E.X.O. - The Legend of Wale Williams, Part Two

E.X.O. - The Legend of Wale Williams #2

by Roye Okupe

Featured on CNN, The Guardian, NBC & more, E.X.O. – The Legend of Wale Williams Part Two is a sci fi, superhero graphic novel about redemption, set in a futuristic 2025 Africa. Part Two continues to chronicle the journey of Wale Williams a.k.a EXO, who was last seen hanging on for dear life after his first encounter with the incredibly powerful and sinister Oniku, leader of the extremist group, The CREED. After his shocking revelation, Oniku now has all he needs to launch a crippling attack at the heart of Lagoon City, an attack that would be felt across the entire nation of Nigeria. Can Wale finally become the hero he has always avoided but was always meant to be in time to stop the inevitable? And what role does the wild card Fury play in Lagoon City’s uprising? Only time will tell. This graphic novel's story takes place in the same universe (the YouNeek YouNiverse - A universe of African science fiction, fantasy and superhero stories) as the Malika comic book series.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Africa

148 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 1, 2016

About the author

Born 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!

Reviews

[Julia971 · Rating 5 out of 5]

As captivating as the first one.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

First, I do feel compelled to state that I did not read this on a Kindle, but no matter how I type the title or enter in the various ISBN numbers I see for this title, no paperback version of this book comes up on Goodreads.

Moving on: An excellent continuation to Vol. 1. While the E.X.O. storyline follows the familiar superhero template, familiarity only adds to the enjoyment factor. Okupe has clearly done his research in this kind of storytelling and informs the basic story points with his own voice. The action scenes are well drawn and it is very easy to follow the action which is not always easy to do in comics.

A terrific follow-up. I look forward to the next volume.

[Vi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I second the five star review. Anything that involves setting Lagos as a Gotham with secret labs, I'm down with.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished this too long ago to put up much of a review, so that's not totally fair to Okupe. On the other hand nothing was so outstanding about this read that it stuck in my head.

So far in reading through his shared universe I like the Malika books more because they bring more tidbits, at the least about Nigerian and other aspects of African culture.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am hooked on this series. The character building is awesome and the action perfect. He really pulls you in and makes it easy to connect with the characters. Definitely an amazing read!

[Hillary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice superhero comic, with an all-Black cast, set in Lagos, Nigeria. A bit snarky and meta, but otherwise pretty standard superhero comic stuff.

[Bahman Naraghi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Predictable and not entirely original, but still a fun read and artwork that carries the writing well.