What do you think?
Rate this book
The Armory Wars: The Second Stage Turbine Blade #1-10
The Amory Wars: The Second Stage Turbine Blade
Over 350 pages of science fiction wonder from the genius of Coheed and Cambria creative force Claudio Sanchez.
This new reprinted edition of the Second Stage Turbine Blade epic collects every issue, as well as bonus material from the creative team.
Over 350 pages of science fiction wonder from the genius of Coheed and Cambria creative force Claudio Sanchez. The story that has captured the attention of millions of fans worldwide is found here in one volume, overflowing with images of terror and wonder.
This new reprinted edition of the Second Stage Turbine Blade epic collects every issue, as well as bonus material from the creative team.
Over 350 pages of science fiction wonder from the genius of Coheed and Cambria creative force Claudio Sanchez. The story that has captured the attention of millions of fans worldwide is found here in one volume, overflowing with images of terror and wonder.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
120 people are currently reading
598 people want to read
About the author
Claudio Sánchez
126 books396 followersClaudio Paul Sanchez III (born March 12, 1978, in Suffern, New York, United States) is an American writer and musician of Puerto Rican and Italian descent best known for being the lead singer and guitarist for the alternative/progressive rock group Coheed and Cambria. He is the creator of the comic book series The Amory Wars, as well as Key of Z and Kill Audio, both co-written with wife Chondra Echert. Sanchez co-authored the novel Year of the Black Rainbow with Peter David.
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claudio...
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claudio...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
March 26, 2013
A must-read for fans of Coheed and Cambria's music, though it likely won't make a lot of sense to anyone else. Sometimes it seemed like the story and dialogue were trying so hard to work lines from the music in, that they didn't make much sense in the comic. Still, it was a lot of fun seeing where my interpretation of the songs differed or aligned with the story as presented in the comics, and some of the scenes in the comic were very effective and very beautiful, even in their darkness and violence.
Sanchez lets his influences shine brightly, with certain ideas paying very obvious homage to sci-fi classics like Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica, but there's a lot of creativity and originality present as well.
In the end, I liked it, but I didn't love it. Sometimes I found myself confused even with the music to fill in the gaps created in the comic, with some events and actions and dialogue leaving me scratching my head. I look forward to reading the next installment, and I hope eventually one of my favorite albums, Good Apollo, will get the comic book treatment as well.
Sanchez lets his influences shine brightly, with certain ideas paying very obvious homage to sci-fi classics like Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica, but there's a lot of creativity and originality present as well.
In the end, I liked it, but I didn't love it. Sometimes I found myself confused even with the music to fill in the gaps created in the comic, with some events and actions and dialogue leaving me scratching my head. I look forward to reading the next installment, and I hope eventually one of my favorite albums, Good Apollo, will get the comic book treatment as well.
February 19, 2020
After reading In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3, where the story settles down and Claudio Sanchez delivers a legitimately compelling Sci-Fi epic, the flaws of The Second Stage Turbine Blade become more apparent. This installment is just so messy and feels like the first draft of a great idea. It has the right energy, but the lack of oversight makes the story hard to buy. For instance, if a general told me that my children were infected with a universe-destroying virus, I'd probably want to get a second opinion before poisoning them/bashing their head in with a hammer. That inciting incident is integral to the story, and that the story horrifically commits to infanticide gives it big stakes and creates a world where any horrible thing can happen, but the problem is it gets there without doing the work. You also have the non-sequiter side-story of Josephine Kilgannon and her fiancee Patrick being assaulted by the Jersey City Devils, which makes for a compelling song but doesn't fit in the story at all. You return to Patrick on the run and it all adds up to nothing. Sanchez at least addressed this in the Ultimate Edition with the story "33," but it still doesn't change the fact that anytime the story cuts to Patrick we aren't really getting any information other than how the Onstantine Priests are monsters and considering that we can get that from how they're tailing Claudio Kilgannon, why do we need Patrick (because "33" the song is a jam, I guess). The Amory Wars is a frustratingly inconsistent series and I'd love to see it get a redo on Netflix or something. The elements for a fresh Sci-Fi saga are there, but you look at something like Brian K Vaughan & Fiona Staples series Saga and this just pales in comparison.
January 14, 2015
Coheed and Camrbia is pretty much the only music I listen to and I was lucky enough to see the band twice in recent years. I have to admit when I first started listening to this band I wasn't aware that their music was based on this one big, epic story concept - I just loved the music.
When reading the graphic novel and seeing how the music and literature tie together just makes for an awesome experience, but what is really cool is that you can read this book or listen to the music completely independently - it's your choice, they both work. It's a truly great story, with amazing characters and stupendous plot line which makes me frustrated that it hasn't been developed into a film yet. But there is hope for the future. Claudio Sanchez is a real musical genius and creative talent.
When reading the graphic novel and seeing how the music and literature tie together just makes for an awesome experience, but what is really cool is that you can read this book or listen to the music completely independently - it's your choice, they both work. It's a truly great story, with amazing characters and stupendous plot line which makes me frustrated that it hasn't been developed into a film yet. But there is hope for the future. Claudio Sanchez is a real musical genius and creative talent.
April 24, 2014
This is the second time I've read a graphic novel; the first was Watchmen, which I wanted to read before I saw the movie. In this case, it was heavy in science fiction, and I was therefore a bit hesitant about it despite it being from my favorite band's frontman. And as someone who is unaccustomed to reading pictures as well as words, it took a little getting used to, and I required coaching from my boyfriend (who is a seasoned comic book reader) sometimes.
Honestly, the Amory Wars is just insanely depressing. It's a downer from the get-go. The horrors that Coheed and Cambria had to suffer--first with their unintended murder of their own child, then with their own destruction--were brutal and I was cringing within the first twenty pages. Talk about one hell of an introduction. I couldn't deny that it instantly captured my interest, though. It was totally unlike anything else I had ever read, science fiction or otherwise. And for that I was impressed.
I won't lie I was kind of expecting to like this already just because I love Claudio's music. And for years I had no clue what most of the songs were about--I just belted out the lyrics while rocking out in my room getting ready for school. It wasn't until I finally bought these in hardcover that I set about educating myself on the world he had created. And you know what? It's a damn good story. And now I can honestly say I like it for its own merits, instead of for the name of the guy who wrote it.
Honestly, the Amory Wars is just insanely depressing. It's a downer from the get-go. The horrors that Coheed and Cambria had to suffer--first with their unintended murder of their own child, then with their own destruction--were brutal and I was cringing within the first twenty pages. Talk about one hell of an introduction. I couldn't deny that it instantly captured my interest, though. It was totally unlike anything else I had ever read, science fiction or otherwise. And for that I was impressed.
I won't lie I was kind of expecting to like this already just because I love Claudio's music. And for years I had no clue what most of the songs were about--I just belted out the lyrics while rocking out in my room getting ready for school. It wasn't until I finally bought these in hardcover that I set about educating myself on the world he had created. And you know what? It's a damn good story. And now I can honestly say I like it for its own merits, instead of for the name of the guy who wrote it.
September 21, 2011
Would love to give this a higher rating. Love the band and thoroughly enjoyed making connections to songs. It was a fun read, and I enjoyed it, but the story just felt messy to me.
July 21, 2013
To start off with, I'd like to say that I've been a huge fan of Coheed and Cambria since their first album, and as a teenager I would research what the Cobalt and Calcium forum members theorized about "the story" as it developed. I picked up their first attempt at making the story into a comic as soon as I laid eyes on it at a book store... so needless to say, I enjoy me some Coheed.
After hearing that the story was being re-made into the Amory Wars, I decided that I would wait a while and pick it up as a trade paperback once they got further along so I wouldn't be waiting around as it came out. Years passed, I forgot about it, but then happened upon these beautiful hardcover Ultimate Editions on Amazon.
From a design perspective, I love the hardcover binding and the fact that this Ultimate Edition includes the two old versions of the comics for completeness's sake. I never bought the second one so it gave me a chance to own that one as well.
As far as the story goes, well... to me it always felt like Claudio wrote the songs first, maybe had a few story elements in mind, and then hoped it would all work out when he wrote the final story later. Though I think he did a decent job with what he had, the lyrics really ended up locking him into creating certain characters and locations that I think he would have rather not wanted to on his final run-through. (Most notably is Claudio's voiced regret at having put his own name in the lyrics to Everything Evil as he mentioned on the Neverender live DVD.) The end result is a definite feeling of wonkiness at times when characters are forced to say things or do things that don't really make sense to put them in line with the songs. "I need Mayo" and the "Hearshot Kid" are two glaring examples.
But, if you can get past all of that (and you probably can if you're a fan of the band -- which would be the only reason you would even be reading this graphic novel) then what you're left with is a pretty good story that ties together the songs with various degrees of cohesion.
Since this was a graphic novel, I feel like I do need to mention the art. While Part 1 of the book was a giant leap forward from the cartoony slash "just bad" art style of the first comic's attempt, Part 2 put it to shame with much better shading and color work.
After finishing the book, I listened to the whole album again and it seemed to me that some of the ideas and themes from the lyrics were either dropped, ignored, or are just too abstract for a layman like me to understand without assistance. So I guess I'll be revisiting Cobalt and Calcium soon to get the finer details of the lyrics figured out later.
However, part of me feels like this story would have been better served with another prose novelization like The Year of the Black Rainbow. It might have given them the ability to more elegantly wriggle their way out of some of the tighter corners that the lyrics made for them, and to flesh out the parts of the story that seemed to be ignored or briefly glossed over, such as the Hearshot Kid Disaster and I, Robot.
Regardless, it's obvious they learned a lot from their first attempt and were still getting better even as the new series progressed. Again, since I'm such a big fan, I'm willing to cut them some slack. By the end of the book, everything from the art to the storytelling seemed tighter and more refined. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series very soon.
Three stars for a decent sci-fi story with a few inconsistencies and some shoehorning to make it fit with the lyrics... the fourth star is for the completeness of this edition and just because I love the world that Claudio has created. :-)
After hearing that the story was being re-made into the Amory Wars, I decided that I would wait a while and pick it up as a trade paperback once they got further along so I wouldn't be waiting around as it came out. Years passed, I forgot about it, but then happened upon these beautiful hardcover Ultimate Editions on Amazon.
From a design perspective, I love the hardcover binding and the fact that this Ultimate Edition includes the two old versions of the comics for completeness's sake. I never bought the second one so it gave me a chance to own that one as well.
As far as the story goes, well... to me it always felt like Claudio wrote the songs first, maybe had a few story elements in mind, and then hoped it would all work out when he wrote the final story later. Though I think he did a decent job with what he had, the lyrics really ended up locking him into creating certain characters and locations that I think he would have rather not wanted to on his final run-through. (Most notably is Claudio's voiced regret at having put his own name in the lyrics to Everything Evil as he mentioned on the Neverender live DVD.) The end result is a definite feeling of wonkiness at times when characters are forced to say things or do things that don't really make sense to put them in line with the songs. "I need Mayo" and the "Hearshot Kid" are two glaring examples.
But, if you can get past all of that (and you probably can if you're a fan of the band -- which would be the only reason you would even be reading this graphic novel) then what you're left with is a pretty good story that ties together the songs with various degrees of cohesion.
Since this was a graphic novel, I feel like I do need to mention the art. While Part 1 of the book was a giant leap forward from the cartoony slash "just bad" art style of the first comic's attempt, Part 2 put it to shame with much better shading and color work.
After finishing the book, I listened to the whole album again and it seemed to me that some of the ideas and themes from the lyrics were either dropped, ignored, or are just too abstract for a layman like me to understand without assistance. So I guess I'll be revisiting Cobalt and Calcium soon to get the finer details of the lyrics figured out later.
However, part of me feels like this story would have been better served with another prose novelization like The Year of the Black Rainbow. It might have given them the ability to more elegantly wriggle their way out of some of the tighter corners that the lyrics made for them, and to flesh out the parts of the story that seemed to be ignored or briefly glossed over, such as the Hearshot Kid Disaster and I, Robot.
Regardless, it's obvious they learned a lot from their first attempt and were still getting better even as the new series progressed. Again, since I'm such a big fan, I'm willing to cut them some slack. By the end of the book, everything from the art to the storytelling seemed tighter and more refined. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in this series very soon.
Three stars for a decent sci-fi story with a few inconsistencies and some shoehorning to make it fit with the lyrics... the fourth star is for the completeness of this edition and just because I love the world that Claudio has created. :-)
August 25, 2017
I adore Coheed & Cambria. Their music is amazing, and the idea that it's all one big six-fi story is just so freaking cool. I've been dying to read the comics for years, and now that Second Stage Turbine Blade is finally back in print, I can!
Unfortunately, SSTB is kind of a mess. The art is pretty much awful, although it does get better halfway through. As for the writing, it's incredibly obvious that Claudio was a young writer with tons of ideas and ambition, but he lacked the experience to execute everything he wanted to.
The story is jumpy and confusing most of the time, even for someone like me who has listened to the album dozens and dozens of times. The story only really has a surface level connection to the songs, with some lyrics thrown in here and there for good measure. The plot does seem to get better near the end of the story, but it's tough to forgive that first half.
Overall, I'd say the comic itself gets two stars, with an extra star thrown in because I'm such a huge Coheed & Cambria fan. On to my favorite C&C album, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3! (I've been told that the comic for IKSOSE:3 is much better than SSTB)
Unfortunately, SSTB is kind of a mess. The art is pretty much awful, although it does get better halfway through. As for the writing, it's incredibly obvious that Claudio was a young writer with tons of ideas and ambition, but he lacked the experience to execute everything he wanted to.
The story is jumpy and confusing most of the time, even for someone like me who has listened to the album dozens and dozens of times. The story only really has a surface level connection to the songs, with some lyrics thrown in here and there for good measure. The plot does seem to get better near the end of the story, but it's tough to forgive that first half.
Overall, I'd say the comic itself gets two stars, with an extra star thrown in because I'm such a huge Coheed & Cambria fan. On to my favorite C&C album, In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3! (I've been told that the comic for IKSOSE:3 is much better than SSTB)
January 8, 2017
The storyline was kind of nonsensical. I would guess that it's more enjoyable if you're familiar with the music behind it, but I still don't know if I would have liked it. There are storytelling choices that seem more made for drama than anything else, and everything was at a bit of a disconnect. Also, I wasn't a fan of the art, so that didn't help.
September 21, 2019
NOTE: the book itself is not "amazing," but I'ma give it all 5 for the entire concept of books, albums, a concept career, if you will.
Dark as all hell, & well worth reading.
***SPOILER ALERT***
Gotta admit, after finally listening to Coheed & Cambria & absolutely digging the music to the extent I bought the books (&, I guess, having not paid much attention to the lyrics?) . . .
I was quite surprised at our hero's killing his kids (!!??!??!??!??) . . .
& then the titular characters' deaths--as well as others--coming pretty damn early.
Not at all what I expected.
Like if Luke, Leia, & Han were all dead at the end of the 1st Star Wars flick.
DAMN.
Dark as all hell, & well worth reading.
***SPOILER ALERT***
Gotta admit, after finally listening to Coheed & Cambria & absolutely digging the music to the extent I bought the books (&, I guess, having not paid much attention to the lyrics?) . . .
I was quite surprised at our hero's killing his kids (!!??!??!??!??) . . .
& then the titular characters' deaths--as well as others--coming pretty damn early.
Not at all what I expected.
Like if Luke, Leia, & Han were all dead at the end of the 1st Star Wars flick.
DAMN.
December 5, 2025
I love Coheed & Cambria, and have been wanting to read these for a long time.
Overall, this was enjoyable. There is a LOT thrown at the reader to the point and to be honest, I'm not fully sure I understood it all or followed it, but I just kept reading in hopes I would.
I love that these accompany the albums, and again, while I don't know I understood everything, I was able to connect a lot of the story into the songs.
Overall, this was enjoyable. There is a LOT thrown at the reader to the point and to be honest, I'm not fully sure I understood it all or followed it, but I just kept reading in hopes I would.
I love that these accompany the albums, and again, while I don't know I understood everything, I was able to connect a lot of the story into the songs.
October 13, 2014
I was introduced to Coheed and Cambria by a close friend. When he told me their albums are based on a connecting story, I was interested in trying to familiar myself with it. Some of the plot is really complicated and convoluted, but I enjoyed the relationships with the various characters. I never really paid a massive amounts of attention to the lyrics of the band, but I am interested in seeing the other music albums turned into comic books as well. I give this a four out of five stars to anyone who has ever enjoyed a Coheed and Cambria song!
November 19, 2021
I love Coheed and Cambria, listen to them all the time, and have since 2004, but I just cannot get into the books. I really want to. I really want to know the story and I love the ideas, but I just can't do it. This is one of those times that I wish the creators had given an outline to a top-tier sci-fi writer and let them tell it.
July 4, 2024
This story works so much better as music. I’ve never read such a messy, insane story before. Claudio clearly just threw whatever nonsensical ideas he had into the story, and every other page takes place at a new setting with new characters. The art is also AWFUL, which isn’t a fault on Claudio but man is it bad. DNF.
February 15, 2014
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!!! I am new to the story of Coheed and Cambria. and this was amazing for me to understand the music better. I would definitely recommend this!
May 14, 2025
Love the music and album but this is pretty bad.
January 19, 2021
as someone who is deeply invested in the albums that share the same narrative as the comic, my experience reading the first installment of the Amory Wars was one full of gasping, aweing, and spooking my cat awake while geeking about how i remember this scene happening on "x" song or this fight on "y" song. if i am being honest, though, during my first reading of The Second Stage Turbine Blade, i shared the same sentiment that many of its other readers in the review section felt. from the progression to more hyper detail in the art style between the 1st and 2nd sections to the narrative leaping back and forth, both in character perspective and time, the story felt messy. it felt like it was expanding faster than the art (or reader) could keep up. it felt like things were missing or needed further explanation. one minute you're being introduced to the characters, then the next page jumps to a full on battle. but after sitting with it and thinking about the many albums in connection with this series, i began to see that the messiness of the story was partly due to the expectations that i had place on it for how a graphic novel should pace itself. i expected the story to be linear. i expected the art to stay the same. i expected the author to tell e every detail of the universe in the first 10 pages. but doesn't that make for a story i can always be ready for? rather than call it messy, i think a more appropriate and encompassing word for the story is boundary-less. its lack of boundaries and its resistance to expectations is what left me hungry for the next installment. i found myself wanting to immediately jump into the next chapters!
yes, there are a lot of instances where the book really wants to show those parallels between it and its fraternal twin, leading to some poor or even cheesy dialogue, but upon closer inspection, the pages pointing towards the music is really it trying to tell you that experiencing this story in full goes beyond its hardcover. this is not to say that you can't enjoy the book without listening to the music, but rather it's showing you that there are many ways to tell one story and each medium is just a different keyhole into this growing universe Sanchez has invited us into. it is refreshing to read a piece of sci-fi that doesn't feel like it is trying to be another star wars or star trek. it is even more refreshing to read a story that isn't constantly telling on itself and its ending. there are definitely times where i really want Claudio to expand on a character, a mechanic, or the cosmology of Heaven's Fence, and to some this can feel spotty or underdeveloped, but to me it felt like Claudio was asking us, the readers and fans, to be apart of filling in those holes. while Sanchez gives us his interpretations and visions of this world through the graphic novel, the music becomes a space where we can continue or expand on the world building he is doing. using our imaginations to image new outcomes, new fights, and new places where the main story can diverge from.
if you are interested in starting a new series that both layered and interactive, then i can not recommend enough giving the first part of this series a try. if you've already read it, but haven't listened to the music, I would say give it go and see if it changes how you first experienced this story. maybe you'll start filling in some of the holes. maybe you'll start unraveling the story further on one the many planets of Heaven's Fence.
yes, there are a lot of instances where the book really wants to show those parallels between it and its fraternal twin, leading to some poor or even cheesy dialogue, but upon closer inspection, the pages pointing towards the music is really it trying to tell you that experiencing this story in full goes beyond its hardcover. this is not to say that you can't enjoy the book without listening to the music, but rather it's showing you that there are many ways to tell one story and each medium is just a different keyhole into this growing universe Sanchez has invited us into. it is refreshing to read a piece of sci-fi that doesn't feel like it is trying to be another star wars or star trek. it is even more refreshing to read a story that isn't constantly telling on itself and its ending. there are definitely times where i really want Claudio to expand on a character, a mechanic, or the cosmology of Heaven's Fence, and to some this can feel spotty or underdeveloped, but to me it felt like Claudio was asking us, the readers and fans, to be apart of filling in those holes. while Sanchez gives us his interpretations and visions of this world through the graphic novel, the music becomes a space where we can continue or expand on the world building he is doing. using our imaginations to image new outcomes, new fights, and new places where the main story can diverge from.
if you are interested in starting a new series that both layered and interactive, then i can not recommend enough giving the first part of this series a try. if you've already read it, but haven't listened to the music, I would say give it go and see if it changes how you first experienced this story. maybe you'll start filling in some of the holes. maybe you'll start unraveling the story further on one the many planets of Heaven's Fence.
July 1, 2025
Like most readers of The Amory Wars, I was a fan of Coheed and Cambria the band first. For over 20 years I've been listening to their music, barely able to understand the story behind the lyrics, and in a long-overdue decision, I finally broke down and bought these large comic collections. The issue coming into this, which I knew before I even opened the cover, was that there would be no way for it to meet my expectations. C&C is my favorite band; I listen to their entire discography once a year. There's simply no other band like them, and this summer, for the first time I saw them live. While the show was partially ruined by the terrible acoustics in the arena, it was satisfying to finally see them.
The same thing happened with this book -- not awe-inspiring, but still satisfying. It's a hero's journey, laced with the lyrics I've memorized since my early 20s, almost like the reverse of finding Easter eggs. There are exciting, harrowing moments, and dark, dark moments, but on the whole, it was just "pretty good." I took into account that it was written by a guy in his mid-20s who was simultaneously launching a band that would go on to tour the world. You can't expect someone to write The Lord of the Rings and be the lead singer and songwriter of Led Zeppelin simultaneously. But what this book gives fans of the band is two halves of a whole. Here, you see the scenes and dialogue, and with the music you feel the emotion. Together, you better understand Claudio's full story.
In fairness, the criticisms are what you'd expect: The story felt derivative at points, borrowing from both Star Wars and X-Men, with twists that feel forced at times, and a lack of raw emotion. For example, Coheed and Cambria are quickly convinced to kill their children with very little resistance. It's one of the first big moments in the story, so you could chalk that up to defining who they are as parents and obedient citizens. On the other hand, it's hard to have sympathy for them. They didn't question the order very much, and they didn't try simply hiding the kids -- they were simply duped based on dreams and a singular conversation with an authoritative stranger, only to immediately regret it. The moment propels the story, but makes for thin, hard-to-sympathize characters.
Things like that are my too-hard reactions, criticisms I'd make of many other comic books that are often more focused on fast-moving plots than depth and characterization. But for what the book tries to be, it works. I'm still excited to read the next two volumes, to see how Sanchez grew as a storyteller, and see the other half of his story through.
The same thing happened with this book -- not awe-inspiring, but still satisfying. It's a hero's journey, laced with the lyrics I've memorized since my early 20s, almost like the reverse of finding Easter eggs. There are exciting, harrowing moments, and dark, dark moments, but on the whole, it was just "pretty good." I took into account that it was written by a guy in his mid-20s who was simultaneously launching a band that would go on to tour the world. You can't expect someone to write The Lord of the Rings and be the lead singer and songwriter of Led Zeppelin simultaneously. But what this book gives fans of the band is two halves of a whole. Here, you see the scenes and dialogue, and with the music you feel the emotion. Together, you better understand Claudio's full story.
In fairness, the criticisms are what you'd expect: The story felt derivative at points, borrowing from both Star Wars and X-Men, with twists that feel forced at times, and a lack of raw emotion. For example, Coheed and Cambria are quickly convinced to kill their children with very little resistance. It's one of the first big moments in the story, so you could chalk that up to defining who they are as parents and obedient citizens. On the other hand, it's hard to have sympathy for them. They didn't question the order very much, and they didn't try simply hiding the kids -- they were simply duped based on dreams and a singular conversation with an authoritative stranger, only to immediately regret it. The moment propels the story, but makes for thin, hard-to-sympathize characters.
Things like that are my too-hard reactions, criticisms I'd make of many other comic books that are often more focused on fast-moving plots than depth and characterization. But for what the book tries to be, it works. I'm still excited to read the next two volumes, to see how Sanchez grew as a storyteller, and see the other half of his story through.
October 24, 2022
“They were born to be blades in this turbine”
Coheed & Cambria have been one of my favourite bands since high school and I can’t believe it has taken me this long to get a copy of the comic series that fleshed out the story from the music. I remember thinking the series was beyond my level of fandom to collect. It is much easier now to afford and find copies online, especially this particular version which was reprinted and has all of the first 10 episodes and extra material in one hardcover.
This edition covered the story from the first album Second Stage Turbine Blade and really enriched the experience of listening to the album again and refreshed my love for the music, especially after having listened repeatedly for over 17 years to the point that it had lost its novelty.
It took a little while to get used to the choppy narrative and setting. The dialogue also had a cryptic feel; there was room for interpretation which I liked.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the art style but it was good enough. I would have preferred either some more detail, or the focus on other elements or actions in the scene that I was more curious about (I understand that it is much easier to criticise these things than it is to create).
I was aware during reading that it would be impossible to work out the story from the song lyrics. The lyrics are a collage of quotes and scenes pulled from different parts of the story, and moments and lines reoccur sometimes. I enjoyed the moments where a lyric or song title was referenced.
I loved the bonus ‘33’ episode which closely followed the song. Patrick was running from mental demons at the same time as he was being chased by a literal demon. I think the story was much better when it was this tight and focused on a single event. The squealing riffs and driving beat in the song even sound to me like an interpretation of running. I turned 33 this year and it was a nice coincidence to be reading it now and to connect to the concept in a different way.
Combined with the music the story is an epic creative achievement and I’m excited to collect the rest of the series.
Coheed & Cambria have been one of my favourite bands since high school and I can’t believe it has taken me this long to get a copy of the comic series that fleshed out the story from the music. I remember thinking the series was beyond my level of fandom to collect. It is much easier now to afford and find copies online, especially this particular version which was reprinted and has all of the first 10 episodes and extra material in one hardcover.
This edition covered the story from the first album Second Stage Turbine Blade and really enriched the experience of listening to the album again and refreshed my love for the music, especially after having listened repeatedly for over 17 years to the point that it had lost its novelty.
It took a little while to get used to the choppy narrative and setting. The dialogue also had a cryptic feel; there was room for interpretation which I liked.
I wasn’t a huge fan of the art style but it was good enough. I would have preferred either some more detail, or the focus on other elements or actions in the scene that I was more curious about (I understand that it is much easier to criticise these things than it is to create).
I was aware during reading that it would be impossible to work out the story from the song lyrics. The lyrics are a collage of quotes and scenes pulled from different parts of the story, and moments and lines reoccur sometimes. I enjoyed the moments where a lyric or song title was referenced.
I loved the bonus ‘33’ episode which closely followed the song. Patrick was running from mental demons at the same time as he was being chased by a literal demon. I think the story was much better when it was this tight and focused on a single event. The squealing riffs and driving beat in the song even sound to me like an interpretation of running. I turned 33 this year and it was a nice coincidence to be reading it now and to connect to the concept in a different way.
Combined with the music the story is an epic creative achievement and I’m excited to collect the rest of the series.
December 18, 2023
This took me a long time to read because I never made the time. While I love Coheed & Cambria (the band) and I'm a big fan of Claudio & Chondra, I'm not a huge fan of their graphic novels. Mostly, I had a hard time with so many characters being introduced all at once and so many things were inconsistent and unexplained. I will do a deep dive into their albums that coincide with the graphic novels to see if that sheds some light on the story overall.
I had so many questions and things that I just was unsure about...
So many names for things and people... Claudios girlfriend calls him Grover, Coheed's twins call him Shabute (and yes I read all about the band being named Shabute when they were just a trio, and what the word Shabute means...) The dragon flies (hariserringa fly) are only on one single page in the book. They're called living syringes for the cache serum but that's all we learn about them...
Knowing what I do about the band, it was neat to feel like I was finding little easter eggs as I read... One page mentions a Major Eschert - was his name in there just as a reference to Chondra? And their other band Prize Fighter Inferno - is that a reference to Inferno being a Prise Fighter?
And who programmed the KBI in the first place? "Years ago the three of us fought side-by-side as the KBI -- The knowledge, the best and the inferno - a counter-terrorist group built to save the keyword from outside threats. But it was discovered that our creator was the very terrorist we were built to stop and we were decommissioned. Coheed & Cambria were reprogrammed - implanted with false memories..." So does that mean that Coheed & Cambria were iro robots like Infernos "kids" Chase and Sizer?
I had so many questions and things that I just was unsure about...
So many names for things and people... Claudios girlfriend calls him Grover, Coheed's twins call him Shabute (and yes I read all about the band being named Shabute when they were just a trio, and what the word Shabute means...) The dragon flies (hariserringa fly) are only on one single page in the book. They're called living syringes for the cache serum but that's all we learn about them...
Knowing what I do about the band, it was neat to feel like I was finding little easter eggs as I read... One page mentions a Major Eschert - was his name in there just as a reference to Chondra? And their other band Prize Fighter Inferno - is that a reference to Inferno being a Prise Fighter?
And who programmed the KBI in the first place? "Years ago the three of us fought side-by-side as the KBI -- The knowledge, the best and the inferno - a counter-terrorist group built to save the keyword from outside threats. But it was discovered that our creator was the very terrorist we were built to stop and we were decommissioned. Coheed & Cambria were reprogrammed - implanted with false memories..." So does that mean that Coheed & Cambria were iro robots like Infernos "kids" Chase and Sizer?
March 31, 2025
1.5 stars, rounded up
I was a huge Coheed and Cambria fan back in high school and college and still love the first few albums to this day. I always knew that they were concept albums, but didn’t know the story at all and the lyrics are so vague and all over the place that I never could interpret them. When I saw that the comics were on Comixology, I was excited to explore Heavens Fence.
It’s not great.
First off, the inciting incident of the entire thing is needlessly dark and disturbing, and once you finish the entire book you realize that it actually doesn’t even affect the plot that much. Coheed proves himself to be the most gullible jerk in the galaxy, and the way Sanchez just absolutely tortures the character Josephine is pretty gross. Creating characters just to put them through needless, gratuitous torture doesn’t make for good writing, especially when she’s dead by issue 2.
Somewhat ironically, the first three songs off the album are easily the best (C&C can write some bangers), while the parts of the comic that they correlate with are the worst parts of the story. Honestly once you get past the awful first 2-3 issues, it turns into your standard sci fi mumbo jumbo. Nothing particularly amazing, but kinda fun. Basically when the album starts to get worse, the comic starts to get better.
The artist changes halfway through and it’s a huge upgrade.
I’d only recommend this to C&C fans that really want to know what the songs are about and are okay with coping with the realization that you were singing along to songs about the most heinous stuff, but you were too young and naive to realize it.
I was a huge Coheed and Cambria fan back in high school and college and still love the first few albums to this day. I always knew that they were concept albums, but didn’t know the story at all and the lyrics are so vague and all over the place that I never could interpret them. When I saw that the comics were on Comixology, I was excited to explore Heavens Fence.
It’s not great.
First off, the inciting incident of the entire thing is needlessly dark and disturbing, and once you finish the entire book you realize that it actually doesn’t even affect the plot that much. Coheed proves himself to be the most gullible jerk in the galaxy, and the way Sanchez just absolutely tortures the character Josephine is pretty gross. Creating characters just to put them through needless, gratuitous torture doesn’t make for good writing, especially when she’s dead by issue 2.
Somewhat ironically, the first three songs off the album are easily the best (C&C can write some bangers), while the parts of the comic that they correlate with are the worst parts of the story. Honestly once you get past the awful first 2-3 issues, it turns into your standard sci fi mumbo jumbo. Nothing particularly amazing, but kinda fun. Basically when the album starts to get worse, the comic starts to get better.
The artist changes halfway through and it’s a huge upgrade.
I’d only recommend this to C&C fans that really want to know what the songs are about and are okay with coping with the realization that you were singing along to songs about the most heinous stuff, but you were too young and naive to realize it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 13, 2024
It’s fun to see the story behind Coheed’s debut album (still one of my favorites). Understanding the story definitely brought a new layer of appreciation to the songs.
Claudio has some really big ideas, but the setup and world-building feels rushed. It’s really confusing why Coheed would immediately act upon being told he must kill his children. I believe the implication is Coheed is given the opportunity to kill the children quickly/mercifully because if he doesn’t, they’ll be killed by Mayo/the Red Army in a more painful fashion. Or maybe Mayo just doesn’t want to do it himself because he knows Cambria would try to intervene and stop him. But that’s the problem; the book never explains any of this. It’s up to the reader to fill in the blanks. The Josephine segment seems shoehorned in just for shock value. For the sake of showing how brutal/unforgiving/tragic this world can be. It feels a bit tasteless though. Josephine being bludgeoned to death with a hammer immediately after getting gang raped is just a little… much? The narrative gets much better with In Keeping Secrets and Good Apollo. Claudio had help with the writing from Peter David and Chondra Echert (respectively).
Claudio has some really big ideas, but the setup and world-building feels rushed. It’s really confusing why Coheed would immediately act upon being told he must kill his children. I believe the implication is Coheed is given the opportunity to kill the children quickly/mercifully because if he doesn’t, they’ll be killed by Mayo/the Red Army in a more painful fashion. Or maybe Mayo just doesn’t want to do it himself because he knows Cambria would try to intervene and stop him. But that’s the problem; the book never explains any of this. It’s up to the reader to fill in the blanks. The Josephine segment seems shoehorned in just for shock value. For the sake of showing how brutal/unforgiving/tragic this world can be. It feels a bit tasteless though. Josephine being bludgeoned to death with a hammer immediately after getting gang raped is just a little… much? The narrative gets much better with In Keeping Secrets and Good Apollo. Claudio had help with the writing from Peter David and Chondra Echert (respectively).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 8, 2018
This specific edition shows the original edition that was unedited and more pure in my opinion. I have never actually read a graphic novel before this so it was a weird adjustment, but very cool. I found myself wanting more depth in dialogue being used to non graphic novels. I think that graphic novels leave a lot for the mind to fill the gaps with and/or seem to move a bit too quickly from scene to scene. Claudio had more dialogue in the first edition but the graphics were poor. The updated version has much better graphics, but they seemed to streamline and make parts of the passages more concise than maybe Claudio intended for.
All in all, I am giving it a 3 star only because this is my first ranking on good reads. I give Claudio credit for writing and imagining this story when he was a teenager. I am excited to read In Keeping Secrets and Good Apollo.
All in all, I am giving it a 3 star only because this is my first ranking on good reads. I give Claudio credit for writing and imagining this story when he was a teenager. I am excited to read In Keeping Secrets and Good Apollo.
August 13, 2018
Not really a fan of Coheed and Cambria's music, but I love the idea of their concept albums being translated into a graphic novel so I jumped onboard (plus it was a recommendation so why not!)
But... for the first time in a few years, I had to put a book aside. I couldn't make any sense of this story, the writing felt amateurish, and while I felt the plot may come together later in the book, at about halfway through, there wasn't enough going on to make me want to invest more time into it. And the artwork was really bad, and all over the place.
Maybe I'll skim through the rest to see if it comes together later, or do a bit more digging online to try to make sense of things, but there's a lot of other things to read in my list too that started to call to me shortly after starting this.
But... for the first time in a few years, I had to put a book aside. I couldn't make any sense of this story, the writing felt amateurish, and while I felt the plot may come together later in the book, at about halfway through, there wasn't enough going on to make me want to invest more time into it. And the artwork was really bad, and all over the place.
Maybe I'll skim through the rest to see if it comes together later, or do a bit more digging online to try to make sense of things, but there's a lot of other things to read in my list too that started to call to me shortly after starting this.
July 30, 2025
As a huge fan of Coheed & Cambria, diving into The Amory Wars graphic novels was an eagerly anticipated experience for me. It was incredibly satisfying to finally connect the dots between the songs and gain a deeper insight into the characters and their place within the overarching narrative. The artwork is undeniably stunning, perfectly capturing the story's blend of darkness and beauty.
However, the narrative itself felt somewhat chaotic. There's a constant barrage of events, leaving little room for the reader to pause and process. The introduction of numerous characters into an already fast-moving universe was rather disorienting, and it risks making things really confussing for the reader. Having the music be my introduction to the story helped me, but for none Coheed & Cambria fans, they may struggle.
However, the narrative itself felt somewhat chaotic. There's a constant barrage of events, leaving little room for the reader to pause and process. The introduction of numerous characters into an already fast-moving universe was rather disorienting, and it risks making things really confussing for the reader. Having the music be my introduction to the story helped me, but for none Coheed & Cambria fans, they may struggle.
October 2, 2025
Read if: Coheed and Cambria is your absolute favorite band OR you really like Coheed and Cambria and have always had a burning desire to know what exactly they're singing about (hint, you still won't be able to match all of the songs up even with the novel in hand).
This is appropriately a space opera because the pace is light-years quick, bouncing between planets and whole story lines ever 2 to 4 pages.
I fall into the latter camp of readership above. I think the band are insanely talented and intelligent individuals. I think some pacing is also much needed here, but there's also so much STUFF in this universe I guess I understand why these comics turned out the way they did. I prefer the album In Keeping Secrets, hopefully that one is a little better (in just a few pages I feel like it is) so far.
This is appropriately a space opera because the pace is light-years quick, bouncing between planets and whole story lines ever 2 to 4 pages.
I fall into the latter camp of readership above. I think the band are insanely talented and intelligent individuals. I think some pacing is also much needed here, but there's also so much STUFF in this universe I guess I understand why these comics turned out the way they did. I prefer the album In Keeping Secrets, hopefully that one is a little better (in just a few pages I feel like it is) so far.
September 6, 2021
Nobody but the biggest C&C fans will truly find this magnificent. I like the band a lot and I'm sure the story will only get better from here, just like their albums do. But if this was only a comic and I didn't have the slightest context of what's to come, I'd be very angry.
The story is so incredibly sloppy and messy, especially the beginning. Year of the Black Rainbow hadn't come out when this was published, yet it feels like it's necessary reading to understand what the fuck is happening with these characters. I needed to have the Wiki open at all times to consult on worlds, people and backstory because absolutely nothing makes sense.
Continuing to read based on the understanding that it gets better. I hope that's true
The story is so incredibly sloppy and messy, especially the beginning. Year of the Black Rainbow hadn't come out when this was published, yet it feels like it's necessary reading to understand what the fuck is happening with these characters. I needed to have the Wiki open at all times to consult on worlds, people and backstory because absolutely nothing makes sense.
Continuing to read based on the understanding that it gets better. I hope that's true
February 28, 2025
It starts off pretty badly tbh- but it does actually improve in later chapters if you give it a fair chance.
It has some really cool moments. You'll be much more invested if you're already a fan of the band. If you aren't familiar with the music and the story, then you'll probably be confused.
I will say that I do think misogyny is an issue here- which isn't surprising at all.
Aside from that, it was genuinely interesting.
Makes me want to learn more about the lore/plot and read the rest of the series.
My favorite part was probably the relationship between Coheed and Cambria, especially when it came to the Monstar and the White Ruineer. I also really liked Ambellina, probably my favorite character. =)
It has some really cool moments. You'll be much more invested if you're already a fan of the band. If you aren't familiar with the music and the story, then you'll probably be confused.
I will say that I do think misogyny is an issue here- which isn't surprising at all.
Aside from that, it was genuinely interesting.
Makes me want to learn more about the lore/plot and read the rest of the series.
My favorite part was probably the relationship between Coheed and Cambria, especially when it came to the Monstar and the White Ruineer. I also really liked Ambellina, probably my favorite character. =)
March 29, 2018
Sanchez is brilliantly creative in this series, reaching into the span of the universe and completely turning our views of heaven and angels upside down. There are so many plots looping into each other. What I found unappealing, however, was the obvious self-insert and the whitening of the characters later on in the series; I know that the author is part white, and the self insert is obviously meant to reflect every aspect of him, but I was so happy to see him embrace his Latino side in the first volume, and it was disappointing to see that taken away.
November 2, 2023
I have been a fan of Coheed and Cambria for 20 years, but am a bit ashamed to say I have never read the comics until now. Interesting and fast paced story, definitely gives more depth to the songs. I don't know if this is how comics normally are, but I did struggle at times following it. There is little to no transition between storylines making it seem disjointed and confusing. Nevertheless, looking forward to starting In Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth next.
January 16, 2018
The one that started it all. This collection lays the ground work for the majority of Claudio’s and Coheed & Cambira’s body of work. Starting a volume in - because reasons - really works with this storyline. It thrusts you right into the story with characters you then beg to learn the history, and future, of. Sci-fi fans rejoice this is an excellent contribution to the genre. Varied quality of art keeps this from being a full blown 5.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews