Cowboy Ninja Viking

Cowboy Ninja Viking #Comp'lete

by A.J. Lieberman, Riley Rossmo (Illustrations)

From the author of Harvest and Term Life and the artist of Green Wake, Dia de Los Muertos, and Proof comes this giant, oversized, deluxe hardcover collecting both volumes of the critically acclaimed, fan-favorite series Cowboy Ninja Viking, complete with brand-new, never-before-seen extras! International intrigue! Black-market nukes! And Cowboy Ninja Viking! Sent on a covert mission that will take the triplets from Bangkok to the Middle East, Duncan, Ghislain, Nix, Grear, Steed Malbranque, and everyone's favorite gladiator/pirate/oceanographer Yashitiko Ammo are gonna save the world... or totally screw it up!

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

304 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2013

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise was interesting. Individuals with multiple personality disorders turned into spies where each personality has different skills. Mental health professionals are going to rip this a new one if this is actually being turned into a movie. The art was so terrible that it ruined the book for me. Rossmo has this scratchy, unfinished style combined with the coloring skills of a toddler. I couldn't tell what was happening in any of the fight scenes. In fact, if you to rely on the art to tell any part of the story, you could just forget about it.

Received a review copy from Image and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

[Jesse A · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well that was...difficult. The art was...headache-inducing. The story was...confusing? I don't know. Just...I don't know.

[L. McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

SUPER FAST REVIEW:
A cool idea with lots of action, humor and suspense!
Unfortunately it gets a bit confusing, partially due to the messy art style (I get what this book was going for there, it just doesn’t work). The non-comedic dialogue isn’t great.
So yeah, it’s pretty good but boy, it really could have been A LOT better.

3/5

[RG · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was really confusing. It felt like the story was all over the place, and when it started to make sense, it would immediately change direction to confuse you again. The ending was way too abrupt. I actually didnt realise I had finished. The artwork from Rossmo was that pencil sketch type that I'm not a huge fan of. Its an artwork that requires a really captivating story which this doesnt have. A little disappointed but would be interested to see how they tackle this with respect to a film version.

[Mario Alba · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't really finish it. Sorry, everyone.

[Alex Sarll]

Soon to be Chris Pratt's third action movie franchise - and yet still no big-screen outing for Burt Macklin? - this is unlikely to win any awards for the sensitive, accurate depiction of mental health issues. But, it is a lot of fun. One of those dodgy black ops programmes which engages in unscrupulous research has been working with multiple personality sufferers, training each personality to produce 'triplets' who can be used for the most difficult and dangerous missions - so yes, that means the lead has all the abilities of a cowboy, ninja and viking, in one - but frequently bickering with each other even as they kick ass. And for all his drug habits and anxieties, turns out he's done pretty well. Most of the other triplets have at least one personality with limited battlefield effectiveness - Sniper Martial Artist Chef is among the first we meet, but others have been lumbered with Roadie, Amish, or Hair Stylist. A neat trick with speech bubbles means this is far less confusing than it could have been, and between Lieberman's script and Rossmo's deadpan cartooning, the book is often extremely funny, frequently by way of sheer bitchiness:
"How dare you! You are a buffoon! You are a pompous man in a pompous suit with...with pompous hair! I see you again, I swear I will shave it off, all of it! You are a disgrace to - "
"What? Gunther, c'mon - my grad thesis was better than this, and I wrote it in crayon 'cause I was on LSD."
There are times, though, when the storytelling's not as clear as it could have been - I wonder whether the idiosyncratic and non-naturalistic colouring style, in which most of the issues only use limited variations on one or two hues, may be a factor here? Still, it's at least as entertaining as it is confusing.

(Edelweiss ARC)

[Valéria. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m done.. I tried to finish this 4 times and can’t get over the 1/3 of it. The dialogues are so boring it hurts my head. The art is the better part here, but still I’d love more colours as it gets a bit confusing and colours suits Rossmo’s art, which I love actually…
The premise is f-ing amazing! I loved those split personalities, but it just isn’t written in a way I’d enjoy.

[Ctgt · Rating 4 out of 5]

7/10

[Saugata Mukherjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very much torn about this. I do not know whether this review helps the future potential readers at all or not. But here it goes-
It is quite a trip, never a dull moment. The dialogues are very witty (many times laugh out loud funny). Specially the banter between the multiple personalities of Duncan, is really what made it a great read for me. The authors understands the inherent impossibility of the narrative and never takes it too seriously. It is filled with outlandish story lines and plot points. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Why then only 3 stars? The book constantly jumps in time, which messes the narrative here. It left me genuinely confused a couple of times. Time jumps when done masterfully gives the story a lair of mystery and keep the reader guessing about what is actually happening (example, the movie Memento). I think that is what the author is aiming here too. But here it happen quite abruptly a couple of times without any discernible need. This, coupled with the fact that almost everybody in this story has 3 personalities makes it almost impossible to make out what is happening at times. I think, even the author got confused/tired juggling so many perspectives. Which severely limits a coherent story flow and enjoyability.
The art is very different than anything I have experienced so far. Which is a good thing for major parts, but like the story it sometimes get very busy-sketchy-confusing. At places I had to really dig deep to try to understand what is happening, but without much help from art or story returned empty handed. Each issue is colored in one major color, with some supporting of white. Like, the first issue is colored in blue and white and the second is is colored in red and white (is this what dichromatic is?). Which looks cool but at times add to the confusion/chaos of the story.
The ending is very much ambiguous and open for reader's interpretation. At first it felt like it is not the ending and the authors planned to continue the story but it got cancelled mid flight. But while writing this whole review, I can identify some recurring themes - confusion, chaos, ambiguity. Now when I think about it, how can we expect a clean/straight narrative from a multiple personality disorder affected protagonist? May be that is what the authors have intended the reader's to feel(you clever bastards), a trip within the mind(s) of a person who is trying to make sense of what is a reality and what is the figment of his imagination. Or may be I am projecting, and it is indeed a messily conducted though enjoyable and exhilarating roller coaster of a ride.
At first I thought of giving it a 2.5-3 stars. But I can not deny one thing, that it is a very fun (if at times frustrating) read. And I am ready to give the writers a benefit of doubt here that all this confusion/frustration I am feeling is intentional. So, it is a four star read for me for the time being. In future I will try to give it another read and make up my mind.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never seen a graphic novel whose art was so disruptive to its own concept. I went into this completely blind, and was almost immediately pulled into the concept of the triplets and the world surrounding them. But the book never makes it easy to enjoy - the art is sparse and characters are hard to discern (although the iconic speech bubbles are an inspired and effective approach), and it often feels like a page or two of content passed without actually being written down. But for every obtuse scene shift or conversation where too many voices disrupt the actual meaning, there are individual moments, quotes, or action sequences that are quite effective. The idea of triplets, while absurd in the extreme, plays out well on the paper. The final twist in issue 10 caught me by surprise (although it doesn't look like it will get a chance to play out further). Duncan and Grear and Nix make for a complex relationship, and some of the political maneuvering is fine. But every time I really started getting into it, the story took an obnoxious turn, or jumped in time and destroyed its flow. There are some serious peaks in this book, but just as many valleys, which is why it ends up with an average score.

[Pop Bop · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cowboy/Ninja/Viking versus Gladiator/Pirate/Oceanographer

I don't exactly know where this novel came from, but it is the funniest, smartest, and most entertaining graphic novel I've read this year, (and I don't mean calendar year, seeing as how it's only early January; I mean full year).

The setup is great. Rogue neuro-behavioral psychiatrists tried to create super warrior assassins by using regression therapies and pharmacological enhancements, (and experimental anti-anxiety shampoo), on people with multiple personality disorder. The idea was to draw out the latent skills represented by the various personalities. It was "an utter failure", except for Duncan, the cowboy-ninja-viking. Now, Dr. Ghislain, the guy behind the experiment, needs Duncan to track down the other "triplets", all of whom have become violent loonies and have been collected by an insane villain for a nefarious purpose. That's just the tip of the iceberg, but you get the basic idea.

The plot is manic and complicated. There are multiple subplots. There are frequent shifts in time sequence and location. It's all very deep state and conspiratorial. It is also consistently and thoroughly deadpan funny. Ghislain is dry as dust funny. Duncan is unpredictably and shape-shiftingly funny. Every character is a wiseguy and over the top is the norm. All of the women characters are smart and no-nonsense, and get some of the best lines. Humor is broad, or edgy, or consists of clever wordplay and unexpected throwaway lines. Ultimately, you get both a straight-faced insider parody and an upfront but also slightly tongue in cheek adventure. How cool is that?

The visuals also really work. It's mostly line drawings and ink with broad block color washes, but it's always clear who's doing what and the overall effect is kinetic and edgy, which serves the story and the storytelling well. Since lots of characters have three personalities that talk to each other, the characters are drawn with speech balloons that have little icons signaling which personality is speaking, (for our hero that's a revolver, a katana, and a broadaxe). That's both amusing and helpful.

This deluxe edition collects all 10 issues of the comic, the bonus stuff from other collections, and some new material. It purports to include everything ever produced or written in the series, ever. I have no idea if that's true, but there's certainly quite enough.

I have to admit that I almost skipped this because the whole cowboy-ninja-viking thing seemed a little precious and felt like maybe a one-note joke. (I sort of felt that way about "Buckaroo Banzai", even though I love it.) I am very glad I paused and reconsidered because this was fresh, funny, unpredictable and just remarkably well conceived and well executed. I didn't just enjoy this book, I'm now a fan.

(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

When a graphic novel is called "Cowboy Ninja Viking" how much more is there to say about it, really?

In full honesty, there's a conversation to be had about the story's use of multiple personality disorder and other moments that... well, we'll just say that they're not exactly PC.

But these elements of the story only add to the manic energy of the comic as a whole. Fully embracing its premise, CNV tends to present itself in a relatively serious manner akin to traditional, gritty international spy adventures. However, the somewhat-seriousness tone of the writing is undercut by a sort of twisted humor that occasionally leans into the ridiculous. And whatever reservations I had about the ability of the creative team to blend these different elements into a functioning whole, their willful embrace of the concept has actually yielded a surprisingly coherent graphic novel.

The art throughout this comic is rough, bordering on abstract at times, with heavy lines and shifting use of color. I can appreciate the reasoning of those who state that this style doesn't work for them--but I actually found it to work well with the writing while adding an additional layer to the overall tone. Additionally, the visual techniques used to differentiate between the personalities of the characters is a testament to the way writing and art can be leveraged to great effect.

But the visual style does occasionally present a challenge in keeping track of the characters--due both to the rough style and the fact that many characters have three or four presentations of themselves which alternate frequently throughout. Additionally, the non-linear storytelling and general plot delivery occasionally lead to moments of confusion.

But on the whole, CVN presents a dynamic cast of developed characters enmeshed in a complex and engaging plot. It takes a concept prime for comics and uses it to its fullest capability--with humor, action, and moments of sincere emotion. Overall, the storyline actually offers a well crafted and exciting spy caper, with its own unique twists.

The volume's ending is... interesting, but benefits well from the bonus story included with the collection. And so, "Cowboy Ninja Viking" is a prime example of the fact that comics are willing to go where other mediums might not dare to tread, and the end result is fully realized and more successful than I ever anticipated it would be.

[Jass · Rating 2 out of 5]

Apparently, Disney is making a movie out of it, and the premise sounded fun enough so I figured I'd try it out.

This graphic novel is an experience — and, in my case, mostly a negative one.

The basic story revolves around a government project: a group of DID patients turned into special agents with their special talents coming from three identities each of their mind houses — with focus being on Duncan, who houses the three titular identities. And things for the members of the unit don't go so well after the project closes.

Sounds like a starting point for an interesting story?

Not if the writing makes it really hard to see this as a story.

Cuts between scenes should have connections, right? You wish!

Flashbacks are confusing? Here flashbacks have flashbacks! Jokes aside: There's a panel that goes "7 days before" and then clarifies that it's "4 days before the story" for people who are trying to keep track of the timeline.

On top of that better be ready for scenes that introduce way too many characters for no reason other than just because!

And, of course, there's no telling what the actual focus of the plot was, since there's no proper conclusion.

Generally, a lot of continuous storytelling flaws can be fixed or glossed over with good use of artwork, but here it's hard to figure out even who the characters you see are.

True, the art style — while it leaves the pages looking sketch-like, unfinished — has a certain charm to it, which grows on you over time, it doesn't solve the problem of the scenes being confusing — fighting scenes especially.

Overall, "Cowboy Ninja Viking" reads better as an experience, rather than a story. If that's what you're looking for for, jump right in! Otherwise, either pass it or reconsider the mindset you're reading this in.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This edition includes the first ten issues plus a couple of bonus comics of Cowboy Ninja Viking.This has been in the works as a movie for years but now, finally, we have go-date of Jun 2019.The movie is the reason I decided to read this first. The characters are hard to get to know as not much development is created. The characters are all fairly stereotypical: Viking, chef, sniper, hairstylist etc.The plot is full of spies, secret government science labs and violence galore. Typical action fare; I can see it making a good action movie. My problem mostly was knowing which "personalities" belonged to whom. Each person had three individual distinct personalities, making four characters per person. I never did figure out the logistics of that. A decent read though and one I think that should translate into a film very well.

[Luke Muench · Rating 5 out of 5]

While an imperfect and unfinished series, I have a deep love for the world of Cowboy Ninja Viking. The humor between Duncan and his personalities are laugh-out-loud funny, even after multiple reads (which is something that's hard to manage for me nowadays). The art is unlike anything else in the industry (even from the same artist), with a chaotic energy that's reigned in by thoughtful color palettes that makes each page pop. I do think the art improves a lot with the second half of the series, but I love all of it regardless.

This series will not be for everyone, a wild journey that can feel confusing and ultimately doesn't have a real conclusion, but what we got of the series remains one of my favorites years later.

[Sean · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was so incredibly disappointed with this book. I was hoping for something akin to The United States Of Tara meets Queen & Country. Instead, its a sloppy mess of nonsense that can't keep out of its own way. The "Triplets" program and abilities make no sense. The plot was a garbled mess. The dialogue was a disaster. This was just poorly written. The art by Riley Rossimo was a poor choice for this book. With so many things going on, his art was too ill-defined for this story. The lettering was interesting with the different multiples being cleverly labeled, however it became a crutch. Overall, a disaster.

[Highland G · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it. Art is kept simple, mostly with only shades or splashes of colour. Has a noir feel but also a lot going on. This leaves you feeling a little disoriented, which is intentional as so are our characters. If you compare this final colouring to the fully coloured sample included, I much prefer the final version.
Extra issue/story adds a lot to the ending.
This book revolves arenas Special Agents with powers/abilities but mostly quips based on them having 3 split personalities each, who wouldn’t want to read that.

[Ryan Matheson · Rating 2 out of 5]

With full honesty and transparency, this was an absolute slog to get through. On surface level, I thought the concept was intriguing. But ultimately, a bloated narrative with too many characters and very questionable dialogue made this an almost DNF for me. Which is rare.

In addition, I now know why the speculative feature film starring Chris Pratt has been in development purgatory for so long. I personally would not want to be on the hired writing team to be in charge of a coherent adaption of this absolute mess.

[J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty fun series, and definitely an instance of taking an essentially dumb premise and doing something good with it. But the art, which is frenetic and emotive, hampers the storytelling pretty often. The storytelling is some of the most choppy I've ever read, and, in the end, I'm not sure that I know what really happened. So: better than it's premise, but not as good as it wants to be.

[Justin Morman · Rating 4 out of 5]

An absolutely absurd concept that absolutely works.

The book is hilarious, and I love the relationship he has with his 3 personalities. Plus, there are more "triplets" in the book besides Duncan, the cowboy Ninja viking, so it's cool to see all the different combinations of skillsets/personalities facing off with each other.

4/5 stars because the authors never finished this story, and I didn't realize that before I started...

[Andrew Kline · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sketch-y, staccato art work was a little confusing. I had some trouble following the jumps in time and location. However, once I adjusted to the style, this was a hell of a fun read! Such great world building and modifying the word bubbles was a wonderful way to differentiate personalities. Really interested in a movie adaptation with Chris Pratt.

[Cassandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm still not completely sure if the triplet personalities are supposed to be visible to others or if it's an effect the artist included to help readers keep track of who's talking. It was a fun read, but definitely not my usual, so it took a while for me to get through. It should be interesting if it really comes out as a movie.

[Bill Coffin · Rating 1 out of 5]

When it’s not taking extremely done-deaf liberties with the subject of mental illness, or punctuating the action with all kinds of humor that punches down, Cowboy Ninja Viking is the kind of frenetic mess that makes about the same amount of sense if you simply read it backwards. The art and writing often feel out of synch, and the visuals themselves tend to confuse more than illustrate.

[Magnus Bergström · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow, did not expect this to be such a mess when it comes to telling a story. Suffers way too much from its urge to be ”cool” which makes it boyishly awkward. Had hopes for the ridiculous concept to actually be presented in an interesting way, but screw that, I guess.
This actually gets my hopes up a bot for the film adaptation, because it won’t take much to top the original.

[Theediscerning · Rating 1 out of 5]

Three days ago - six years ago - FFS this was too convoluted, not pretty, and full of medication names. I'm all for the unnecessary in comics, but not for that to be the be-all-and-end-all. Very disappointing.

[Samuel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up the book after hearing about the upcoming movie. The art style grew on me, and I loved the colouring. Writing was good, but it kind of felt a bit antiquated, like watching an older Guy Ritchie movie or something. The epilogue was fun. All in all an ok book.

[Huzefa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really that good. The premise is amazing but the execution leaves a lot to be desired. I think there are alot more better series out there. Should make for a fun popcorn movie but not much else there.

[David Wei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bought this because I thought I've only read this series until issue #7 but turns out I already read it until the end. Well, nevermind, it was still a good read despite the feeling that the ending was kinda rushed.

[wbforeman]

To be fair, I didn’t get far to this book I got about 27 pages but I just wasn’t clicking with the art, and from what I was reading I was having moon night flashbacks and to me this books felt very dialogue heavy so didn’t click with me

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very hard to understand the story, both narratively and artistically.