unique spin on it. Adam Archer, the interior artist for all six issues, does a fantastic job with the sequential art as well as giving the right body language to the characters onscreen for the situation at hand, especially when it comes to the facial expressions. The action scenes, which can easily take up as much as two pages, are drawn spectacularly and allow you to see something new each time you look at them without going overboard on the detail. The covers of each issue, drawn by Creaturebox, display what you can expect from each part of the comic with just the right amount of energy, and while they use a different style from Archer's, they are by themselves a sight to behold.

The Ratchet & Clank comic is something I would definitely recommend to fans of the games, especially those who have just played the Future Trilogy and want something more. While the comic can be enjoyable on its own, it makes a bit more sense once you are already familiar with, or at least have some knowledge of, the characters from the games. In any case, Adam Archer and T.J. Fixman have created a perfect Ratchet & Clank story and a video game comic that is worthy enough to have in your library.