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Über #1
Uber, Volume 1
April 24, 1945. The world holds its collective breath as the war is only days away from ending. Russian troops move through Germany to the final objective...Hitler himself. As those around the mad dictator crumble, the much ridiculed threats of the "Wunderwafen" materialize. A new weapon is delivered, one with unstoppable power -- a weapon like no other and with a madman pulling the trigger. The Ubers change the direction of World War II, providing a dark and uncompromising alternative history in a way that you've never seen.
Kieron Gillen and Caanan White deliver one of the best new series of 2013 with Uber Volume 1, collecting issues #0-5 the startling first chapter of this new horror series that reimagines the super soldier in a stark, new, bloody vision.
Kieron Gillen and Caanan White deliver one of the best new series of 2013 with Uber Volume 1, collecting issues #0-5 the startling first chapter of this new horror series that reimagines the super soldier in a stark, new, bloody vision.
176 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
9 people are currently reading
303 people want to read
About the author
Kieron Gillen
1,479 books1,910 followersKieron Gillen is a comic book writer and former media journalist.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 89 reviews
July 26, 2022
It’s 1945 and the Soviets are pushing their way into Berlin, with the other Allies soon to follow. The second world war seems all but over until it’s revealed a Nazi commanding officer has a working Wunderwaffe of Übermenschen, also known as an army of superpowered nazis. This unit of Übermenschen is led by three of the most powerful superhumans produced by the program called Battleships, while also consisting of Panzermensch, a basic tank class of superpowered humans that aren’t nearly as strong as the battleships. All the Über are capable of wielding a “disruption halo” as well, which is a large beam that is able to distort any matter it comes into contact with.
Now with an army of superpowered Nazis pushing the invading allied soldiers out of Berlin, an undercover British spy must make her way back to her homeland to deliver to the allies the secrets to making superhumans she discovered while undercover, and before the Übermenschen moves from defense to offense. But even if she does make it, will the Allies be able to develop super soldiers in time?
This was basically Kieron Gillen’s personal meditation on power and fear and I’m surprised there isn’t more buzz around it. It’s fine not to enjoy this and I get why many were turned off by it, but anyone acting like Gillen & the artists Caanan White are making a nazi power fantasy with this series are out of their self-righteous minds.
This book is indeed filled with gratuitous violence, as you see allied soldiers getting torn to pieces in most scenes with Über in action, but it’s also filled with a surprising amount of thought and a story that is only beginning to show the true depth of its complexity. Some of his characters lack some personality, but the rest of the script being strong more than makes up for that. It's a book that shows the true worst-case scenarios of what superhumans in WWII would be like instead of trying to tell some glamorized and watered-down WWII story where heroes are born and rid the world of its greatest injustices. It’s not a hollywood movie, it’s a horror show through and through and I appreciate that
Caanan White’s art is impeccable as well and makes me wish he would already be given the interiors for a Milestone book. His work is so damn good and would be perfect for a Shadow Cabinet or Hardware run. The quieter moments between all the characters are great, but his best moments are the bits of horrific and gory action. This is a war comic, not some heroic piece of action, so it does show all the fucked up outcomes of what could’ve happened if superpowered beings were around for wars. I know some people were horrified by the number of allied soldiers and civilians getting killed in here, but like what did you expect? Seriously? It’s an Avatar book about superpowered Nazis. Like c’mon, be real. Again this book isn't devoid of criticism, but that seems like a weird one.
If I did have a complaint, it would be with some of White’s faces. I honestly couldn’t tell which Nazi was which until halfway through the trade since they all look the same. I also think the #0 issue is a bit hard to follow and could turn a lot of people off of the series. I eventually got it after reading through again, but I will admit I was completely lost when first reading it. Another minor complaint can be all the german names sounding too similar. I still get the names of the Battleships mixed up since they are all so similar.
Even with these minor problems and the fact it is one of the most violent comics I've ever read, I’d recommend this to any history buffs or fans of alternate history in general. It’s probably the darkest one I’ve ever read and is definitely not for everyone, but Gillen is already building up an immensely complex story about power and fear that I can’t wait to see unfold. One of the best Avatar books I have ever read, and I can't wait to dive into the rest of this series.
I also read this in the limited edition hardcover Avatar has for Volume 1, and there are so many damn extras that I’d recommend tracking down the enhanced hardcover copy. It is filled with so much nifty information, including the creative team talking about a lot of the criticism that was being directed at the book during its early days. All the extras make up 160 pages which include: Writer’s notes for issues 0-5, an interview with Kieron Gillen done by Gavin Lees, an essay by Matthew Meylikhov about making stories with Nazis, an interview with Caanan White, an interview with Kieron Gillen done by Avatar themselves, character bios with sketches, uninked pencil art from #0, issue essays from the back of the single issues, and Gillen’s script pages which are each accompanied by Caanan White’s uninked pencils for said page.
Now with an army of superpowered Nazis pushing the invading allied soldiers out of Berlin, an undercover British spy must make her way back to her homeland to deliver to the allies the secrets to making superhumans she discovered while undercover, and before the Übermenschen moves from defense to offense. But even if she does make it, will the Allies be able to develop super soldiers in time?
This was basically Kieron Gillen’s personal meditation on power and fear and I’m surprised there isn’t more buzz around it. It’s fine not to enjoy this and I get why many were turned off by it, but anyone acting like Gillen & the artists Caanan White are making a nazi power fantasy with this series are out of their self-righteous minds.
This book is indeed filled with gratuitous violence, as you see allied soldiers getting torn to pieces in most scenes with Über in action, but it’s also filled with a surprising amount of thought and a story that is only beginning to show the true depth of its complexity. Some of his characters lack some personality, but the rest of the script being strong more than makes up for that. It's a book that shows the true worst-case scenarios of what superhumans in WWII would be like instead of trying to tell some glamorized and watered-down WWII story where heroes are born and rid the world of its greatest injustices. It’s not a hollywood movie, it’s a horror show through and through and I appreciate that
Caanan White’s art is impeccable as well and makes me wish he would already be given the interiors for a Milestone book. His work is so damn good and would be perfect for a Shadow Cabinet or Hardware run. The quieter moments between all the characters are great, but his best moments are the bits of horrific and gory action. This is a war comic, not some heroic piece of action, so it does show all the fucked up outcomes of what could’ve happened if superpowered beings were around for wars. I know some people were horrified by the number of allied soldiers and civilians getting killed in here, but like what did you expect? Seriously? It’s an Avatar book about superpowered Nazis. Like c’mon, be real. Again this book isn't devoid of criticism, but that seems like a weird one.
If I did have a complaint, it would be with some of White’s faces. I honestly couldn’t tell which Nazi was which until halfway through the trade since they all look the same. I also think the #0 issue is a bit hard to follow and could turn a lot of people off of the series. I eventually got it after reading through again, but I will admit I was completely lost when first reading it. Another minor complaint can be all the german names sounding too similar. I still get the names of the Battleships mixed up since they are all so similar.
Even with these minor problems and the fact it is one of the most violent comics I've ever read, I’d recommend this to any history buffs or fans of alternate history in general. It’s probably the darkest one I’ve ever read and is definitely not for everyone, but Gillen is already building up an immensely complex story about power and fear that I can’t wait to see unfold. One of the best Avatar books I have ever read, and I can't wait to dive into the rest of this series.
I also read this in the limited edition hardcover Avatar has for Volume 1, and there are so many damn extras that I’d recommend tracking down the enhanced hardcover copy. It is filled with so much nifty information, including the creative team talking about a lot of the criticism that was being directed at the book during its early days. All the extras make up 160 pages which include: Writer’s notes for issues 0-5, an interview with Kieron Gillen done by Gavin Lees, an essay by Matthew Meylikhov about making stories with Nazis, an interview with Caanan White, an interview with Kieron Gillen done by Avatar themselves, character bios with sketches, uninked pencil art from #0, issue essays from the back of the single issues, and Gillen’s script pages which are each accompanied by Caanan White’s uninked pencils for said page.
November 15, 2016
Odd one. On the one hand, this is ugly, trashy, silly, (potentially) offensive Nazi exploitation in the tradition of the Ilsa movies... with lots of ultra-violence to compensate for the lack of explicit sex, of course. On the other hand, the storytelling is surprisingly thoughtful and witty in places. It also pays quite a bit of attention to detail, though not in the service of complexity and subtlety but in that of a strange, crusted, all-consuming, mask-like artificiality. For starters, all characters appear to be guided by b-movie wisdom alone, as there are no further signs of personality. Their facial expressions rarely change, nor do they differ much from those of most other characters...
At least to some degree this is probably an intended effect, as the book is clearly designed to be categorized as trashy exploitation - but does that make Über a book worth reading? Well, I suppose your response will largely depend on your sense of humor and on your tolerance for ultra-violence and the Nazi exploitation sub-genre in particular. I was initially intrigued by the book’s conceptual boldness and occasionally enjoyed the absurdity of its fetishes and stiff upper lip, but I’m afraid the results ultimately felt too stagy and lifeless and alienating to me to be truly compelling.
Bottom line: While the book was (kinda) worth checking out as a curiosity, I don’t think this is the kind of story I want to immerse myself in for months to come.
At least to some degree this is probably an intended effect, as the book is clearly designed to be categorized as trashy exploitation - but does that make Über a book worth reading? Well, I suppose your response will largely depend on your sense of humor and on your tolerance for ultra-violence and the Nazi exploitation sub-genre in particular. I was initially intrigued by the book’s conceptual boldness and occasionally enjoyed the absurdity of its fetishes and stiff upper lip, but I’m afraid the results ultimately felt too stagy and lifeless and alienating to me to be truly compelling.
Bottom line: While the book was (kinda) worth checking out as a curiosity, I don’t think this is the kind of story I want to immerse myself in for months to come.
August 12, 2014
Ugh, what an ugly book. Not the art – Canaan White does a fantastic job with that – but the “story” itself.
Uber asks: what if at the end of WW2, Hitler’s mad plans to create an ubermensch – overman, superman – came to fruition just as Berlin was about to fall? With the emergence of Nazi supermen, the war is turned around with the Nazis pushing back the Allies, putting Hitler back on top. Plus, this being an Avatar book, it’s also hyper-violent and grisly.
I tried reading this book but after stopping and starting a half dozen times, I just put it down for good and immediately felt better. It’s not entirely the fact that watching the Nazis win is horrible to read, so much as the total absence of any story to hold the attention while Nazi supermen rip apart Allied soldiers. That’s all there is for vast chunks of the book: tons and tons of gratuitous violence.
And we see it in such bloody detail – women getting raped, men literally having their bodies ripped in half, others being strangled with intestines, on and on. It’s page after page of Nazi superheroes killing people in visceral detail and it’s completely miserable to read. And yes, I know WW2 wasn’t pretty, but that doesn’t mean I need to see half of the crap in this comic, especially as it doesn’t add anything to the wafer-thin story.
Maybe if you like the torture porn of movies like Saw and Hostel, this kinda comic will be right up your alley as it’s void of any substance and all about lurid graphic violence, for the sake of it. Me though? Hated it. I couldn’t stand the misery anymore and gave up halfway, though I’m guessing the Allies get their own superheroes at some point and fight back? But I couldn’t care less, I just can’t stand this much pointless gore.
Surprisingly there IS a worse Kieron Gillen book than his Iron Man series: Uber.
Uber asks: what if at the end of WW2, Hitler’s mad plans to create an ubermensch – overman, superman – came to fruition just as Berlin was about to fall? With the emergence of Nazi supermen, the war is turned around with the Nazis pushing back the Allies, putting Hitler back on top. Plus, this being an Avatar book, it’s also hyper-violent and grisly.
I tried reading this book but after stopping and starting a half dozen times, I just put it down for good and immediately felt better. It’s not entirely the fact that watching the Nazis win is horrible to read, so much as the total absence of any story to hold the attention while Nazi supermen rip apart Allied soldiers. That’s all there is for vast chunks of the book: tons and tons of gratuitous violence.
And we see it in such bloody detail – women getting raped, men literally having their bodies ripped in half, others being strangled with intestines, on and on. It’s page after page of Nazi superheroes killing people in visceral detail and it’s completely miserable to read. And yes, I know WW2 wasn’t pretty, but that doesn’t mean I need to see half of the crap in this comic, especially as it doesn’t add anything to the wafer-thin story.
Maybe if you like the torture porn of movies like Saw and Hostel, this kinda comic will be right up your alley as it’s void of any substance and all about lurid graphic violence, for the sake of it. Me though? Hated it. I couldn’t stand the misery anymore and gave up halfway, though I’m guessing the Allies get their own superheroes at some point and fight back? But I couldn’t care less, I just can’t stand this much pointless gore.
Surprisingly there IS a worse Kieron Gillen book than his Iron Man series: Uber.
September 18, 2014
Ugh. Well that was an unpleasant chore.
When your first line of review includes that much negativity, what do you think it means?
Here is the whole book: Nazi Ubermensch Project actually works, produces superhumans. They literally tear millions apart, even so bad that Nazi Generals talk about what a horrid war-crime it is. Hitler doesn't end up killing himself, and comes back to be just as terrible and stupid as we're lead to see here.
A spy, of course, brings the formula to Churchill and the allies, to make Allied Ubermen (called HMHs - His Majesty's Humans) and of course, the first one is a Yank! Who doesn't even like the King! But he likes to fuck the ladies, and keeps trying to get with the spy chick.
It's grisly, violent, overly so, and not in a cartoon fashion, like Darrick Robertson would do, but in yuck I feel ill sort of way.
The artist is talented, but the story is so depressing and gross, there's no redeeming qualities.
Hell...
Throw in that one of the Ubermensch(es) is a woman, and it's pretty much narrowed the field to Nazi-Fetish, Grisly-Porn. So there's like a handful of guys on the internet who have this as a wet dream...no thanks, not me.
Get this review and more at:
When your first line of review includes that much negativity, what do you think it means?
Here is the whole book: Nazi Ubermensch Project actually works, produces superhumans. They literally tear millions apart, even so bad that Nazi Generals talk about what a horrid war-crime it is. Hitler doesn't end up killing himself, and comes back to be just as terrible and stupid as we're lead to see here.
A spy, of course, brings the formula to Churchill and the allies, to make Allied Ubermen (called HMHs - His Majesty's Humans) and of course, the first one is a Yank! Who doesn't even like the King! But he likes to fuck the ladies, and keeps trying to get with the spy chick.
It's grisly, violent, overly so, and not in a cartoon fashion, like Darrick Robertson would do, but in yuck I feel ill sort of way.
The artist is talented, but the story is so depressing and gross, there's no redeeming qualities.
Hell...
Throw in that one of the Ubermensch(es) is a woman, and it's pretty much narrowed the field to Nazi-Fetish, Grisly-Porn. So there's like a handful of guys on the internet who have this as a wet dream...no thanks, not me.
Get this review and more at:
November 28, 2013
Avatar is a publisher that likes to take risks. And they have taken many risks over the years by featuring books that contain some of the most violent, horrific and disturbing images ever to be put on paper. Not an easy feat to do and still remain in business. But Avatar is not about the blood and gore, or even being a publisher that puts out horror books. They are about freedom and the freedom to write whatever story you wish. It just so happens that nearly every single book they publish has a really great story. By publishing this book, Uber, it is a risk that has paid off with a fantastic story detailing an alternate ending to the Second World War by in fact, not ending it at all.
Uber, as it is, is not a story about Germany or Germans much like the title would suggest. It is a story about World War II just like any other tale about the Great War. It just so happens that this book does focus on the Germans for the first part, until it does not, and then splits that focus between Germany and Britain. It is also, as previously mentioned, an alternate history of the war and one that involves the creation and use of super-powers. The bad news is the Germans arrived there first, much to the chagrin of other nations. It is probably the worst thing that could have happened during the war, and what does Germany do now that they are ahead in the ‘arms’ race?
They start winning.
To start, the art by Caanan White is utterly compelling. It is clean and very expressive, but at the same time just seems gritty. As the book goes on, White’s art keeps getting better as well. Whether illustrating bombed out buildings or the panzermensch soldiers, drawing Hitler, Churchill, tanks or the Uber in battle, White’s storytelling ability is only matched by the scripts he is given. The character designs for the Ubers are excellent takes on the usual German uniform. They are large and impressive human beings and they look it as they tower above everyone else. Their power manifestations are laudable as well and fascinating to see in battle. Suffice it to say, whoever made the decision to put Caanan White on the book is a genius.
While the art is good, the story and script is great, and reads just like a movie, harkening back to every war film that comes to mind from the 1940s and 50s. The big difference of course is the science fiction aspects, namely the Ubers. Kieron Gillen has created an utterly captivating book. His inception of the Ubers is interesting but the fact that there are different classes of Ubers is the really clever part of the idea, as well as the naming scheme such as calling the upper class of German Ubers, Battleships. Also naming the German Ubers after Wagner was so obvious and yet so brilliant, being Siegmund, Sieglinde and Siegfried. They are three of the cruellest and yet more interesting villains ever crafted. Of the three, Sieglinde seems the more humane one, and even a little vain as we see her trying to dye her hair with her powers. Even so, you would still not want to face her or any of the other Ubers in battle as they are simply destruction personified.
The rest of the cast aside from the Ubers are very engaging. Stephanie, the doctor and spy, is a person who just might take the lead in the book as currently there is no clear-cut central character. Her duality is interesting to watch as she loathes killing and performing the experiments, or so she tells herself, but then she has no compunction about performing the action when it comes down to the wire. Churchill is actually a little humorous to see as he is written perfectly by Gillen, and seems almost disinterested at times in the British public. On the opposite side, Hitler is also characterized to perfection as a man who comes back from the brink of suicide knowing he has lost the war, to finding out that he is in charge of the ultimate weapons and he could end up ruling all. Gillen knows his characters and it seems he knows exactly where this book is headed if this volume is anything to go by.
As it stands, Uber could have ended up being the most offensive book that Avatar has ever published. Instead, Kieron Gillen and Caanan White have come up with a great wartime book that is neither offensive nor obscene, at least in the way some of their books are. There is some blood and some gore, but nothing too out of the ordinary for a story taking place during World War II. Gillen could have taken advantage of the freedom that Avatar allows by creating a truly risqué book, yet he only writes in what he needs to without going to excess. This surrogate story about the Great War is engrossing and exciting. By cutting back and forth between the Allies and the Germans, it keeps the momentum up and the suspense palpable, never knowing just exactly what will happen next. There have been other books about powers in World War II – The Invaders, The Justice Society and DC’s Earth-Two to name just a few, and Uber can stand proud among them.
http://thetelltalemind.com/2013/10/22...
Uber, as it is, is not a story about Germany or Germans much like the title would suggest. It is a story about World War II just like any other tale about the Great War. It just so happens that this book does focus on the Germans for the first part, until it does not, and then splits that focus between Germany and Britain. It is also, as previously mentioned, an alternate history of the war and one that involves the creation and use of super-powers. The bad news is the Germans arrived there first, much to the chagrin of other nations. It is probably the worst thing that could have happened during the war, and what does Germany do now that they are ahead in the ‘arms’ race?
They start winning.
To start, the art by Caanan White is utterly compelling. It is clean and very expressive, but at the same time just seems gritty. As the book goes on, White’s art keeps getting better as well. Whether illustrating bombed out buildings or the panzermensch soldiers, drawing Hitler, Churchill, tanks or the Uber in battle, White’s storytelling ability is only matched by the scripts he is given. The character designs for the Ubers are excellent takes on the usual German uniform. They are large and impressive human beings and they look it as they tower above everyone else. Their power manifestations are laudable as well and fascinating to see in battle. Suffice it to say, whoever made the decision to put Caanan White on the book is a genius.
While the art is good, the story and script is great, and reads just like a movie, harkening back to every war film that comes to mind from the 1940s and 50s. The big difference of course is the science fiction aspects, namely the Ubers. Kieron Gillen has created an utterly captivating book. His inception of the Ubers is interesting but the fact that there are different classes of Ubers is the really clever part of the idea, as well as the naming scheme such as calling the upper class of German Ubers, Battleships. Also naming the German Ubers after Wagner was so obvious and yet so brilliant, being Siegmund, Sieglinde and Siegfried. They are three of the cruellest and yet more interesting villains ever crafted. Of the three, Sieglinde seems the more humane one, and even a little vain as we see her trying to dye her hair with her powers. Even so, you would still not want to face her or any of the other Ubers in battle as they are simply destruction personified.
The rest of the cast aside from the Ubers are very engaging. Stephanie, the doctor and spy, is a person who just might take the lead in the book as currently there is no clear-cut central character. Her duality is interesting to watch as she loathes killing and performing the experiments, or so she tells herself, but then she has no compunction about performing the action when it comes down to the wire. Churchill is actually a little humorous to see as he is written perfectly by Gillen, and seems almost disinterested at times in the British public. On the opposite side, Hitler is also characterized to perfection as a man who comes back from the brink of suicide knowing he has lost the war, to finding out that he is in charge of the ultimate weapons and he could end up ruling all. Gillen knows his characters and it seems he knows exactly where this book is headed if this volume is anything to go by.
As it stands, Uber could have ended up being the most offensive book that Avatar has ever published. Instead, Kieron Gillen and Caanan White have come up with a great wartime book that is neither offensive nor obscene, at least in the way some of their books are. There is some blood and some gore, but nothing too out of the ordinary for a story taking place during World War II. Gillen could have taken advantage of the freedom that Avatar allows by creating a truly risqué book, yet he only writes in what he needs to without going to excess. This surrogate story about the Great War is engrossing and exciting. By cutting back and forth between the Allies and the Germans, it keeps the momentum up and the suspense palpable, never knowing just exactly what will happen next. There have been other books about powers in World War II – The Invaders, The Justice Society and DC’s Earth-Two to name just a few, and Uber can stand proud among them.
http://thetelltalemind.com/2013/10/22...
April 9, 2019
I’ve been meaning to read this one and I was hoping to enjoy it. I mean a gritty alternate history mixing superpowers and horror sounds like a solid comic. It’s not.
What’s it about?
In WW2 Nazis tried to create a super soldier. Uber shows a grim world where the Nazis managed to actually do so... but even then they might not be as successful in the war as one would think.
Pros:
The art is fantastic. Seriously, the highlight of the book is how perfect the artwork looks. Fantastic job there.
The characters are sorta interesting. There’s the This book’s Hitler is a well written, alternate history take on Hitler, while I don’t really like him, he’s an interesting villain.
I like that this comic actually acknowledged the whole socialism part of Nazism. It’s often not mentioned, even in actual history related books (probably if writers want to promote socialism, Nazi = evil, therefore don’t mention the socialism thing).
Cons:
The story is not well done. I don’t know if it’s the story or the writing but it really feels like a bunch of things are just randomly thrown around and tossed in a blender to form something that barely qualifies as a story.
The action scenes are anti-climactic and barely... who the fuck am I kidding... they don’t make any sense.
This book is mostly predictable.
There’s a bit of comic relief, it doesn’t work.
I don’t mind gore, hell I sorta like it in context of batshit crazy horror and bloody action scenes but this is just gore for the sake of gore. For real, it just randomly shows up and doesn’t make any damn sense. One panel nothing’s happening and all of a sudden someone’s blowing up... WTF?
The dialogue is pretty bad. It’s poorly written and sounds like it was written by a 12 year old (or younger... probably younger) trying to piss off their mom (lines like “I rather you pack my cunt full of shit”).
Is it pro-Nazi?
Okay, so I’ve seen some people accuse this of being a neo-Nazi comic. I don’t think it is. The Nazis are mostly depicted as evil, fucked up monsters. Sure, in this book’s alternate history they are more powerful than they actually were in real history but are still depicted as the evil, demented assholes that they were. It’s also notable that the other books I remember reading by the author seemed pretty pro-LGBT which the Nazis were very much not.
Overall:
This could have been good but it fails pretty bad. Sure, the art’s really good and the characters are interesting but between bad dialogue, anti-climactic action and a terribly written story I’m gonna have to say I dislike this book.
It’s a shame too, the idea could make for an interesting (though twisted) story and I know that Gillen is capable of decent writing but in this he just tries WAY too hard to be edgy which is sorta dumb, especially in a story that would already be pretty R rated by nature.
2/5
What’s it about?
In WW2 Nazis tried to create a super soldier. Uber shows a grim world where the Nazis managed to actually do so... but even then they might not be as successful in the war as one would think.
Pros:
The art is fantastic. Seriously, the highlight of the book is how perfect the artwork looks. Fantastic job there.
The characters are sorta interesting. There’s the This book’s Hitler is a well written, alternate history take on Hitler, while I don’t really like him, he’s an interesting villain.
I like that this comic actually acknowledged the whole socialism part of Nazism. It’s often not mentioned, even in actual history related books (probably if writers want to promote socialism, Nazi = evil, therefore don’t mention the socialism thing).
Cons:
The story is not well done. I don’t know if it’s the story or the writing but it really feels like a bunch of things are just randomly thrown around and tossed in a blender to form something that barely qualifies as a story.
The action scenes are anti-climactic and barely... who the fuck am I kidding... they don’t make any sense.
This book is mostly predictable.
There’s a bit of comic relief, it doesn’t work.
I don’t mind gore, hell I sorta like it in context of batshit crazy horror and bloody action scenes but this is just gore for the sake of gore. For real, it just randomly shows up and doesn’t make any damn sense. One panel nothing’s happening and all of a sudden someone’s blowing up... WTF?
The dialogue is pretty bad. It’s poorly written and sounds like it was written by a 12 year old (or younger... probably younger) trying to piss off their mom (lines like “I rather you pack my cunt full of shit”).
Is it pro-Nazi?
Okay, so I’ve seen some people accuse this of being a neo-Nazi comic. I don’t think it is. The Nazis are mostly depicted as evil, fucked up monsters. Sure, in this book’s alternate history they are more powerful than they actually were in real history but are still depicted as the evil, demented assholes that they were. It’s also notable that the other books I remember reading by the author seemed pretty pro-LGBT which the Nazis were very much not.
Overall:
This could have been good but it fails pretty bad. Sure, the art’s really good and the characters are interesting but between bad dialogue, anti-climactic action and a terribly written story I’m gonna have to say I dislike this book.
It’s a shame too, the idea could make for an interesting (though twisted) story and I know that Gillen is capable of decent writing but in this he just tries WAY too hard to be edgy which is sorta dumb, especially in a story that would already be pretty R rated by nature.
2/5
June 12, 2018
This was so gruesome and gory. Would have to be the most gory that I've read. The plot however is non existent. There is limited characterisation until midway through the novel. I honestly at times found it difficult to really know what was going on. This was a strange read.
January 14, 2019
This comic speculates on what would have happened if the Nazis had developed a supersoldier durine the World War II. The title "Über" refers to the "Über-mensch" (Super-man) mentioned by Friedrich Nietzsche in his work "Thus Spoke Zarathustra" (1883), in which he defines himself as the ideal of perfect man, both in personal evolution as a collective for a mature, cultured society, free of retrogressive moral ballast and counter-nature. So that is the name of the supersoldiers created by the Nazis that would help change the course of the war.
In general, I liked the detail of the drawings, openly expressing the violence of the military conflict in question where the supermen have a clear objective: to destroy the enemy. However I can't say the same about the story, which in my opinion lacked a little more depth, which is a shame because the subject has a lot of potential.
In general, I liked the detail of the drawings, openly expressing the violence of the military conflict in question where the supermen have a clear objective: to destroy the enemy. However I can't say the same about the story, which in my opinion lacked a little more depth, which is a shame because the subject has a lot of potential.
September 18, 2017
Very interesting story with very standard art.
September 6, 2022
Rating 4 out of 5 | Grade B+; Nazi Supermen of Dooooom!
It is the year 1945, the allies have all but defeated the Third Reich. Russians are amassed for the final offensive on Berlin itself. Hitler, deep in his bunker, is prepared to join his lover Eva in death. Right at that moment, the tides of history came to be altered.
The Siege of Berlin was broken thanks to an army of superpowered Nazi soldiers, who had single handedly thwarted the Soviet forces, brutally murdering them. The Ubers, Wonderwaffen with physical capabilities exceeding that of normal men, and capable of vaporizing men with a mere glance with superpowered energies had brought the Nazis back from the brink of destruction.
The war, which days before was believed to be all but won, was about to take a long and bloody turn. Elsewhere, a lone British spy, a deep cover agent, must escape from the German heartland and deliver to the allies crucial information regarding the Ubers, without which the war can be considered lost. A new history is in the making, one which would shatter the world beyond what one could imagine. The age of Ubers has arrived.
_________________________________________
Thoughts
Before we start, I have to come clean; I'm more than quite partial to the alternate history genre. Particularly the Nazi world order, subgenre. Ever since the disturbing yet philosophical The Man in the High Castle & Wolfenstein the New Order, I can't get enough of Jetpack Hitler
And if you take the wealth of books, comics, TV Series & Movies made based on this premise (the most reason being Amazon's adaptation of the Philip K Dick book), I'm not the only one who thinks so. This particular premise is a fertile land for writers to till to make new, engaging, often pulpy storylines.
In the last month in particular I have had a field day with such titles. With the likes of The Life Eaters & now Uber. But it is not just the 'Nazis won the world war' premise which interests me. Because anyone who has read history would know that WWII, was not merely fought with men & bullets, but oil & production. Something which the Nazis (& Japanese) had very less of.
Even brilliant tacticians such as Erwin Rommel, the Desert fox, were stymied in N.Africa with fuel shortages blunting the effectiveness of his tank corps. Simply put, the combined resource and Industrial output of the Axis dwarfed those of the Allies. The entire continent of N.America alone could outperform the German factories by leagues.
So, the mere introduction of a superweapon, or super soldier was not enough to turn the tide of the war, in its entirety. It is in this aspect that Uber managed to get my attention.
The Nazi super soldiers, dubbed Panzermensch or 'Tank men' by the allies are beasts in one on one confrontations, capable of killing scores of allied soldiers and going head to head with tanks. But a concerted tactical effort with superior tactics, numbers and firepower such as antitank weapons is enough to bring them down. Or, a precise snipershot into their eyes, while they are charging up their devastating energy bolts, causing a destabilization of energies in their bodies and leading to the so called 'halo effect', causing the tank-men to implode.
In fact, against the allied numerical & technological superiority, the introduction of the Panzermensch is awe inspiring, mostly due to their shock value, as well as the brutality they are capable of bearing down on enemy soldiers. Worse comes to worse, the allies could literally bury them with hundreds of soldiers to exploit their still human weaknesses.
But this is only the case for the standard tank-men. For among the Nazi Ubermensch ranks, there are three individuals, elites even among the super soldiers, whose power dwarves all. These aptly named Battleships are by themselves capable to taking on entire armies and armadas, and come out victorious with barely a scratch. One could say, more than the Panzermensch, it is Battleships who are the major Nazi bulwark against a allied rout.
__________________
One might ask logically, if that is the case, why haven't the Nazis already steamrolled the Allied forces. They do, to a certain extent. But written into the power structure of the the Panzermensch is a fatal weakness, which requires them to take long periods of recuperation, following the use of their powers. Which leaves them, including the Battleships vulnerable for conventional assault. And seeing as how they are a limited and fast dwindling resource, the Nazi high command have to use them sparingly lest they be depleted.
Then there are the Nazis themselves. Super soldiers or not, before the arrival of the Panzermensch, Germany had all bust lost, their enemies already having reached the capital. Just because the super soldiers managed to thwart the final deathblow, doesn't mean they came back to full power. In fact, much of the Nazi Wehrmacht is in tatters, their resources already depleted to dangerous levels. Only the superhuman assist from the Panzermensch is able to hold the whole rotten structure together.
Third is the own eccentricity and inner politics of the Nazi party, led by the ever more paranoid & neurotic Hitler, who, in a completely asinine move . Thus proving that Nazis are their own worst enemies.
This is not helped by the fact that, a scant few days after the arrival of the Panzermensch, a British deep cover spy, managed to steal the research for the Tank-men, smuggling it across allied lines and leading to the creation of allied tank-men. Which means that, for now, the Nazis have the upper hand, in terms of the number of super soldiers & being the first ones to make progress into the research. But the allies, with their considerably larger resource base, not to mention wider pool of scientific minds is soon going to catch up. If the Nazi command does nothing, whatever advantage the Panzermensch, even the Battleships provide will fast be diminished.
_____________________________
This of course segues into the next interesting aspect of the story. The superhuman arms race. The Nazis have to use their initial stockpile of super soldiers, and their relatively advanced research to keep ahead of the competition. While the allies, through trial and error, have to develop Tank-men & Battleships of their own, while counter navigating the Nazi tactical offensives spearheaded by the Battleships, which are pretty much invincible.
As the story progresses this cat and mouse game promises to be more and more convoluted, and entertaining.
But also some forewarning. This Graphic novel is filled with blood, gore, mutilations, massacres, and macabre human art pieces which can give Pickman's Model a run for it's money. Plus, it shows Nazis, being Nazis.
So those of faint hearts & sensibilities, read at their own risk. If you don't mind all that, I think this series will be quite a ride for you.
It is the year 1945, the allies have all but defeated the Third Reich. Russians are amassed for the final offensive on Berlin itself. Hitler, deep in his bunker, is prepared to join his lover Eva in death. Right at that moment, the tides of history came to be altered.
The Siege of Berlin was broken thanks to an army of superpowered Nazi soldiers, who had single handedly thwarted the Soviet forces, brutally murdering them. The Ubers, Wonderwaffen with physical capabilities exceeding that of normal men, and capable of vaporizing men with a mere glance with superpowered energies had brought the Nazis back from the brink of destruction.
The war, which days before was believed to be all but won, was about to take a long and bloody turn. Elsewhere, a lone British spy, a deep cover agent, must escape from the German heartland and deliver to the allies crucial information regarding the Ubers, without which the war can be considered lost. A new history is in the making, one which would shatter the world beyond what one could imagine. The age of Ubers has arrived.
_________________________________________
Thoughts
Before we start, I have to come clean; I'm more than quite partial to the alternate history genre. Particularly the Nazi world order, subgenre. Ever since the disturbing yet philosophical The Man in the High Castle & Wolfenstein the New Order, I can't get enough of Jetpack Hitler
And if you take the wealth of books, comics, TV Series & Movies made based on this premise (the most reason being Amazon's adaptation of the Philip K Dick book), I'm not the only one who thinks so. This particular premise is a fertile land for writers to till to make new, engaging, often pulpy storylines.
In the last month in particular I have had a field day with such titles. With the likes of The Life Eaters & now Uber. But it is not just the 'Nazis won the world war' premise which interests me. Because anyone who has read history would know that WWII, was not merely fought with men & bullets, but oil & production. Something which the Nazis (& Japanese) had very less of.
Even brilliant tacticians such as Erwin Rommel, the Desert fox, were stymied in N.Africa with fuel shortages blunting the effectiveness of his tank corps. Simply put, the combined resource and Industrial output of the Axis dwarfed those of the Allies. The entire continent of N.America alone could outperform the German factories by leagues.
So, the mere introduction of a superweapon, or super soldier was not enough to turn the tide of the war, in its entirety. It is in this aspect that Uber managed to get my attention.
The Nazi super soldiers, dubbed Panzermensch or 'Tank men' by the allies are beasts in one on one confrontations, capable of killing scores of allied soldiers and going head to head with tanks. But a concerted tactical effort with superior tactics, numbers and firepower such as antitank weapons is enough to bring them down. Or, a precise snipershot into their eyes, while they are charging up their devastating energy bolts, causing a destabilization of energies in their bodies and leading to the so called 'halo effect', causing the tank-men to implode.
In fact, against the allied numerical & technological superiority, the introduction of the Panzermensch is awe inspiring, mostly due to their shock value, as well as the brutality they are capable of bearing down on enemy soldiers. Worse comes to worse, the allies could literally bury them with hundreds of soldiers to exploit their still human weaknesses.
But this is only the case for the standard tank-men. For among the Nazi Ubermensch ranks, there are three individuals, elites even among the super soldiers, whose power dwarves all. These aptly named Battleships are by themselves capable to taking on entire armies and armadas, and come out victorious with barely a scratch. One could say, more than the Panzermensch, it is Battleships who are the major Nazi bulwark against a allied rout.
__________________
One might ask logically, if that is the case, why haven't the Nazis already steamrolled the Allied forces. They do, to a certain extent. But written into the power structure of the the Panzermensch is a fatal weakness, which requires them to take long periods of recuperation, following the use of their powers. Which leaves them, including the Battleships vulnerable for conventional assault. And seeing as how they are a limited and fast dwindling resource, the Nazi high command have to use them sparingly lest they be depleted.
Then there are the Nazis themselves. Super soldiers or not, before the arrival of the Panzermensch, Germany had all bust lost, their enemies already having reached the capital. Just because the super soldiers managed to thwart the final deathblow, doesn't mean they came back to full power. In fact, much of the Nazi Wehrmacht is in tatters, their resources already depleted to dangerous levels. Only the superhuman assist from the Panzermensch is able to hold the whole rotten structure together.
Third is the own eccentricity and inner politics of the Nazi party, led by the ever more paranoid & neurotic Hitler, who, in a completely asinine move . Thus proving that Nazis are their own worst enemies.
This is not helped by the fact that, a scant few days after the arrival of the Panzermensch, a British deep cover spy, managed to steal the research for the Tank-men, smuggling it across allied lines and leading to the creation of allied tank-men. Which means that, for now, the Nazis have the upper hand, in terms of the number of super soldiers & being the first ones to make progress into the research. But the allies, with their considerably larger resource base, not to mention wider pool of scientific minds is soon going to catch up. If the Nazi command does nothing, whatever advantage the Panzermensch, even the Battleships provide will fast be diminished.
_____________________________
This of course segues into the next interesting aspect of the story. The superhuman arms race. The Nazis have to use their initial stockpile of super soldiers, and their relatively advanced research to keep ahead of the competition. While the allies, through trial and error, have to develop Tank-men & Battleships of their own, while counter navigating the Nazi tactical offensives spearheaded by the Battleships, which are pretty much invincible.
As the story progresses this cat and mouse game promises to be more and more convoluted, and entertaining.
But also some forewarning. This Graphic novel is filled with blood, gore, mutilations, massacres, and macabre human art pieces which can give Pickman's Model a run for it's money. Plus, it shows Nazis, being Nazis.
So those of faint hearts & sensibilities, read at their own risk. If you don't mind all that, I think this series will be quite a ride for you.
November 24, 2016
It's World War II. Germany is in shambles. Berlin is ready to be taken by the Allied Forces. Hitler, seeing his plans for a 1,000 Reich ready to be nothing more than a horrific chapter in the annals of history, is going to take the easy way out. However, thanks to German science, the tide is changed and in catastrophic fashion, the Allies find themselves in an unthinkable nightmare.
I liked Uber. I probably would say it is more of a 3.5. I guess, at times for me, I found the writing a little clunky. That being said, I think I can see where Gillen is going and I like that there are historical characters sprinkled throughout. The art is pretty cool but the book isn't going to be for everyone. There is a lot of blood and dismemberment in here. I don't have an issue with it. In war, no one is playing checkers. People are going to do whatever it takes to make sure they are victorious.
I'll get the next edition to see what happens.
I liked Uber. I probably would say it is more of a 3.5. I guess, at times for me, I found the writing a little clunky. That being said, I think I can see where Gillen is going and I like that there are historical characters sprinkled throughout. The art is pretty cool but the book isn't going to be for everyone. There is a lot of blood and dismemberment in here. I don't have an issue with it. In war, no one is playing checkers. People are going to do whatever it takes to make sure they are victorious.
I'll get the next edition to see what happens.
December 10, 2020
Pretty good stuff. In the waning days of WWII, just as the Russians reach Berlin, the Nazis deploy one final, last-gasp weapon: the ubermenschen, divided into the less powerful panzermensch and three "battleships," who are largely indestructible. In moments, the war takes on a new face as the Russians are pushed back and Allied bombing runs are disabled. Luckily for the Allies, there was a deep cover scientist working with the Germans and she's escaped with the formula for creating these supermen, though time is not on our side. Good, scary story with just the right amount of blood and gore to support things (so many of these Avatar titles seem to be just an excuse for blood and gore and nudity, rather than having those things support an actual story). The artwork is a bit busy at times, but it serves its purpose well. I'm actually looking forward to reading further volumes.
January 21, 2016
Interesting concept- what if near the last days of World War 2 the Nazis were able to develop Superhuman soldiers? The series essentially about three of these soldiers (known as Battleships, as opposed to the less powerful superhumans known as tanks) and their exploits. The art is very good and I have to admit the premise is actually a fresh take on things- since I have seen Communist/Soviet Superheroes, Communist/Chinese superheroes, etc...this is a dark and harsh look at what would have happened had the nazi's been able to develop superhumans- and just as an aside these are truly Nazi like superheroes who without hesitation will commit genocide if ordered to do so. I am interested to see where this series goes...but I liked what I see so far.
June 23, 2018
Great book but truly in the current climate of the world's events, and with everyone being offended by everything right now, an almost taboo subject. This tale is well drawn and written and is about the Third Reich's attempt to create Ubermensch, called Uber for short. They succeed and turn the war for Germany. Led by three exceptional and super-powerful "battleships" as they are referred to, this retelling of the events of WW2 is a startling example of violence and intelligence. The characters are easy to hate and root for, on the sides of the Nazis and the Allies. Secrets are shared and the Allies attempt to replicate the experiments that created the "battleship" trio, of which they fear, and rightfully so.
This book was a fresh and fictionally stunning book that I can't believe I missed. It isn't that old but I managed to miss it. I'm glad I found this one and it was recommended by a friend. Very good read, though be warned, this one ain't for everyone, and in fact most won't enjoy it, I feel.
Danny
This book was a fresh and fictionally stunning book that I can't believe I missed. It isn't that old but I managed to miss it. I'm glad I found this one and it was recommended by a friend. Very good read, though be warned, this one ain't for everyone, and in fact most won't enjoy it, I feel.
Danny
August 23, 2022
Veľmi zaujímavý plot, teším sa na ďalší
June 28, 2018
Grotesque yet relentlessly addictive!
dnf
March 23, 2019Oooo boy was this not for me. DNF at page 20 or so.
January 7, 2016
An interesting alternate history, based on the idea that the Third Reich created super humans (super villains) during the last month of WWII as we knew it. The war turns around and many bad things occur.
It's not a new idea - Bitter Seeds does this, for example - but Gillen carries it out well. It's very well grounded, down to architectural, command, clothing, and tactical details. Gillen is also unafraid to built up heroes then destroy them.
What else works? Some good dialogue, which I expect from Gillen. Dark visuals that are actually interesting and not exploitive.
What doesn't work? Some of the plots feel nearly tongue in cheek, like the British super spy; that clashes with the grim horror of the rest. A lack of attention to the eastern front, all too typical of western treatments of WWII (and, honestly, of post-Roman history) glares and unbalances the story. It felt a bit repetitious or slow (NB: this could just be my bias from having read too many WWII and alt.history tales).
I'm tempted to give it an extra star because of bad reviews. I don't mean negative reviews, but stupid ones. People who complain that a war story is too violent, or reviewers who think depicting Nazis at all is a form of fetishism, or that a horror story upset them by being disturbing... they need to get out more.
So I'm intrigued, and would like to read more.
It's not a new idea - Bitter Seeds does this, for example - but Gillen carries it out well. It's very well grounded, down to architectural, command, clothing, and tactical details. Gillen is also unafraid to built up heroes then destroy them.
What else works? Some good dialogue, which I expect from Gillen. Dark visuals that are actually interesting and not exploitive.
What doesn't work? Some of the plots feel nearly tongue in cheek, like the British super spy; that clashes with the grim horror of the rest. A lack of attention to the eastern front, all too typical of western treatments of WWII (and, honestly, of post-Roman history) glares and unbalances the story. It felt a bit repetitious or slow (NB: this could just be my bias from having read too many WWII and alt.history tales).
I'm tempted to give it an extra star because of bad reviews. I don't mean negative reviews, but stupid ones. People who complain that a war story is too violent, or reviewers who think depicting Nazis at all is a form of fetishism, or that a horror story upset them by being disturbing... they need to get out more.
So I'm intrigued, and would like to read more.
March 21, 2018
I am not a fan of the current trend of ultra-violent, ultra-graphic comics. Mostly they seem to try to fit the story around the graphic nature of the art. This series however, to me, was the exception. Very good alternate WWII history with the violent nature of war a part of the story not the story itself. Very recommended
September 23, 2021
El otro día descubrí casi de rebote que de Kieron Gillen me había dejado sin leer Über, así que pensé que había llegado el momento de continuar con mi instinto fanboy y ver cómo era esta versión del guionista de la II Guerra Mundial. Así que nada, primer tomo y adelante...
Über comienza en un momento crítico de la II Guerra Mundial, de hecho, en los últimos momentos previos a la toma de Berlín por parte del Ejército Rojo, la victoria soviética de esa carrera de velocidad que había sido la carrera hacia Berlín, con los rusos desde el Este y los americanos y británicos desde el Oeste. Todos sabemos como acabó esta carrera, y sabemos que Hitler terminó suicidándose antes de permitir que los soviéticos le cogieran con vida, junto a su camarilla más cercana... Pero ese es el punto en el que Gillen retuerce la historia, aquí es donde cambia. Porque en esa misma noche en la que los soviéticos están entrando en Berlín, uno de los generales de Hitler, el general Sankt, va a revelar el secreto en el que lleva años trabajando: los Übermensch (o algo así, que ahora del tirón no me sale), es decir, los superhombres. Y es que el trabajo dirigido por Sankt y dirigido por un remedo del mismo Mengele y su ayudante noruega, que se han hinchado a experimentar con humanos, ha permitido la creación de tres soldados superpoderosos, Siegfrid, Sigmund y Sieglinde (esta última es una mujer), y un número algo más alto de soldados menos poderosos pero igualmente resistentes. Y la irrupción de estas fuerzas va a permitir que los ejércitos soviéticos sean rechazados, lo que va a evitar la muerte de Hitler y la rendición de las fuerzas alemanas, y por lo tanto... va a hacer que la guerra continúe. Y al mismo tiempo, va a lanzar a sus enemigos, especialmente a los británicos, a una carrera contrarreloj para conseguir sus propios superhumanos. Con personajes creados por Gillen y personajes reales como Hitler, Guderian, Churchill o Alan Turing, este primer volumen de Über nos va a presentar el comienzo de este mundo, un no parar de acción, caos y batallas, reflejadas de forma sangrienta y violenta por el dibujante Canaan White (que encima tiene un nombre supermolón), de un detallismo hiperrealista en lo que a las escenas violentas se refiere, con mucha sangre, tripas y huesos rotos.
Y aquí empieza una nueva historia de Gillen... que iré siguiendo.
Über comienza en un momento crítico de la II Guerra Mundial, de hecho, en los últimos momentos previos a la toma de Berlín por parte del Ejército Rojo, la victoria soviética de esa carrera de velocidad que había sido la carrera hacia Berlín, con los rusos desde el Este y los americanos y británicos desde el Oeste. Todos sabemos como acabó esta carrera, y sabemos que Hitler terminó suicidándose antes de permitir que los soviéticos le cogieran con vida, junto a su camarilla más cercana... Pero ese es el punto en el que Gillen retuerce la historia, aquí es donde cambia. Porque en esa misma noche en la que los soviéticos están entrando en Berlín, uno de los generales de Hitler, el general Sankt, va a revelar el secreto en el que lleva años trabajando: los Übermensch (o algo así, que ahora del tirón no me sale), es decir, los superhombres. Y es que el trabajo dirigido por Sankt y dirigido por un remedo del mismo Mengele y su ayudante noruega, que se han hinchado a experimentar con humanos, ha permitido la creación de tres soldados superpoderosos, Siegfrid, Sigmund y Sieglinde (esta última es una mujer), y un número algo más alto de soldados menos poderosos pero igualmente resistentes. Y la irrupción de estas fuerzas va a permitir que los ejércitos soviéticos sean rechazados, lo que va a evitar la muerte de Hitler y la rendición de las fuerzas alemanas, y por lo tanto... va a hacer que la guerra continúe. Y al mismo tiempo, va a lanzar a sus enemigos, especialmente a los británicos, a una carrera contrarreloj para conseguir sus propios superhumanos. Con personajes creados por Gillen y personajes reales como Hitler, Guderian, Churchill o Alan Turing, este primer volumen de Über nos va a presentar el comienzo de este mundo, un no parar de acción, caos y batallas, reflejadas de forma sangrienta y violenta por el dibujante Canaan White (que encima tiene un nombre supermolón), de un detallismo hiperrealista en lo que a las escenas violentas se refiere, con mucha sangre, tripas y huesos rotos.
Y aquí empieza una nueva historia de Gillen... que iré siguiendo.
March 23, 2021
30th April, 10:29
Strikeforce Siegfried engaged Belorussian front troops outside the Reichstag. First non-guerrilla or artillery support application of Übermensch in open battle. Overwhelming force combined with supporting fire from Strikeforce Sieglinde in the Zootower resulted in total Soviet rout.
Über is a graphic novel that pulls no punches. Brutal and gory; it is set towards the final days of the Second World War. With Germany on the verge of defeat and Adolf Hitler hauled up in the bunker where, in our reality, he was found dead, Nazi scientists unleash their last hope. Übermensch are enhanced super soldiers capable of wiping out entire battalions without breaking a sweat.
The Allies' only hope is a scientist and spy who is deeply imbedded behind German lines. She knows the secrets of the Übermensch and must get them to Winston S. Churchill or all hope will be lost.
It is a challenging read but sets the tone for what I expect to be a good series. 3 1/2 stars.
Strikeforce Siegfried engaged Belorussian front troops outside the Reichstag. First non-guerrilla or artillery support application of Übermensch in open battle. Overwhelming force combined with supporting fire from Strikeforce Sieglinde in the Zootower resulted in total Soviet rout.
Über is a graphic novel that pulls no punches. Brutal and gory; it is set towards the final days of the Second World War. With Germany on the verge of defeat and Adolf Hitler hauled up in the bunker where, in our reality, he was found dead, Nazi scientists unleash their last hope. Übermensch are enhanced super soldiers capable of wiping out entire battalions without breaking a sweat.
The Allies' only hope is a scientist and spy who is deeply imbedded behind German lines. She knows the secrets of the Übermensch and must get them to Winston S. Churchill or all hope will be lost.
It is a challenging read but sets the tone for what I expect to be a good series. 3 1/2 stars.
April 6, 2021
The battle of Berlin is about to close,
Hitler in his Bunker about to pull the trigger.
The Red Army take over the German Capital.
but, against all odds, at the 11th hour the Nazi counterattack this time with their own Super-powered soldiers, Panzermensch ( tank-men) which they have been developing in secret under the Wehrmacht Wunderwaffen program (wonder weapons).
In addition to the Panzermensch the Nazis have managed to engineer three Tank men that are so overwhelmingly powerful that they are given the designation Battleships.
The allies gain access to the technology to build their own Tank men, and so the World war continues as we head to uncharted history.
The whole comic book is written like a history book, as if a narrator is writing for posterity.
Like Antony Beevor's Second world war.
I can't recommend this series enough.
if you liked Watchmen, then you should definitely read them since the super heroes in this comic are very much flawed.
Someday I wish someone would make a video game out of this.
Would really work.
Hitler in his Bunker about to pull the trigger.
The Red Army take over the German Capital.
but, against all odds, at the 11th hour the Nazi counterattack this time with their own Super-powered soldiers, Panzermensch ( tank-men) which they have been developing in secret under the Wehrmacht Wunderwaffen program (wonder weapons).
In addition to the Panzermensch the Nazis have managed to engineer three Tank men that are so overwhelmingly powerful that they are given the designation Battleships.
The allies gain access to the technology to build their own Tank men, and so the World war continues as we head to uncharted history.
The whole comic book is written like a history book, as if a narrator is writing for posterity.
Like Antony Beevor's Second world war.
I can't recommend this series enough.
if you liked Watchmen, then you should definitely read them since the super heroes in this comic are very much flawed.
Someday I wish someone would make a video game out of this.
Would really work.
March 4, 2019
Hodně specifická záležitost, která některým ve své bezobsažné brutalitě může připomínat pozdní Ennisova díla. Samotné krutosti ale nejsou hlavním obsahem knížky, tou jak Gillen zdůrazňuje je ekonomika války a jak ovlivní nasazení superzbraně Německem celkový vývoj.
Střední hodnocení čistě proto, že první díly nejsou moc dobré (nepřehledné, není zřejmé, co chtějí sdělit) i proto, že je Gillen psal několik let před zbytkem. Postupně se to zlepšuje.
Střední hodnocení čistě proto, že první díly nejsou moc dobré (nepřehledné, není zřejmé, co chtějí sdělit) i proto, že je Gillen psal několik let před zbytkem. Postupně se to zlepšuje.
February 17, 2015
Our culture lives in the shadow of World War Two. This is the mythical time when we all gave one-hundred percent and put aside all differences to work together using American know-how and work ethic for our completely unambiguously just victory and emergence as the one true leader of the free world and economic superpower.
So it makes sense that so many superhero comics live under the shadow of Captain America. The regular soldier who embodies American egalitarianism and determination, boosted by American science (usually stolen from the Germans)and sent to show the Germans that the real ubermensch fights for freedom and liberty.
But the real world, as I hope you already know, is not so clear-cut. We did not defeat the Axis powers single-handedly, and each of our Allies has just as much a claim on their victories. And our enemies? Each of them had their own mythologies where they were the heroes too. So in Kieron Gillen's Uber, the thousand year reich also has its own supermen too.
This story follows a lot of the typical beats of an origin story, with the theft of the secret superhero formula, the selection and creation of our own Captain America (HMH Colossus), and his rise to power so he can join the fight.
Then promptly die, because this is not his story, or America's story, but the story of an entire conflict. Everything you know is true until 1945, with the discovery of the supermen, at which point, anything can happen.
The story focuses on two types of moral ambiguity- good people in an impossible situation doing what they have to to survive, and flawed people committing vicious atrocities in the name of good. Then it just lets loose. It's fun! Everything makes sense, but nothing is predictable.
There are, just as in any huge ensemble piece, a lot of characters to keep track of, and all the introductions can be confusing, as it's too many people to memorize and we're not yet sure who we should be paying attention to. But the story rewards the careful (or repeat) reader.
The use of narration is exceptional. All feelings, dialogue, and action are right there in the panels and word bubbles. It's a very present, immediate story. New scenes are introduced with location, date, and time, in unassuming documentary fashion in text over the picture- no box. Totally unobtrusive.
The first blocks of narration don't come until 17 pages in, and when they do, they read more like excerpts from a history book, with dry, dispassionate details or historical footnotes clarifying a detail than they do as typical narration.
What's so interesting about that is it implies a world still exists after this conflict between Supermen- a world with the leisure time to research and write history, and the stability to write such a history without trying to push an agenda.
The dialogue is all very good, but the narration is a stand-out.
It's a fun and nasty little book. Lots of fun for any fans of alternate history. It's just dense and rich enough to show that something deeper than "just" entertainment might come of it, but it's entertaining enough that I don't care. Solid start to a series.
So it makes sense that so many superhero comics live under the shadow of Captain America. The regular soldier who embodies American egalitarianism and determination, boosted by American science (usually stolen from the Germans)and sent to show the Germans that the real ubermensch fights for freedom and liberty.
But the real world, as I hope you already know, is not so clear-cut. We did not defeat the Axis powers single-handedly, and each of our Allies has just as much a claim on their victories. And our enemies? Each of them had their own mythologies where they were the heroes too. So in Kieron Gillen's Uber, the thousand year reich also has its own supermen too.
This story follows a lot of the typical beats of an origin story, with the theft of the secret superhero formula, the selection and creation of our own Captain America (HMH Colossus), and his rise to power so he can join the fight.
Then promptly die, because this is not his story, or America's story, but the story of an entire conflict. Everything you know is true until 1945, with the discovery of the supermen, at which point, anything can happen.
The story focuses on two types of moral ambiguity- good people in an impossible situation doing what they have to to survive, and flawed people committing vicious atrocities in the name of good. Then it just lets loose. It's fun! Everything makes sense, but nothing is predictable.
There are, just as in any huge ensemble piece, a lot of characters to keep track of, and all the introductions can be confusing, as it's too many people to memorize and we're not yet sure who we should be paying attention to. But the story rewards the careful (or repeat) reader.
The use of narration is exceptional. All feelings, dialogue, and action are right there in the panels and word bubbles. It's a very present, immediate story. New scenes are introduced with location, date, and time, in unassuming documentary fashion in text over the picture- no box. Totally unobtrusive.
The first blocks of narration don't come until 17 pages in, and when they do, they read more like excerpts from a history book, with dry, dispassionate details or historical footnotes clarifying a detail than they do as typical narration.
What's so interesting about that is it implies a world still exists after this conflict between Supermen- a world with the leisure time to research and write history, and the stability to write such a history without trying to push an agenda.
The dialogue is all very good, but the narration is a stand-out.
It's a fun and nasty little book. Lots of fun for any fans of alternate history. It's just dense and rich enough to show that something deeper than "just" entertainment might come of it, but it's entertaining enough that I don't care. Solid start to a series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 6, 2025
O dia em Philip K. Dick encontrou "Miracleman"... e a série de filmes "Guinea pig".
May 9, 2014
Muy loco todo esto y mas para reseñar en el día de la victoria, pero ya que estamos celebrando la toma de Berlín por el ejercito rojo, imaginemos que esta no hubiera tenido lugar. Imaginemos que con Hitler a punto de volarse los sesos, se desplegara al fin la prometida arma definitiva, las Wunderwaffen, en forma de soldado mejorados capaces de matar con la mirada, arrasar ejércitos, ciudades y resistir impactos de obuses.
Es es Über, la vuelta de la tortilla en mayo del 45 y la contraofensiva Nazi a base de supersoldados de varias clases y los esfuerzos aliados, principalmente británicos por contrarrestar estas wunderwaffen. Locura potenciada, sangre a chorros, masas de carne retorcidas por la fuerza de los nuevos soldados, contraespionaje, instrucciones alienigenas por descifrar, sangre de Odin y lo que se os ocurra.
Kieron Gillen es el claramente el reclamo, pero el dibujo de White a mi no me gusta nada. Efectivo en sangre y bizarrismo, pero pobre en el resto, sobretodo en las caras. La historia tampoco mata y en este tipo de cómics de la segunda guerra mundial con poderes, prefiero con mucha diferencia "The Royals of War" que esta publicando ahora mismo Vertigo. Como curiosidad, sirve, pero no creo que siga leyéndolo.
Es es Über, la vuelta de la tortilla en mayo del 45 y la contraofensiva Nazi a base de supersoldados de varias clases y los esfuerzos aliados, principalmente británicos por contrarrestar estas wunderwaffen. Locura potenciada, sangre a chorros, masas de carne retorcidas por la fuerza de los nuevos soldados, contraespionaje, instrucciones alienigenas por descifrar, sangre de Odin y lo que se os ocurra.
Kieron Gillen es el claramente el reclamo, pero el dibujo de White a mi no me gusta nada. Efectivo en sangre y bizarrismo, pero pobre en el resto, sobretodo en las caras. La historia tampoco mata y en este tipo de cómics de la segunda guerra mundial con poderes, prefiero con mucha diferencia "The Royals of War" que esta publicando ahora mismo Vertigo. Como curiosidad, sirve, pero no creo que siga leyéndolo.
Read
December 7, 2018Second World War plus superpowers is an old idea with a chequered past; dropping brightly-coloured superheroes in to trade punches with equally garish super-Nazis is potentially pretty disgusting when compared to the sacrifices made by real heroes and villains in those battles. So that's exactly what Gillen doesn't do. Just before the fall of Berlin, German scientists unveil their first enhanced humans, and the Fuhrer - first seen with a gun in his mouth - realises that even if he can't win, he can still make sure everyone loses. As one character paraphrases Churchill's broadcast in response: "We've got some more fighting for you. Germans are bigger cunts than we thought." And so the hateful bloody slog of the war's last days is prolonged, the destruction escalates...this is gruelling stuff. That anyone has managed to conclude this is neo-Nazi propaganda is but further proof of how incredibly stupid some well-meaning people can be.
November 22, 2015
Alan Moore recommended this series and I read other series by Kieron Gillen, decided to check it out. It is a good alternate history take on what would happen if the Nazis developed superhumans. Other SF novels have taken this on, such as Bitter Seeds. What's unique about this take is the time period - the Nazis activate their "battleships" (the real superhuman people with both energy and strength powers) right before Hitler is about to commit suicide. They turn back the Russians and Allies right as they are about to take over Germany. There is a big cost to creating these superhumans and they cannot be just churned out of a factory.
It's a really good story and I could not stop reading the entire series to date. Only one problem, sorry to say: it's the artwork. I wish a better artist had drawn the series. It's a little too crude for my taste.
It's a really good story and I could not stop reading the entire series to date. Only one problem, sorry to say: it's the artwork. I wish a better artist had drawn the series. It's a little too crude for my taste.
November 13, 2018
I'm sure writing this took courage, it's one of these creations no one can say he really enjoyed, but one cannot be fascinated by the the questions Gillan bring us.
Peapole love elseworld\What if stories. People also love super heores. What people don't like is a reminder that we are only here because the right side one a certaine war. This book is a combination of all three.
Without going into details, I cannot recomend this to anyone, not because of all the gore (there is more blood an gore that an average Ennis story), but because of the uneasy feeling I get by a story where the nazis had an advantage and WW2 continued way past the battle for berlin.
I'm going to run with it till the end of it, it's not the best book I've read, and I cannot honestly recommend it to anyone, buti find it intriguing enough
Peapole love elseworld\What if stories. People also love super heores. What people don't like is a reminder that we are only here because the right side one a certaine war. This book is a combination of all three.
Without going into details, I cannot recomend this to anyone, not because of all the gore (there is more blood an gore that an average Ennis story), but because of the uneasy feeling I get by a story where the nazis had an advantage and WW2 continued way past the battle for berlin.
I'm going to run with it till the end of it, it's not the best book I've read, and I cannot honestly recommend it to anyone, buti find it intriguing enough
January 20, 2016
Holy crap...this is one of the best superhero World War II alternate histories I've read. It's actually a war story and not a superhero story. Powers are dealt with like an arms race, not some adventurous romantic thing, and it is horrifying and bloody, as is war. This is incredibly different from anything Kieron Gillen has done before. The tone he has in works like Young Avengers and Wicked + Divine, kind of a cool, stylistic vibe, is completely absent here. The idea is horrifying, so is the book.
And the art is great. Also horrifying and bloody and extremely unsettling. You have been warned. Onto Volume 2.
And the art is great. Also horrifying and bloody and extremely unsettling. You have been warned. Onto Volume 2.
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