Lady Mechanika TP Vol 03: The Lost Boys of West Abbey

Lady Mechanika Volumes #3

by Joe Benítez

Lady Mechanika’s investigation into the murders of “undesirable” children in Mechanika City triggers an unexpected reaction from her subconscious self. But are they truly lost memories finally surfacing after so many years, or just simple nightmares? And what possible connection does the killer have to Lady Mechanika’s past?

Set in a fictionalzied steampunk Victorian England, a time when magic and superstition clashed with new scientific discoveries and inventions, Lady Mechanika chronicles a young woman’s obsessive search for her identity after a mad scientist’s horrific experiments left her with mechanical limbs and no memory of her past.

This volume collects the complete third Lady Mechanika mini-series, The Lost Boys of West Abbey, a perfect entry point for new readers into this imaginative steampunk world.

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

63 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 3, 2017

About the author

Joe Benítez is an American comic book artist who has worked on such titles as "JLA", "Superman/Batman", "Detective Comics", "Supergirl", and "Titans" for DC Comics and "The Darkness" for Image Comics. He also co-created and penciled the sci-fi series "Weapon Zero" and the dark fantasy mini-series "Magdalena: Blood Divine" for Image. In 2005, Joe published his first creator-owned mini-series "Wraithborn" through Wildstorm. In 2009, he stepped in to finish up Michael Turner's run on "Soulfire". Joe is currently working on his steampunk adventure series, "Lady Mechanika".

http://www.joebenitez.com

Reviews

[Melissa ♥ Dog/Wolf Lover ♥ Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freaking love these books! Will add pics later!!

Happy Reading!

Mel 🖤🐺🐾

[Aneela ♒the_mystique_reader♒ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating:


Synopsis:

Black magic, cults, dark secrets and a lot of action!

Lady Mechanika found a place where secret mechanical experiments took place and some kids were brutally murdered. She investigated the crime scene only to find out a couple of child-size dolls. The blood, tools and dissection table triggered memories of her past.



Desperate to find out what lies in her past and who is behind all these horrendous experiments to turn humans into mechanical beings, she embarked on a dangerous journey full of darkness, magic and secret cults.





Review:

Wow!
This graphic novel took me on a roller coaster ride of thrilling joy. I did not want this novel to end. The story line was superb. I really loved how beautifully the story was executed.

Lady Mechanika has a dark past of which she remembers nothing. She read an article in newspaper about horrible mechanical experiments. She reached the crime scene and discovered child-size dolls. The dolls were perfectly crafted in the figures of young boys and teddy bears.

She brought some of them home to investigate what purpose would they serve. To her surprise, she discovered the dolls were not only used for mechanical experiments but also to transfer souls into them.



But why and how would someone do that?
The story behind this why and how is just totally unexpected.

Conclusion:

This novel has a strong plot. The characters are amazing. The detective Singh’s character is great. He is sharp, tall, dark and handsome.



And of course Lady Mechanika is superb throughout the novel. She kicked butts and punched villains. The action was too good. It was like watching an animated movie with all the amazing artwork.




I am already a fan of Lady Mechanika comics. So yes, its definitely a 5 star!



An eARC of this graphic novel was provided by Diamond Book Distributors via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story (Golems) and art work!

[Alina · Rating 5 out of 5]

The graphics continues to amaze me, it must be the best I’ve met in any comics, or it just suits perfectly my tastes in this matter: the attention to details, the beautiful curves, just the right mix of époque and steampunk, even the gear contours. I also was well impressed by the story, quite on par with the previous Lady Mechanika volumes.

***Note: I received a copy curtesy of Netgalley and Diamond Book Distributors in exchange for an honest review.

[Mel (Epic Reading) · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always Lady Mechanika delivers in this (very) short volume. With only two comics that were in this story line, if you are looking for a quick fix this third volume is perfect. This shorter story is my favourite to date!

Added Content
As someone who collects the actual comics and the trade paperbacks that hold the comic collections (so I can read stories without damaging my comics); it is very frustrating to find that a trade paperback has more content than the comics did. The usual cover spreads or pencil sketches is one thing, but to have extra content pages is something else.
I am not a fan of this as those who only afford the comics are missing out. I know Joe Benitz and team have had a lot of trouble in the past getting comics out on time and I can't help but suspect that is what happened here. It's disappointing that putting out a sub-par comic, with missing content, was deemed acceptable.

Overall
The good news is if you buy this trade paperback you are getting the 'complete' story. Like all Lady Mechanika books there is a lot of dialogue, thought bubbles and other content to actually read on the pages. And the art is only second to that of Monstress (and Monstress only barely edges it out).
This is a good point to jump off with your first Lady Mechanika story or is a good story (with some Easter eggs about Mechanika's background!) to add to an existing collection. Either way, if you're new or existing fan of this series I believe this story has some continuity content that will be important later on and is therefore a must read.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

[Gabrielle (Reading Rampage) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, book, why are you so short!!!

I was really looking forward to more Lady Mechanika, and when I got my hands on the third story, I couldn’t help but notice how thin it was. The artwork is as gorgeous (and as focused on her boobs) as usual, but it is almost half the length of the previous installments!

Regardless of how short the story is, its still a rather good one, this time exploring the Jewish myth of golems and how they fit into this steampunk universe. There’s more of Mr. Lewis in this volume, which made me very happy: I like Lady Mechanika’s drunken tinkerer sidekick!

I hope the next one is a bit more fleshed out!

[Marjolein (UrlPhantomhive) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read all my reviews on http://urlphantomhive.booklikes.com

It's a shame that this volume is only 60 pages where the others were more than twice as long. It is no miracle that the story can not be very complicated in such a short time span, so the case was resolved rather quickly.

I still really liked the art and the characters though, and I'm already looking forward for the next volume!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

[Christy Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

After loving the first two volumes of Lady Mechanika, I jumped into volume three. In The Lost Boys of West Abbey, Mechanika finds herself drawn into a case of murdered children from West Abbey. Someone is preying on orphans. Why? And why does the house where the children were kept remind Mechanika of some of her own very dark memories? Could this be a clue to her past?

I really did love this one! I just wish it was longer. I initially gave it four stars because I thought it was too short. I have since gone back and given it five stars. I love the mystery and the inclusion of science and magic. I love Steampunk but it isn't the total focus of this book. The murder mystery takes center stage. Having Fred and Archie back as sidekicks is great. They are awesome secondary characters who bring flavor. I do wish Benitez was more consistent in his use of writing a dialect, but I will forgive because I just love his characters so much. Mechanika is wonderful - a total badass. She's smart and sassy. She means business and those who get in her way definitely regret it. Volume three introduces a new character in Inspector Detective Singh. He's a perfect match for Mechanika and he's hot! I would love to see more of him in the future issues.

While we don't get too much closer to the answers about Mechanika's mysterious past, we do get some amazing artwork, fantastic action sequences, wonderful characters and a good mystery.

Update: This one grows on me more every time I read it. It is a heartbreaker of a story.

[Florin Pitea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Impeccable graphics, but disappointing because it was way too short. I'm already in line to buy the next volume, however.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

Not a bad story, but extremely short, over a hundred pages shorter than the previous two volumes. As always, though, the artwork was fantastic.

[lili.darknight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Príbehovo taká jednoduchá jednohubka, ktorá nenadchne a zároveň neurazí. Ale neviem sa prinútiť dať tomu zlé hodnotenie, lebo ma to bavilo a navyše jeden z hrdinov vyzeral ako Tarabas (áno, aj s tým epickým obočkom).

[Ari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still very enjoyable, and I loved to see Fred again, as well as meet the new Inspector Singh. But I definitely would have wanted it to be longer and have the story further developed.

[Angelina · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this volume some missing children are brought to Lady Mechanika; this coupled with some mysteries around a mechanical toy maker’s shop lead Lady Mechanika to believe that this mystery might be right in her area of specialty.

Lady Mechanika teams up with a delightful inspector to check things out. What follows is a number of excellent action scenes full of witty banter and steampunky goodness. We also get some scenes where Lady Mechanika has flashbacks to her forgotten past, which only deepens the mystery surrounding her origins further.

The illustration is amazing. There is so much wonderful detail in all the Victorian clothing and mechanical contraptions; I absolutely love it. The colors are rich and muted and fit the tone of the story perfectly.

Overall I absolutely loved this highly entertaining installment of the Lady Mechanika series. The story, the characters, the illustration...all of it is highly entertaining and just perfect! I would definitely recommend to fantasy and steampunk fans alike

[Cisz Geverink - Strasters · Rating 5 out of 5]

love it!!! nu wil ik de rest ook hebben/lezen 😍

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lady Mechanika takes on a steampunk version of golems. They've played with the legend some combining the legends with consciousness transfer.

As usual a fantastic visualized steampunk world. This volume continues the trend of this series feeling very static in that it's mostly people standing around having conversations. The last 15-20 pages of this one though is action-packed for a change.

Received an advance copy from Edelweiss and Diamond in exchange for an honest review.

[47Time · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why do they draw the female characters in steampunk in such a sexy manner? I'm not complaining, but it must be uncomfortable with all that tight clothing, straps of leather and various metal accessories, right? But again, I'm certainly not complaining.

Then there's the dialogue. There's this exchange in the first issue.
Cabbie: The streets are dangerous at night.
Lady Mechanika: Sir... so am I.
How hot is that? And respectful to boot.

In West Abbey, a poor district in Mechanika City, a scientist is secretly transferring the minds of children inside mechanical constructs. Lady Mechanika investigates the matter and believes that her past history may be linked to these events. Detective inspector Singh is assigned to the case that involves five corpses so far. The story is based on the notion of golems, how to build and destroy them, so there is more magic involved than in previous volumes. Still, it works in this setting and is a quick, enjoyable read.

The aim of the scientist performing the mystical experiments on children is to save the life of his rich, dying patron, Mr. Durrant. Lady Mechanika and Singh's investigation starts with a bunch of orphan kids, friends of the victims, who noticed a strange individual they call the Toy Man. A rabbi recognizes the marks left on the dead children - magical symbols and words to create golems - and mentions the Servants of Moloch, an ancient sect that corrupted Jewish teachings. The automatons found at the crime scene come from Mr. Jiang, who dealt with Mr. Durrant. The latter also purchased a 10-foot automaton.

Lady Mechanika, Lewis and Singh confront Durrant in his home and find him dead. His mind is already transferred into the automaton that attacks them. The only way to defeat it is to insert a scroll with the Jewish word for 'death' inscribed on it.

[Yzabel Ginsberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

[I received a copy of this book through NetGalley.]

Beautiful artwork like in the first two collected volumes. I didn’t notice the same ‘eye-candy’ level during action scenes as in the first volumes, which is good since it makes those scenes more believable. Exception made for the illustrations at the end, these are all fine since they’re meant to depict the character posing anyway. Also, they’re beautiful. The art and colours remain as enjoyable as ever.

While there’s no resolution as to Mechanika’s past here either, we do get a few glimpses into what she has been through, thanks to her nightmares and memories. I can only hope that at some point she’ll get to find out the information she’s seeking.

This volume dealt with body transfer into what appear like a mix of golems and automata, which means that of course I got sold on that idea pretty quick. There’s a mix of dark experiments with magic and technology, action, and conundrums about what defines life, that I tend to enjoy. There’s a tall, dark and somewhat mysterious detective (Singh) that for once I felt more connection with than I usually do with that character archetype. Oh, and creepy toys, in a sense, considering the golems are doll-like and can easily be mistaken for toys.

This third instalment felt darker to me than the second one, and more interesting even though there was no trip to mysterious temples or adventures in the jungle; I guess that’s my natural preference for urban settings speaking, along with the themes explored in this ‘Lost Boys of West Abbey’ story.

The one thing I really regret is how short this volume was compared to the others. The plot deserved more.

[Melania 🍒]

2,95/5

[Frédéric · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good mix of steampunk and the occult, with consistently excellent designs. The investigation is resolved far too easily, though.

[Tomer · Rating 3 out of 5]

The series reminds me of Monstress, but with a heavier tone of steampunk with its full galore, leaning also into the arcane with mesmerizing style. The plot here may not have been too original, but still an interesting take, even if somewhat misguided.

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are into the Steampunk genre in any way then I think this is the comic for you. Very nice art and plot. Great background world. Nice visual and enjoyable read. Very recommended

[Karissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got a copy of this graphic novel to review through Edelweiss. This was another amazing installment in the Lady Mechanika series. I absolutely love this graphic novel series. The characters and stories are highly entertaining and the illustration is amazingly detailed and well done.

In this volume some missing children are brought to Lady Mechanika; this coupled with some mysteries around a mechanical toy maker’s shop lead Lady Mechanika to believe that this mystery might be right in her area of speciality.

Lady Mechanika teams up with a delightful inspector to check things out. What follows is a number of excellent action scenes full of witty banter and steampunky goodness. We also get some scenes where Lady Mechanika has flashbacks to her forgotten past, which only deepens the mystery surrounding her origins further.

The illustration is amazing. There is so much wonderful detail in all the Victorian clothing and mechanical contraptions; I absolutely love it. The colors are rich and muted and fit the tone of the story perfectly.

Overall I absolutely loved this highly entertaining installment of the Lady Mechanika series. The story, the characters, the illustration...all of it is highly entertaining and just perfect! I would definitely recommend to fantasy and steampunk fans alike!

[Jessica Strider · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pros: beautiful artwork, interesting story, great characters

Cons: short

Lady Mechanika hears of a strange murder case where kidnapped urchin boys were found murdered next to mechanical parts. She starts investigating, wondering if this case could lead to information about her own origins.

As with the previous volumes, this one stands alone, though there is a quick, non spoilery callback for the events of volume 2. It’s only two issues, so the story is much shorter than those of the earlier graphic novels (and the price reflects that).

Once more the artwork is gorgeous. The characters have a fun mix of Victorian and steampunk fashions.The cast is widened with the addition of a detective inspector, who I suspect will show up in later volumes.

The cover gallery at the end has some nice pieces.

I’m loving this series.

[Janne Paananen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nimensä mukaisesti tässä hieman lyhyemmässä tarinassa orpoja poikia katoaa pahamaineisessa West Abbeys kaupunginosassa. Lady Mechanika lähtee tutkimaan asiaan ja törmää outoihin mekaanisiin nalleihin.

Juonessa on muutamia mukavia koukkuja (nallet toimii visuaalisesti ja muutenkin hienosti) ja Mechanika saa tähän tarinaan uuden sidekickin. Graafisesti silmiä hivellään edelleen.

En oikein edes osaa sanoa, että mitä kaipaisin juonelta enemmän. Siinä mennään tälläkin kertaa varsin suoraviivaisesti. Kenties itse Lady Mechanikan historia ei etene tarpeeksi. Se on kuitenkin se asia, joka lukijana minua kiinnostaa kaikkein eniten. Enemmän kuin itse tämänkertainen tarina, vaikka se totta kai Mechanikankin historiaa sivuaa ja selventää.

Otan pienen tauon näistä ja palaan myöhemmin seuraavien kimppuun.

[Johan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Starting with the good points: fantastic artwork and great story.
The downside: I would have loved some more action and less talking.

The second volume in this series felt a bit weird, because Lady Mechanika's origins were never mentioned and it is one of the things that drives her. That is corrected in this third volume.

During her investigation into some missing children, the crime scene, where the medical experiments and murders took place, triggers some memories from her past. Was she treated like that? Was this done by her Maker?



Coachman: "Are you sure you want you want to be let out here, Mum? This is no neighborhood for a lady."

Coachman: "The streets are dangerous at night."

Lady Mechanika: "Sir ... so am I.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

When orphan and street children begin turning up missing and/or dead, Lady Mechanika is on the job! Teaming up with Detective Singh and Mr. Lewis, she discovers a plot of golem creation, or an experiment (with added elements of magic) that takes the spirit of one person and puts them inside a metal robotic shell.... Steampunk at its finest!
As always, the art is what excels here. The story has a great flow and I will definitely be continuing this title. If Benitez moves away from this, please put him on X-Men or Batman!
Strong recommend. I will be giving this as a recommendation to other people.

Are we close to discovering Mechanika's origins? She seems to be remembering more and more...

[Sacha Valero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great installment. The artwork is again beautiful and the writing a bit more solid than the previous volumes. Our mechanical heroine finds herself investigation the disappearance of some young boys in a bad part of town. Naturally, the local thugs demand a protection fee and naturally she convinces them against collecting it.

She's teamed up again with the inventor Archie Lewis along with a local detective who's been told to work on other, more important cases. Needless to say they track down those responsible which leads to a big fight. Great, quick read, and wonderful to look at.

[Shaun Stanley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lady Mechanika Vol. 3 The Lost Boys of West Abbey collects issues 1-3 of the comic series written by M.M. Chen with art by Joe Benitez and Martin Montiel.

The discovery of murdered orphan children in Mechanika City leads Lady Mechanika down a trail suspiciously close to her own origins.

This series is really picking up steam now as characters are becoming more developed and the world is fleshing out. The art is really strong throughout the series, especially when Benitez gets to explore elaborate steampunk machinery.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lady Mechanika looks into the disappearance and death of street boys, who are being used in a body transfer scheme.

This third volume was pretty short so there was more artwork (which is beautiful though way too cheesecakey for me) than story. A new character of a detective, Sheng, is introduced and I'd expect him to make repeat appearances. The artwork just isn't enough to keep me going in this series since the stories seem to be short action sequences.

[Saphirablue · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like it.

Lady Mechanika is awesome and I love her how she keeps a cool head and saves everyone and just is awesome.

The art is gorgeous! All the little and big details and things and backgrounds. Wow.

The thing I didn't like - that Akina spoke in broken German. I don't know if it's translation or if it's the same way in English. It's just so unnecessary.