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E.X.O. - The Legend of Wale Williams #1
E.X.O. - The Legend of Wale Williams, Part One
Featured on CNN, FORBES, BBC and more, E.X.O. – The Legend of Wale Williams Part 1 is a superhero story about redemption, set in a futuristic, 2025 Africa! The 136 page graphic novel follows the journey of Wale Williams, an impetuous young man who inherits a suit with super powers after his father goes missing. Tricked into returning home to Lagoon City, Nigeria following a five year absence, Wale embarks on a journey to investigate his father’s mysterious disappearance. As he comes to understand the suit’s powers, Wale realizes he must restore hope to his city by preventing catastrophic attacks from the sociopathic, Oniku, leader of an extremist group called The CREED.
136 pages, Paperback
First published August 31, 2015
5 people are currently reading
473 people want to read
About the author
Roye Okupe
29 books104 followersBorn in Lagos, Nigeria, Roye Okupe is a creative specialist who holds both a Bachelor’s and Master’s in computer science from The George Washington University. His passion for animation led him to found YouNeek Studios in 2012, an avenue that would allow him pursue his dream of creating a diverse library of superheroes. Under that umbrella, Roye wrote, produced and directed several animated productions including, but not limited to, 2D/3D animated short films, TV commercials, show openers, music videos and much more. These productions have allowed Roye to attain much prestigious recognition’s such as being #5 on Ventures Africa’s list of 40 African innovators to watch (2016) as well as being part of NewAfrican Magazines’ 100 most influential Africans of 2016.
With the superhero genre currently at the height of popularity, Roye has made it a goal to create a connected universe of heroes, with origins from locations that are currently neglected and/or ignored. In August 2015, Roye released his debut graphic novel titled: E.X.O. The Legend of Wale Williams Part One, a superhero story set in a futuristic Nigeria. E.X.O. was received with critical acclaim and has since been featured on CNN, Forbes, The New York Times, NBC, The Guardian, ABC7, BBC, The Huffington Post, Mashabe and more!
With the superhero genre currently at the height of popularity, Roye has made it a goal to create a connected universe of heroes, with origins from locations that are currently neglected and/or ignored. In August 2015, Roye released his debut graphic novel titled: E.X.O. The Legend of Wale Williams Part One, a superhero story set in a futuristic Nigeria. E.X.O. was received with critical acclaim and has since been featured on CNN, Forbes, The New York Times, NBC, The Guardian, ABC7, BBC, The Huffington Post, Mashabe and more!
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
November 10, 2021
10/19/2021 Full review tk at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.
11/10/2021 I have super enjoyed the other books in the YouNeek YouNiverse so far but this, I feel, is the best of them yet!
Set in a near future Nigeria, Wale Williams is the son of a workaholic scientist, Dr Tunde Williams, whose absorption in his work leads to a tragedy that tears their family apart. Unable to deal with being near his father anymore, Wale takes off after promising to carry away some of the research that Tunde fears will be used for evil purposes should it fall into the wrong hands. Leaving behind his childhood sweetheart, Zahra Martins, he goes walkabout for five years, returning to Lagoon City only after receiving news of his father's death.
Unfortunately, Lagoon City is a lot different from what Wale remembers. Rife now with a criminal element calling itself The Creed, the gang's merciless thugs terrorize the inhabitants of the Omile neighborhood, answering only to a leader known as Oniku. Wale intervenes in a mugging but otherwise wants little to do with addressing the problem, disappointing his activist brother Timi and their entrepreneurial friend Benji. But then Creed robots attack the Williams estate, involving Wale whether he likes it or not.
During the attack, Wale uncovers an exo suit left for him by his father, and uses it to defeat the robots and stop them from attacking other innocent civilians. But his heroics draw the attention of various factions with their own motivations, and soon Wale is fighting more than just random crime while uncovering family secrets that threaten all of Lagos, if not the entire country and more.
This was a really terrific, modern superhero story that reminded me a lot of turn of the century Valiant Comics, tho perhaps with a greater sophistication. I loved the Nigerian setting and how badass Zahra was, tho in all honesty my favorite character is probably the practical, irreverent Benji. While the plot isn't too out of the ordinary for a superhero comic, I did enjoy how it wasn't just a superhero vs a supervillain -- the many competing interests made for a really believable story.
The art is outstanding throughout, but particularly in the action sequences. I did prefer the earlier panels set in the daytime to the ones further in which were set primarily at night. After a while, the latter started to grow murky to the point of drabness: realistic, but not as visually appealing in my opinion. I did like, tho, how this book both resolved its primary plot points while leaving others open for exploration in the next volumes. And I'm really excited to see how this title and Malika: Warrior Queen intersect! We saw a hint of that in the final pages of Malika's first volume, so I'm really eager to read what happens next.
E.X.O. - The Legend Of Wale Williams, Part One by Roye Okupe, Sunkanmi Akinboye & Raphael Kazeem was published today November 9 2021 by Dark Horse Books and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
11/10/2021 I have super enjoyed the other books in the YouNeek YouNiverse so far but this, I feel, is the best of them yet!
Set in a near future Nigeria, Wale Williams is the son of a workaholic scientist, Dr Tunde Williams, whose absorption in his work leads to a tragedy that tears their family apart. Unable to deal with being near his father anymore, Wale takes off after promising to carry away some of the research that Tunde fears will be used for evil purposes should it fall into the wrong hands. Leaving behind his childhood sweetheart, Zahra Martins, he goes walkabout for five years, returning to Lagoon City only after receiving news of his father's death.
Unfortunately, Lagoon City is a lot different from what Wale remembers. Rife now with a criminal element calling itself The Creed, the gang's merciless thugs terrorize the inhabitants of the Omile neighborhood, answering only to a leader known as Oniku. Wale intervenes in a mugging but otherwise wants little to do with addressing the problem, disappointing his activist brother Timi and their entrepreneurial friend Benji. But then Creed robots attack the Williams estate, involving Wale whether he likes it or not.
During the attack, Wale uncovers an exo suit left for him by his father, and uses it to defeat the robots and stop them from attacking other innocent civilians. But his heroics draw the attention of various factions with their own motivations, and soon Wale is fighting more than just random crime while uncovering family secrets that threaten all of Lagos, if not the entire country and more.
This was a really terrific, modern superhero story that reminded me a lot of turn of the century Valiant Comics, tho perhaps with a greater sophistication. I loved the Nigerian setting and how badass Zahra was, tho in all honesty my favorite character is probably the practical, irreverent Benji. While the plot isn't too out of the ordinary for a superhero comic, I did enjoy how it wasn't just a superhero vs a supervillain -- the many competing interests made for a really believable story.
The art is outstanding throughout, but particularly in the action sequences. I did prefer the earlier panels set in the daytime to the ones further in which were set primarily at night. After a while, the latter started to grow murky to the point of drabness: realistic, but not as visually appealing in my opinion. I did like, tho, how this book both resolved its primary plot points while leaving others open for exploration in the next volumes. And I'm really excited to see how this title and Malika: Warrior Queen intersect! We saw a hint of that in the final pages of Malika's first volume, so I'm really eager to read what happens next.
E.X.O. - The Legend Of Wale Williams, Part One by Roye Okupe, Sunkanmi Akinboye & Raphael Kazeem was published today November 9 2021 by Dark Horse Books and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
October 3, 2018
Four stars for the author's decision to keep the comic centered on Nigeria from the characters and story depicted, to all the people who worked on creating it. It's a wonderful way to introduce readers not only to stories set in places other than the US or the UK, but also to introduce them to new authors and artists from Nigeria.
The comic itself is pretty classical super hero, a little bit generic in Wale's backstory (Dad's a mad scientist, mom dies, Wale, reluctantly at first, picks up the mantel of superhero and becomes the voice for the voiceless). The art is occasionally really nice, but sometimes a bit generic as well, backgrounds are sparse, character design could be a little more detailed.
In a way I think that comes from this not being Okupe's first choice of medium. E.X.O was supposed to be an animation, and from the sequences you can view on YouTube, I think it would have been great.
Also, there's Fury, who is so so cool. I really like Fury, now that's a superhero name.
The comic itself is pretty classical super hero, a little bit generic in Wale's backstory (Dad's a mad scientist, mom dies, Wale, reluctantly at first, picks up the mantel of superhero and becomes the voice for the voiceless). The art is occasionally really nice, but sometimes a bit generic as well, backgrounds are sparse, character design could be a little more detailed.
In a way I think that comes from this not being Okupe's first choice of medium. E.X.O was supposed to be an animation, and from the sequences you can view on YouTube, I think it would have been great.
Also, there's Fury, who is so so cool. I really like Fury, now that's a superhero name.
November 30, 2015
This is a great graphic novel and was thrilled to win this here on goodreads! I can't wait to pass this one on to friends! Different in a good way that's outside Marvel and DC and need to see more independent graphic novels around!
May 6, 2017
So, I read the Chapter One of this Part One (the first 28 pages) on Comixology (bought it for 99cents, that is, 335 naira these days) and I was not entertained.
Look, I applaud the effort. Nigerians in comics? Hell yeah, I like the sound of that. But, Okupe has to remember he has COMPETITION. He grew up with Marvel and DC, how on earth does he think he can under-perform and hope to match those guys??
Akinboye's and Kazeem's art was good...but too sparse and angular for me. A lot of backgrounds were just too empty. And we could not tell the difference between Wale and his brother...what was his name sef...?
The dialogue was not nice. Generic gist, sparse...kind of like conversation you would hear in those irritating Nollywood Movies.
Loved Akpan's covers though.
Okupe has to really STEP UP. Part one sells for $6.99 on Comixology, I think. I am not sure I want to shelve out that kind of money and risk not been entertained.
Okupe could do well to read Batman 2011 Death Of the Family or The Court of Owls. Now THAT'S entertainment.
Look, I applaud the effort. Nigerians in comics? Hell yeah, I like the sound of that. But, Okupe has to remember he has COMPETITION. He grew up with Marvel and DC, how on earth does he think he can under-perform and hope to match those guys??
Akinboye's and Kazeem's art was good...but too sparse and angular for me. A lot of backgrounds were just too empty. And we could not tell the difference between Wale and his brother...what was his name sef...?
The dialogue was not nice. Generic gist, sparse...kind of like conversation you would hear in those irritating Nollywood Movies.
Loved Akpan's covers though.
Okupe has to really STEP UP. Part one sells for $6.99 on Comixology, I think. I am not sure I want to shelve out that kind of money and risk not been entertained.
Okupe could do well to read Batman 2011 Death Of the Family or The Court of Owls. Now THAT'S entertainment.
February 5, 2018
I almost gave it four stars, but I think the faults in the book brings it down to three. Without going into too much spoilers, a character died early in the story and I didn't think the story showed enough about the character, so I didn't really care about that character dying. Plus, I thought how the character died was stupid and I think the writer could have staged it better. The art is okay, but the panels don't flow too well in some places. And I figured out who the villain was less than half way through the story, but I still loved how the author wrote him.
I'll stop talking about the negatives now and say what I liked about it. The designs for the heroes and villains were amazing. There is a part at the beginning of a family in danger, and that made me snivel up a bit. I liked every character that was introduced. The plot, though a little predictable, was still fun and exiting to read especially the last two chapters. I think I will continue reading this series and I would recommend this book to anyone who likes superhero stories.
I'll stop talking about the negatives now and say what I liked about it. The designs for the heroes and villains were amazing. There is a part at the beginning of a family in danger, and that made me snivel up a bit. I liked every character that was introduced. The plot, though a little predictable, was still fun and exiting to read especially the last two chapters. I think I will continue reading this series and I would recommend this book to anyone who likes superhero stories.
March 31, 2016
I had so much pride reading this. The fact that this was not only a story centered in Africa but every participant in creating this is of African descent as well. Yes, representation definitely matters. Story wise, it's not breaking new ground but the dialogue is true to the region and the art work is pretty good. Two thumbs up
February 11, 2024
I enjoyed this overall. It's a fairly straightforward superhero origin story with daddy issues, family casualties, and betrayal. There were a couple of interesting twists and I enjoyed the characters. The placement of many of the word bubbles in dialogue scenes made it difficult to follow the conversation, though. For example, there are a few places where a bubble overlaps between two boxes, which is usually a visual cue that it's a transition between the two, but it wasn't. So instead of being [box 1: bubble 1, bubble 2, transition bubble (3)] [box 2: transition bubble (1), bubble 2] it would be [box 1: bubble 1, transition bubble (2), bubble 3] [box 2: bubble 1]. Many of the issues could have been resolved very easily with longer tails or slightly higher or lower placements. The main reason I'm going on about this is because it was really distracting and forced me to reread multiple boxes and even pages in order to figure out how it was supposed to be going. I didn't run into this issue in the Malika volumes I read, so I'm not sure why it was so prevalent in this volume. I am still really curious about the story and, particularly, how the different pieces will come together.
August 3, 2024
This is a good solid entry in the shared titles/universe Okupe has created (I'm following a suggested reading order that I found online). I chose to read these titles, in complete honesty, to add some diversity to my comic reding, and the cultural additions Okupe makes to the story are a nice touch.
Why only a three star rating? The story, while quickly paced and enjoyable is not very original. Disaffected prodigal son returns home, finds out secrets about late father, meets old flame and inherits a power suit. Yeah, there's a little bit more to the story but not much.
Again, I recommend this for those wanting to expose themselves to comics from other cultures/countries.
Why only a three star rating? The story, while quickly paced and enjoyable is not very original. Disaffected prodigal son returns home, finds out secrets about late father, meets old flame and inherits a power suit. Yeah, there's a little bit more to the story but not much.
Again, I recommend this for those wanting to expose themselves to comics from other cultures/countries.
August 10, 2021
This is a fantastic comic that is set in Nigeria. While this comic isn't doing anything new with the superhero genre, it is still a great beginning to this series. The characters are great and I loved the superhero designs. Fury really stood out to me and I especially loved her superhero suit. The dialogue was great and there were some funny moments as well as the very tense moments. Overall, a really great comic that I look forward to the future installments.
I would like to thank Dark Horse Books for providing me with a copy.
I would like to thank Dark Horse Books for providing me with a copy.
June 26, 2022
I love the character development throughout this books. I feel like I know enough about all the characters to like them, hate them, or really wish I could learn more about them. It is a perfect balance between the characters, the world building (that you can see so much more of than the artist gives you because of the excellent narration), and the action.
The science is so fun and shows another side of the nanobot technology. I enjoyed seeing this tech from a new angle.
The science is so fun and shows another side of the nanobot technology. I enjoyed seeing this tech from a new angle.
June 23, 2017
I wanted to like this, but it has such a cookie cutter superhero origin plot--fridged mom, dad angst, reluctant hero, villain with the usual motives, etc. Glad there's more African superheroes though, and hopefully the plot gets more original in subsequent volumes.
April 26, 2022
A unique story and perspective. I am always interested in non-American science fiction and graphic novels. This is my first from Nigeria. A melange of other suit power heroes and concepts. Entertaining.
June 5, 2017
OK. I'm gearing up to write another diverse comics/books list clearly.
February 16, 2018
Good fit for fans of Iron Man maybe. I also was reminded a smidge of Overwatch, so it might work for those fans too.
September 27, 2018
Interesting start!
December 25, 2018
I love this book, a fantastic story, amazing art and just all around fun.
July 11, 2020
nice
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 26, 2022
The YouNeek universe is so well thought out with the overlapping storylines a reader gets hooked fast.
April 13, 2022
My sons just fell in love with this african (nigerian ?) super hero.
June 27, 2023
Really loved this! Would like to see Oniku character explored a bit more.
Wale seems a bit entitled, but Zahra oh she is 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
Wale seems a bit entitled, but Zahra oh she is 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾
August 22, 2025
Iron man meets Star Wars in an alternate version of Lagos. Sold
July 20, 2016
An impressive Kickstarter-backed indie debut about a superhero in a near-future (2025) Nigeria. Recommended!
March 20, 2016
What a great read
A fantastic classic comic book style story told with excellent art and interesting dialog. I can't wait to see where this exciting story goes.
A fantastic classic comic book style story told with excellent art and interesting dialog. I can't wait to see where this exciting story goes.
May 20, 2016
Enjoyed the universe
Reminded me of an African version of Marvel's Iron Man universe . Looking forward to seeing more from this team.
Reminded me of an African version of Marvel's Iron Man universe . Looking forward to seeing more from this team.
June 8, 2016
Good start for new hero
Great story. I love that origin story takes place in Africa. While the EXO seems to rip off off iron man I like that he is both defensive and offensive
Great story. I love that origin story takes place in Africa. While the EXO seems to rip off off iron man I like that he is both defensive and offensive
August 9, 2016
Great starting volume from beginning to end. Loved that took place an African country that is basically Nigeria. Great story and social commentary.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews