Shutter, Vol. 3: Quo Vadis

Shutter #13-17

by Joe Keatinge, Leila del Duca (Illustrator), Owen Gieni (Illustrator)

Kate Kristopher was a globally renowned explorer on an Earth fart more fantastic than our own. Then she wasn't. In our third volume, Kate's memory has been wiped by the organization manipulating her entire life. Those she hold close all walk to their execution. All roads lead to Leonis.

Collects SHUTTER #13-17

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Mystery

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 13, 2016

About the author

Likes Wu Tang Clan.

Reviews

[Erica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like this is what you'd get if Quentin Tarantino wrote Saga and then it got edited by the people who brought us "Zootopia"
The art is still lovely. I enjoyed Venice immensely, it was gorgeous even if that part of the story ended up being somewhat pointless. No, I get it, I understood why it happened but really? As a stepping stone, it's overused, polished featureless.

But wait! There are new characters! New plotlines! New hairstyles! How can it be bad?
It's not bad. It's just been done before and better.

I will read the next volume if it happens to wander into my hands and I have some time to kill but I'm not going to be on the lookout for future titles in this series which is a horrible shame because I was excited for an adventure woman of color to wow me with her derring-do. Instead, I got an oft-told tale that has nothing to do with women, of color or otherwise. Heavy sigh.

[Ada · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm rooting for the homicidal alarm clock... Don't know what that says about me. But I'm not liking any of the other characters and frankly nothing about the story grabs my attention.

Except the artwork. *sigh* So goddamn beautiful.

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the top echelon of books Image is producing today. Love the story and characters. Love the art.

[Jiro Dreams of Suchy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jumping right back into the madness- making Cassius (the robotic cat clock) a violent madman was a great choice, he does love khris and the family but losing his head (literally) made him something else (figuratively).

The cat world is NOT under Prospero control but why (Kate knows) and the family is somehow behind it. This collection adds a lot more mystery and a lot more madness without ever being dry- truly PACKED with action.

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I will admit to missing the second volume a little, but honestly I was only about as lost as I had been in the first one, so.... I don't feel like it hindered me much.

It was just as much of a crazy acid trip of WTFery as the first volume but this one actually includes a peyote trip in it.

I do really enjoy the artwork even though I have very little clue what's going on. Maybe that's the point.

[Carla · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm actually pretty confused. A bunch of characters show up in flashy ways that suggest I should already know who they are, some characters appear in the last few panels with no introduction whatsoever, and declarations are made at the end that sound like the result of a lot of exploration and development. Is this just how the book reads, or is there extra content that appears between volumes 2 and 3? Because at the end, I was feeling less and less involved in what was happening and more like I was just kinda eavesdropping.

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Shutter, Vol. 3: Quo Vadis' by Joe Keatinge with gorgeous art by Leila del Duca is one weird head trip. It might have helped had I read Volume 2, but then again, I'm not certain.

Kate Kristopher is writing a journal in Venice, Italy, which is about as normal as scenes go in this volume. It's only later that we find out she has amnesia (or maybe knew if we had read the aforementioned Volume 2). We do get caught up on things during a peyote trip, which seems about par for this book and we end up on Leonis where things just seem to be going even further sideways.

With new characters being introduced and weird scenes, I think this is a book you either just go with or you walk away. I felt a bit adrift. It's so violent at times, but there are these walking cat alarm clocks and talking lions. The disparity of this environment with a darker story is good but feels a bit untethered, but perhaps that's exactly the point. I do like the art style quite a lot, and I am interested in reading more in this series.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Image Comics, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Audrey Class · Rating 3 out of 5]

Man, I don't know.

I feel like I never spent enough time with Kate-as-normal before getting to Kate-as-whiny-and-fit-throwing-reader-surrogate to actually like her. I suppose I'm rooting for her because I too want background information on her siblings and her family tree and the universe construction in general, but I have a growing feeling that this book isn't concerned with my need for that.

We begin with Kate and the reader on the same information level, but one peyote trip and radical haircut later, Kate is leaps and bounds ahead, proposing to take apart the world I barely understand in the first place.

I will keep reading, in part because I'm a completest, and in part because I do genuinely want to know how this shakes out, but I can't deny the sense of letdown I feel after finishing each volume.

[Ma'Belle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am still bothered by a lot of Keatinge's writing style, but it improves in certain sections by the end of this volume. Del Luca's designs, both derivative and original, are a lot of fun to see in action.

This series started on such a high note, then faltered badly by Vol. 2. Much time has passed, but now I've got Vols. 4 and 5 on deck, and I'm hoping the latest major reveal - that our protagonist is one of 7 unique siblings in a long and complicated legacy - brings the series to a better place.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5* I'm just kind of bored. The first issue in this volume is the one that introduced me to the series, and I did like it, but seeing the larger story now, I'm just not impressed or interested. The story gets *bigger* but my level of caring declines. oh well.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little more disjointed as the universe of Shutter grows, but no less enjoyable in terms of each individual storyline. Wished there was a bit more Kate in this volume.

[Aildiin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just don't like this comic at all.
And since I have read every issue I purchased this is the last I ever set my eyes on it...

[Pturingan · Rating 1 out of 5]

The art is great but the story is just so bad. I give up on this series. I'll gladly look for other books drawn by Leila del Duca though.

[Kenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate gets to meet the grandfather and the truth is revealed. A helluva ride still.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume is all about tying the strands of the previous volumes together and to start making the overall picture clear. Kate learns some things about her family and gathers her newfound siblings together. There's a major subplot focused on Leonis, as Kate and Shaw end up in conflict there, and Alarm Cat (Cassius) takes a surprisingly central role. A lot of stuff happens, much of it surprising, but a lot of it feels like it's not really consequential to the overall story. Still, the new characters are interesting, the plot is never predictable, and it sets up the next volume well. The art is well done, making the myriad environments both distinctive yet also feeling like a cohesive whole. Even though it had been a long time since I read the previous volumes, it was fairly easy to get back into the story.

[Paige · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay this one lost me. The whole lead up in volume one and two was for Kate learning about her true identity and who her siblings are. But she does peyote and it skips all of it?! I get that it's mysterious and makes the ending more impactful, but it just felt sloppy that here we were going on this journey with her and then we (the readers) are left out. While it is an interesting narration choice, I don't think it works with how zany the world is. There needs to be some part of the text that is grounded and able to be followed to form a connection. I'm still holding out hope that this was a fluke and things will be better in the next one.

[Tyler Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 ⭐️
So far, it's pretty on course with the first two books, but the series keeps dropping insane surprises, but not much has been "revealed." I liked this book, just not quite as much as the first two. I really enjoyed Alarm Cat's/Cassius' hostage scene on Leonis (really, any scene he's in!) as well as earlier supporting characters of Alain and Harrington making their way back into the main story. The 4th wall breaking, meta mind trips Kate takes are colored brilliantly. I just wish we could get some more answers about the whereabout of Kate's father and finally tie up some crazy loose strings! But it definitely feels like a mashup of Carmen San Diego and Indiana Jones!

[Meisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is just getting better and better for me. I will keep this review very brief, because I'm not real sure how to go about reviewing without spoiling or completely summarizing...

So I will just say I enjoyed Kate's journey in this volume and her finally finding out the truth. I like the new characters introduced. And overall I am really happy with the feeling that things are leading somewhere! I feel like the bigger picture is taking shape on the horizon and am anxious to see it.

[tajosima · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this series. It has sooo much potential and sometimes the result is 100% awesome! But in this 3rd book I still feel like not much has happened. Maybe because what happens is a bit vague sometimes, we still don't know much of what is going on or why it's going on. And sometimes I just get confused. There were a couple of times that I had to go back to make sure I didn't skip any pages cause I didn't know how we got where we were. I want to continue because I want to know more about this, but at the same time, I'm a bit afraid that I still won't get much in the 4th book.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I love the journey the creative team has brought us on I had some problems following the story--all these siblings and family ties and secrets were starting to become hard to grasp. Still I read on and because I know at times in comics, you need a few more issues or even another story arc to bring into fruition what was originally started. Del Luca's art is the constant thing keeps me grounded while reading even when things don't all makes sense. Still worth following.

[Ange Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. The storyline got a little more coherent, but still skips too chaotically. It's like new situations are introduced which don't fully make sense. Like a part of the information on the why and how just keeps missing. The characters stay flat because of this. Somehow I'm still curious as hell where this madness will go next.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but minimal development, it feels like there was so much that honestly gave so little progress to the story. Curious to see where it goes from here, but honestly getting a little tired of not really having any idea about what it happening. Basically feels like breadcrumbs - but they are interesting at least!

[Amethyst · Rating 2 out of 5]

well, it made me sad that Kate just shot the alarm clock cat like nothing. I really like that cat. I hope he returns in the next volume he is one of my favorite characters. it was also nice to see Alain again in the story. the story itself doesn't make too much sense but it's entertaining nonetheless.

[Josh Jacobs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much more consistent quality in story in this volume. It was still wacky as anything but it was consistently wacky, which I can get down with. Another great cliffhanger in the last issue so it's time for me to buy the rest, methinks.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series literally never disappoints me.

[Nicola Tyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

*2.5 artwork as gorgeous as ever but the storyline is too everywhere.

[Kat Hulu · Rating 5 out of 5]

I freaking love this

[Warren · Rating 4 out of 5]

I 💓 alarm 🐈! He's such a beast.

[Lila · Rating 5 out of 5]

It doesn’t get much better than this. Not much revealed in the big build up for the next volume, but the art is completely compelling. I want these volumes for my shelves.

[Jim · Rating 2 out of 5]

if not for the language i'd give this three stars, the art and story is good and interesting.