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Planetoid #1-5
Planetoid Vol. 1 TP
Silas, an ex-soldier turned space pirate, finds himself stranded on a mysterious planet in alien territory. As he explores the long-abandoned industrial ruins of the planet's surface, he will have to fend off roving cyborg militias and a hostile alien military with a bounty on his head. Ultimately, Silas will have to build a coalition amongst the planetoid's nomadic tribes in order to make a final stand against the larger tyrannical forces that rule over them.
Collects PLANETOID #1-5.
Collects PLANETOID #1-5.
164 pages, Paperback
First published October 23, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
June 10, 2020
Some strong, old-school sci-fi. An ex-soldier crashlands on an unnamed planet completely covered in space junk. Eventually he meets others who have crashlanded there as well and they band together to build something greater.
February 23, 2017
Super solid sci-fi comicbook. Anyone know if Garing has done anyother projects, or has any in the making? I'd love to read more of his stuff.
Update:
Well, after 3 long years since I first read this book Garing has brought out another series! A sequel to Planetoid. So I decided to revisit this one. And honestly? It's not as good as I remember. The story is painfully cliche. -- but its still a fun sci-fi romp and I think Garing created a really interesting world. The metal, industrial world is beautiful and I really like the alien race, although they are only in the story briefly. I've read the first issue of the second book and I think Garing has improved his artwork tremendously. Hopefully he can use this universe to create a fresh narrative.
Update:
Well, after 3 long years since I first read this book Garing has brought out another series! A sequel to Planetoid. So I decided to revisit this one. And honestly? It's not as good as I remember. The story is painfully cliche. -- but its still a fun sci-fi romp and I think Garing created a really interesting world. The metal, industrial world is beautiful and I really like the alien race, although they are only in the story briefly. I've read the first issue of the second book and I think Garing has improved his artwork tremendously. Hopefully he can use this universe to create a fresh narrative.
March 26, 2017
Read this when it first came out 5 years ago, just as I was really starting to get into indie Image stuff, and loved it. It's good to come back to it, just as a sequel is finally coming out, and enjoy it again. Good sci-fi comics, with a simple story well written and drawn by one guy, Ken Garing.
July 8, 2014
Excellent dystopian sci-fi adventure that hits every mark. Strong stuff !
November 29, 2014
What I had expected:
Apocalyptic future + Spaceships + Robots gone rogue + Rebelling Humans + Cyborgs = complete cliché of Sci-Fi elements.
What actually happened:
Really liked this comics! Likeable characters, nice story, unique designes and outstanding art - it was a feast. Apart from little clichés, it was a complete delight!
Apocalyptic future + Spaceships + Robots gone rogue + Rebelling Humans + Cyborgs = complete cliché of Sci-Fi elements.
What actually happened:
Really liked this comics! Likeable characters, nice story, unique designes and outstanding art - it was a feast. Apart from little clichés, it was a complete delight!
June 17, 2020
What the shit? Is English not this guy's first language or is he just atrociously bad at writing? I don't even want to waste time on writing this a review. It was awful.
February 28, 2020
Nothing very new or surprising here, but a solid, enjoyable sci-fi adventure, in the style of 90s b-films (think killer-robot fare like Hardware and Screamers).
(Read as five single issues)
(Read as five single issues)
December 13, 2016
I have spoilers below, but this comic doesn't really deserve to keep you in suspense. Maybe you'll get a laugh out of what I wrote, cause I wasn't laughing after finishing the comic.
Silas, a smuggler, crash lands on a planet ruled by mechs. Like in every survival tale ever, he gets help from various other characters who totally don't want to kill him. He gains the trust of one of the human tribes, apparently the only one, by saving them from the robot enforcers. His lacking leadership skills makes it difficult to keep the tribe together and the only guy with a trace of personality walks off and gets himself captured. Still, Silas gets most of the people engaged in building a more permanent and secure shelter because they couldn't be bothered to figure that out for themselves. The race that built the robots captures him, but he escapes and soon gets the girl, because it's that type of action movie. 'We may die tomorrow, but we're alive right now' and, boom! she straddles him. The robots wait for him to finish before attacking the camp. It's funny to see how most humans, armed with melee weapons, are going against 7 to 20-foot metal monsters. After crashing the only space-worthy vessel on the whole planet into the sky ladder used by the robots, this scene plays out: 'No. Not going back. Just let me rest here...' and his girlfriend says 'But... we need you.' Holy crap...
Silas, a smuggler, crash lands on a planet ruled by mechs. Like in every survival tale ever, he gets help from various other characters who totally don't want to kill him. He gains the trust of one of the human tribes, apparently the only one, by saving them from the robot enforcers. His lacking leadership skills makes it difficult to keep the tribe together and the only guy with a trace of personality walks off and gets himself captured. Still, Silas gets most of the people engaged in building a more permanent and secure shelter because they couldn't be bothered to figure that out for themselves. The race that built the robots captures him, but he escapes and soon gets the girl, because it's that type of action movie. 'We may die tomorrow, but we're alive right now' and, boom! she straddles him. The robots wait for him to finish before attacking the camp. It's funny to see how most humans, armed with melee weapons, are going against 7 to 20-foot metal monsters. After crashing the only space-worthy vessel on the whole planet into the sky ladder used by the robots, this scene plays out: 'No. Not going back. Just let me rest here...' and his girlfriend says 'But... we need you.' Holy crap...
June 8, 2021
Planetoid starts off great, ends pretty mediocre.
A whole world of crashed ships and ruined buildings. Robotic beasts infested by rogue AI. Life of all kinds adapted to this rustscape. And on top of all that, human societies descended from crash survivors making a living among all these metal heaps. The world of Planetoid looked ripe for wonder and exploration.
Then the author makes the protagonist the leader of the humans and the plots jolts away from exploring this amazing world and into a much more run of the mill: good guy shows up, helps natives with their problems. A plot that we've all seen a hundred times before.
Not that the plot was inherently bad, but it felt rushed. Garing could've given the story justice by filling a whole book with it. Instead the hero fights battles, gets captured, escapes, fights some more, fights even more all in the space of a few pages at a frenetic speed. Let us get to know the characters!
Also, Garing needed to pick an aesthetic with Planetoid's villains. Some of them look like generic blobs, others like something from HR Giger, others like cheesy alien robots from a 1950's sci-fi comic. None of them are bad, I even loved the cheesy ones, but they feel like they're from different stories. If you're going to pick half-human cyborg nightmares, explore them more, instead of throwing a bunch of other aliens at us too. As it stands, you barely get to see any of the villains, so they feel generic and two-dimensional.
Still, this was a fun read. I liked the lizard-thingys.
A whole world of crashed ships and ruined buildings. Robotic beasts infested by rogue AI. Life of all kinds adapted to this rustscape. And on top of all that, human societies descended from crash survivors making a living among all these metal heaps. The world of Planetoid looked ripe for wonder and exploration.
Then the author makes the protagonist the leader of the humans and the plots jolts away from exploring this amazing world and into a much more run of the mill: good guy shows up, helps natives with their problems. A plot that we've all seen a hundred times before.
Not that the plot was inherently bad, but it felt rushed. Garing could've given the story justice by filling a whole book with it. Instead the hero fights battles, gets captured, escapes, fights some more, fights even more all in the space of a few pages at a frenetic speed. Let us get to know the characters!
Also, Garing needed to pick an aesthetic with Planetoid's villains. Some of them look like generic blobs, others like something from HR Giger, others like cheesy alien robots from a 1950's sci-fi comic. None of them are bad, I even loved the cheesy ones, but they feel like they're from different stories. If you're going to pick half-human cyborg nightmares, explore them more, instead of throwing a bunch of other aliens at us too. As it stands, you barely get to see any of the villains, so they feel generic and two-dimensional.
Still, this was a fun read. I liked the lizard-thingys.
December 29, 2018
I read this on a recommendation from a library patron (and he read Niourk by Olivier Vatine on my recommendation).
Main character Silas crash-lands on a desolate planetoid where he's surprised to find he's not the only human there. In between dodging killer robots and patrols of the aliens that control this area and lobotomize people into servants, Silas's plans of escaping the planet eventually turn into uniting the scattered humanoid groups into a single group to throw off the alien oppressors.
There's nothing here terribly groundbreaking or original, but it's a fun read nonetheless. Definitely worth a read. I would have liked the story to run a little longer and give me more chance to learn about some of the characters. The only ones besides Silas who get much development are Onica (the only female character and therefore the love interest) and Mendel, an old hermit who briefly acts as a mentor character. I would have liked more chances for these characters to get more development, and for any other characters to get any development at all, but even with what we got it was still an enjoyable if brief read.
Main character Silas crash-lands on a desolate planetoid where he's surprised to find he's not the only human there. In between dodging killer robots and patrols of the aliens that control this area and lobotomize people into servants, Silas's plans of escaping the planet eventually turn into uniting the scattered humanoid groups into a single group to throw off the alien oppressors.
There's nothing here terribly groundbreaking or original, but it's a fun read nonetheless. Definitely worth a read. I would have liked the story to run a little longer and give me more chance to learn about some of the characters. The only ones besides Silas who get much development are Onica (the only female character and therefore the love interest) and Mendel, an old hermit who briefly acts as a mentor character. I would have liked more chances for these characters to get more development, and for any other characters to get any development at all, but even with what we got it was still an enjoyable if brief read.
February 8, 2020
I recently re-read this after going through my comics in an attempt to thin the collection down. For some reason I remember loving the first part of story, but feeling underwhelmed about its conclusion. Now, years later, I appreciate it more than I first did.
I think it's a bit thin on plot and characters and at its core it's very similar to a stock post-apocalyptic story that we've become so accustomed to. But, the world writer/artist created for his characters to inhabit is very unique and interesting. The "Slab" and its resources are fun takes on the standard Earth setting and his killer robots are so much more dangerous and interesting than zombies or monsters.
I also love the art, especially in the wider panels where we see the details of the Slab or large scale battles. The color palette is dark and drab, but its necessary and really sells the bleak atmosphere of the planetoid.
I think it's a bit thin on plot and characters and at its core it's very similar to a stock post-apocalyptic story that we've become so accustomed to. But, the world writer/artist created for his characters to inhabit is very unique and interesting. The "Slab" and its resources are fun takes on the standard Earth setting and his killer robots are so much more dangerous and interesting than zombies or monsters.
I also love the art, especially in the wider panels where we see the details of the Slab or large scale battles. The color palette is dark and drab, but its necessary and really sells the bleak atmosphere of the planetoid.
April 11, 2018
Quite good sci-fi comic collection - interesting
Good first volume about Silas crash-landing on the planetoid of the title to discover that an alien race is using it to enslave humans, using AI-powered junk. The story revolves around how his life develops amongst the locals as he hopes to escape the planetoid and help the survivors below to overthrow their captors.
Enjoyable enough and reasonably well-illustrated. I'm about to start Volume 2 to see how things develop. Not sure yet how much I like it.
Good first volume about Silas crash-landing on the planetoid of the title to discover that an alien race is using it to enslave humans, using AI-powered junk. The story revolves around how his life develops amongst the locals as he hopes to escape the planetoid and help the survivors below to overthrow their captors.
Enjoyable enough and reasonably well-illustrated. I'm about to start Volume 2 to see how things develop. Not sure yet how much I like it.
June 9, 2023
Planetoid, by Ken Garing
Really cool, like a redemptive Mad Max / Maze Runner / Mortal Engines. Intriguing world, great characters and engaging story. ****
#1 – “Damn .. What is this place?” … “—THERE’S NO LEAVING THIS PLANET.”
#2 – “That sound – give me an acoustical analysis.”
#3 – “Maybe we can build something NEW here. Something .. different.”
#4 – “It’s near the SKY LADDER, Silas. Be careful.”
#5 – “Then fight with your bare hands –"
Really cool, like a redemptive Mad Max / Maze Runner / Mortal Engines. Intriguing world, great characters and engaging story. ****
#1 – “Damn .. What is this place?” … “—THERE’S NO LEAVING THIS PLANET.”
#2 – “That sound – give me an acoustical analysis.”
#3 – “Maybe we can build something NEW here. Something .. different.”
#4 – “It’s near the SKY LADDER, Silas. Be careful.”
#5 – “Then fight with your bare hands –"
January 30, 2020
A very solid sci-fi comic, a man with a hideous past crash lands on a planet made of steel and death robots, and runs into certain tribes of humans. We realize that their universe is dominated by mega-corps that are greater than life, and it all ends with our protagonist turning into an irreplaceable hero.
April 30, 2019
Far from subtle, a touch predictable, but I liked it. The art style and colour palette worked really well, nice compositions and environmental designs.
January 3, 2021
Imaginative world, great action and plot.
March 21, 2017
Read this as research for art inspiration for my own sci-fi graphic novel and the art and world building never disappoints. There is a lot of joy to be found in the discovery of how this world works.
The character work, while satisfying plotted, is a bit thin, but it sets the ground in a new universe of stories in a compelling way, without biting off more than it can chew.
The character work, while satisfying plotted, is a bit thin, but it sets the ground in a new universe of stories in a compelling way, without biting off more than it can chew.
August 3, 2016
To tell you the truth I wasn't excepting much from this comic. I really just wanted a sci-fi comic that wasn't star wars or star trek. This comic hit that point perfectly. The art is good. The story pacing is good. I was interested in Silas journey after he ship wrecked on a mysterious planet. Silas is an interesting character. He reminds me of a hard guy, like Riddick or Han Solo. Silas just wants to get off this planet and back to smuggling and pirating. Before he can get off he has to fight off a horde of evil aliens and robots, plus save the humans that live there.
A fun quick story. I would have liked to know more about the other characters, but happy that Ken Garing didn't drag this out for thirty plus issues. A feel like five issues was good pacing for the Silas story. Now he needs to do a second volume with some of the other characters.
A fun quick story. I would have liked to know more about the other characters, but happy that Ken Garing didn't drag this out for thirty plus issues. A feel like five issues was good pacing for the Silas story. Now he needs to do a second volume with some of the other characters.
March 18, 2014
I thoroughly enjoyed this. I learned about this comic in a reccommendation from Scott Johnson at the end of one of Jeff Cannata's Newest, Latest, Best internet shows. I had searched for the back issues, and found the first one, and then stumbled across this collected trade paperback, and was richly rewarded by such a good read. The art is incredibly well-done (I especially like the little frog-men), and the storytelling is evocative and full of big ideas. It tells a sci-fi story rich in sci-fi tropes that still manages to feel fresh and new. If you are a fan of speculative fiction, I would think you would definitely enjoy this. Search it out - it is certainly worth your time. Also, it tells a dystopian story in a very all ages way, and avoids needless violence or sexual content, which I certainly appreciated.
June 10, 2015
It starts off really well and impresses you with this fascinating world where Silas gets stranded. The world is built over the next 3 issues and just when you expect an awesome ending, you get an ending feels a bit rushed and incomplete. Ideally, a few more issues would have helped flesh out the story quite nicely. Loved the art. Fascinating use of greys, blacks and browns.
December 6, 2013
This is a nice story about redemption and sacrifice. Some wonderful worldbuilding too. Loved it.
October 24, 2014
Recycles old SF tropes with meat-fisted, heavy-handed themes. Likable but should have been more.
April 11, 2015
interesting story and art, reminded me of Truman's "Scout"
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews