Cyberpunk 2077: Library Edition, Volume 1

Cyberpunk 2077 #LS1, LS3, LS4

by Bartosz Sztybor, Cullen Bunn, Miguel Valderrama (Illustrator)

A deluxe hardcover collection of three intense action-packed stories exploring the underbelly of Night City, featuring a cover gallery, expanded sketchbook section, and more!

In Trauma Team, a hundred floors high in a skyscraper occupied by an onslaught of gang members, an EMT assistant is tasked with rescuing the man responsible for her former team’s deaths. Then in You Have My Word, a family is torn apart following an assignment from one of Night City’s most notorious gangs and a grandmother returns to a life she left behind on a mission paved with blood, both old and new. And in Blackout, a braindance technician is overcome with despair. Confronting his role in exploiting others’ pain and suffering, he finds that in darkness comes opportunity.

Written by CD Projekt Red writer and narrative manager Bartosz Sztybor (The Witcher: Fading Memories, The Witcher: Witch’s Lament) and Cullen Bunn (Shock Shop, Harrow County), with art by Miguel Valderrama (Giants), Jesús Hervás (Deluge, Tomorrow), and Roberto Ricci (The Heart of Shadows). This oversized edition collects Cyberpunk 2077: Trauma Team #1–#4, Cyberpunk 2077: You Have My Word #1–#4, and Cyberpunk 2077: Blackout #1–#4.

Genres: Cyberpunk, Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Comic Book, Fiction

328 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 17, 2023

About the author

Bartosz Sztybor - polski dziennikarz, publicysta, krytyk filmowy i komiksowy, scenarzysta komiksowy. Wielokrotny laureat konkursu na krótką formę komiksową na MFK. Publikował m.in. w pismach Ozon, Wprost, Esensja, Chichot, Machina, Cinema, periodykach komiksowych i zinach.

Reviews

[FrontalNerdaty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This hard cover collects 3 stories from the Darkhorses’ Cyberpunk comics.

Trauma Team 5/5
This is an excellent read. The story is tight and tense and really opens the world of Cyberpunk up. It shows how morally grey the word is and how brutal it can be. The art and story go hand in hand and it’s an overall great opener.

You Have My Word 3.5/5
Another interesting story that tries, and mostly succeeds, to have some twists and turns. The art is not as consistent as Trauma Team but it is a good read overall.

Blackout 4/5
The art here is very ‘marmite’. It does pair well with the nature of the story, but it also undermines it a little. When the dark/ heavy moments happen they don’t have the same impact due to the art being so bright and colourful.

Overall this is a solid read/ introduction to the rich world Cyberpunk 2077 is a part of.

4/5

[Joe Crawford · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Hjalmar Gr · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unfassbar schön designte Comics. Jede Geschichte für sich ist spannend, die 3 Geschichten sind alle in verschiedenen Stilen gezeichnet.
Wie auch beim Buch (No coincidence) ist Vorwissen über das Universum wichtig. Für Fans des Spiels (2077) gibt's einige Eastereggs zu entdecken.
Das Buch enthält außerdem viele Extras am Ende (Lineworks/ Designs/ alternative Covers etc.).
Alles in allem äußerst gelungen.

[Achilles Lanis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cyberpunk 2077: Library Edition Vol. 1 includes 3 stories set in the Cyberpunk world.

All 3 stories here were really good. I loved every piece of this book.

Trauma Team: In this story we see how the Trauma team can be a very difficult job and how cruel and dark the cyberpunk world really is. Amazing art too.

You Have My Word: In this one we follow a story about a mother that tries to get revenge for her daughter's murder. It is very emotional and has some twists I loved. The art here is amazing as well.

Blackout: In the last story we follow a guy that creates braindances and how he has life changing moment which makes him want ti change others life too. The art is not as good here and it has a different tone but it's fitting still i must say and didn't stop me from loving that story too.

In the end this was an amazing collection of stories in the world of Cyberpunk that I love.
I should say that you probably need some backround knowledge of the world to read this but don't let it stop you.
All the stories are dark, sad and they are a bit open-ended.
Really hoping for a second volume.

Definitely recommended to Cyberpunk fans!

[DI-Kai · Rating 4 out of 5]

I‘m having a hard time to rate that book. On the one hand it’s a solid read and every story fits well into the universe. On the other hand, nothing about the books seems special, the stories are solid but not groundbreaking or for anyone who haven’t played the game. If you enjoy the dark gritty future and want more stories of the filthy residents of night city, this book is for you. If you wanna pick up the book to see if you like the game, step away from it you won’t get it.

[Sheldon Champagne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book contains 3 separate stories set in the Cyberpunk 2077 world. Each story in my opinion was weaker than the last. The first story, Trauma Team, was excellent! Great art and story. Easily the strongest of the 3. The second story, You Have My Word, was still good, but lost steam for me towards the end. The third and final story, Blackout, while having good art, did pretty much nothing else for me. Long story short, you can buy the trade of Trauma Team on its own, and that would be totally worth the purchase. The other stories are still a nice bonus. Would recommend to fans of the video game

[Aleksandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been obsessed with this world for months now that I had no choice but to get my hands on any content I could.

Trauma Team is just excellent, great story and art. You Have My Word is a gutpunch of a story with vivid art, it feels so distinctly cyberpunk in all its highs and terrible lows. Blackout is the inevitable weak link, the art is more cartoonish and the story a bit lighter, but still worth a read.

[Martijn Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

This suprised me in a good way. I've read other Cyberpunk 2077 comics (Your Voice, Big City Dreams & Where's Johnny) and most of them (als by Bartosz Sztybor) felt like cash graps. Milking the cow that is fandom. When i started this i only had high expectations for the first story (Trauma Team) by the always awesome Cullen Bunn. And yes this is the best story in this omnibus, but the other two (You have my word & Blackout) by Sztybor are also pretty good. Word is okay fun without any real character develepmont but Blackout is almost as good as Bunn's story. So overall there is still hope for this collection of short stories based on the world of the videogame Cyberpunk 2077.

[Nikolis Asimakis · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really thrilling and well written collection of three short comic series. Each with its own characters, themes and art, but everything being treated like the best cyberpunk media out there, with respect, with grit and not afraid to show the dark themes of the genre, like moral conflicts, the systemic lack of worth for human lives and the ever-present depressing feel of the person barely amounting to anything in the end of the day.

[Christopher Herrig · Rating 3 out of 5]

These were grim stories set in the Cyberpunk universe. Of the three story arcs, Blackout, which had some positive themes and outcomes, is my favorite... Trauma Team was tense and twisty and You Have My Word was full of rage. While the art is amazing, and I appreciate what the authors and artists were going for, the first two stories were just a bit bleak...

[Meinardas Valkevičius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trys ryškios ir tarsi iš ateities papasakotos realios istorijos. Cyberpunk yra spalvingas ir ypač vizualus akį traukiantis žanras. Beje, visos istorijos ypač tamsios, bet ir stiprios maksimaliai. Labai patiko! Noriu dar!

[Gamal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! These stories have depth far beyond your average comic or table top session. Can't wait to dive into the rest of this series.

[Igor Veloso · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like we say in Portugal: Cyberpunk 2077 fills all my measures

[Graham Cifelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Greg Moonan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good adaptation

Gives a good amount of stories that expand on the world outside of the TTRPG and video game. Need more words to post

[Peter Melancon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three different stories all bleak all gritty cyber noir stories. Really fun!

[deLibroenLibroconAJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cyber-reseña en el canal https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX3sZ...

[Seth Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great artwork, bleak but brilliant stories. NC feels alive in these pages.

[Kelly Sauskojus]

don't read lots of graphic novels but did thoroughly enjoy these

[Gabe Miller · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pointlessly grim.

[Pedro Jesus · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a fan of the game, of the anime and of its lore as whole... I must say that this comic book is a blessing upon its existence.

[Across the Stars · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trauma Team in particular is excellent and the other stories in this omnibus are enjoyable as well.

[Shaun "AceFireFox" · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be honest, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect when it came to comics set in this universe but especially after reading No Coincidences, I was curious. I eagerly await Volume 3 and I've already got Psycho Squad and the trade for Kickdown on my pull list.

Now the first story in here was Trauma Team and that was especially interesting. Trauma Team aren't really gone into that much in the game. You see them around as random spawns but outside the one mission very early on in the story with Sandra Dorset, they don't really play a part at all. So it was interesting to see a story from their perspective and how difficult the job can actually be, and the toll it takes on the people behind the masks.

The second was You Have My Word. Again another interesting perspective from a former Valentino enforcer who faked her death and gave up the life to have a family. She's pulled back into the life after the murder of her daughter, which it turns out was all a big plot by her brother in order to get revenge on her. One interesting thing you'll notice in this one is that if someone says that 'you have my word' they cannot be trusted and they probably will betray or backstab you.
Also Viktor Vektor cameos in this and I love him so 10/10.

The third and final storyline was Blackout and follows a former BD repairman who, taking the advice of his friend, decides to take his life into his own hands and try to make a difference after he's blown off by his bosses. The story itself, despite the art not being my cup of tea, was much more interesting than I gave it credit for because of the art. It also highlights the issues of power in Night City and how frequently blackouts happen, but also darker elements like making prisoners constantly replay Death BDs as a punishment for their violent crimes.

A common thread in all three stories is that you will probably die. Seriously. In every story the main character ends up dying, or at least it's implied in Blackout, no matter what they do. And a lot of other characters end up dying as well.
The art styles, while Blackout wasn't my favourite style, all capture the world well. There's quite a few references including:
Tom's Diner, where V meets with Takemura and has their first civil conversation with Johnny, appears in Blackout frequently
Cormac appears in both You Have my Word and Blackout, he also appears very briefly in the Edgerunners anime
The Not Tell Motel appears in You Have My Word and I believe Dex shouting at V after the botched heist and shooting them is vaguely referenced by a random person talking about shouting then shots being fired
Saburo Arasaka's death is mentioned in a news ticker tape in Blackout during the car chase
Viktor Vektor, as already mentioned, appears briefly in You Have my Word

I can't wait to read the other comics in this world tbh. I love this world quite a bit.

[Bardiya Ghasemzadeh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every story is very fun to read, all of them have an amazing artwork, yet none manages to leave any lasting impact. There’s nothing to hate about it, but I can’t rate it any higher either.

[Mark Sutherland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not exactly sure how this won a Hugo award. The art does a good job of bringing a cyberpunk future to life with echoes of Judge Dredd, Transmetropolitan etc. but the plots don't seem to make much sense and the tone is all over the place. I guess if you like the game or really like the aesthetic you might enjoy it, but you're not missing much if you don't.

[Highland G · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed 2/3 of the short stories. Art seemed to get worse over time, not a good sign going forward.
With no real connection to these characters, the stakes don’t really mean that much to me.

I feel since all the stories kinda at least connect by world, it would have been much more impactful to have had them as a more connected run/story, refer to characters more consistently and have a consistent artist.

I like the different arcs having different overall themes but it’s all a little disjointed and feels like a fan story compilation more than something produced to clearly expand the lore.

[Al Kembra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shallow plots held up by vibrant, eye-catching art. I can't tell if it's just me, this specific book, or Comics in general, but I couldn't get engaged with these stories despite the promise of their setting.

[Cassandre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good collection of 3 stories. Each one has its unique, beautiful art style. If you've played the game or are familiar with Night City or Cyberpunk 2077 in general, you won't be really surprised by their (dark) outcome, but they are definitely worth a read!