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Giants #1
Giants
Greed and ambition collide with survival and the love of family in a post-apocalyptic world ruled by giant monsters whose only goal is destruction!
A cataclysm of unknown origin unleashed a race of massive creatures whose presence has driven humanity underground. There, two orphans discover that the most dangerous monster is ambition, which unchecked, will grow until it devours you.
In their first work for American comics, the Valderrama Bros. have layered a modern day kaiju story with a personal tale of a friendship gone wrong, and how the decisions we make can change our world . . . and seal our fates!
A cataclysm of unknown origin unleashed a race of massive creatures whose presence has driven humanity underground. There, two orphans discover that the most dangerous monster is ambition, which unchecked, will grow until it devours you.
In their first work for American comics, the Valderrama Bros. have layered a modern day kaiju story with a personal tale of a friendship gone wrong, and how the decisions we make can change our world . . . and seal our fates!
120 pages, Paperback
First published August 14, 2018
2 people are currently reading
67 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
March 19, 2022
This was a pleasant surprise. It's about two brothers on a world overtaken by kaiju amid a new Ice Age. Humans have moved underground, devolving into gangs for survival. A kaiju byproduct, ambernoir, is their source for fuel. The two brothers are sent on an initiation to steal some ambernoir when they are separated with one of them finding help above ground. From there it turns into something of a Cain and Able story. The art's great. I really liked the design of the world and kaiju. The art had a heavy old school anime look to it.
May 21, 2020
Using different colours to set the mood reminded me of the movie "Only God Forgives".
The story started out pretty simple but as it went along the story grew along with the characters.
The way the characters and setting were designed reminded me of a late 80's/early 90's Hollywood movie.
The story started out pretty simple but as it went along the story grew along with the characters.
The way the characters and setting were designed reminded me of a late 80's/early 90's Hollywood movie.
September 3, 2019
A pretty basic Cain-and-Abel story set in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by giant monsters. These kaiju and their parasites are lifted directly from Cloverfield, which is fairly uninspired. I don’t know if the odd dialogue is due to it being run through Google Translate or if the writer doesn’t speak English very well, but the idioms are mangled and the attempts at clever koans make no sense.
Examples of the former include lines such as “They’ll leave you a mark” (as in, “You’ll be marked”) and “You should’ve watched yer face!” (“You should’ve seen your face”), while an example of the latter is, “Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you’ll miss them.” Um, okay. Except we pretty much know when sunrise happens, and they’re kinda regular, so if you missed today’s you can always see tomorrow’s. Real Yoda-level nonsense there.
The art is mostly okay, but it’s uneven during the action scenes, rendering the story unclear. I don’t know why that’s so hard for some artists to communicate, but it really makes one appreciate when it’s done well.
Examples of the former include lines such as “They’ll leave you a mark” (as in, “You’ll be marked”) and “You should’ve watched yer face!” (“You should’ve seen your face”), while an example of the latter is, “Opportunities are like sunrises. If you wait too long, you’ll miss them.” Um, okay. Except we pretty much know when sunrise happens, and they’re kinda regular, so if you missed today’s you can always see tomorrow’s. Real Yoda-level nonsense there.
The art is mostly okay, but it’s uneven during the action scenes, rendering the story unclear. I don’t know why that’s so hard for some artists to communicate, but it really makes one appreciate when it’s done well.
January 8, 2020
The most prominent selling point for Giants is the artwork. It’s not the story is a slouch, but that artwork… damn. It’s been a while since someone made a splash on the comic scene and that’s precisely what the Valderrama Bros. are doing with Giants.
The story follows two brothers, possibly from different mothers, that are looking to join a gang. Society has been moved underground due to the giant fucking monsters that walk the surface and fight with each other for dominance. Much like the surface, gangs fight for dominance underground. Gogi and Zedo are tired of living scared and want full membership into the Bloodwolves; their job is to steal some Ambernoir from a rival gang. The Ambernoir isn’t explicitly explained, but it seems to be highly explosive and come from the corpse of the giant monsters on the surface. The mission gets complicated, and the brothers don’t quite succeed but do manage enough to get sent on a far riskier mission to the surface.
The first issue feels short. There’s so much going on in the world that you really could use more information and time with the characters. The last several pages in particular end up feeling strangely rushed. Otherwise, it’s a very tight issue. It was also very refreshing for a sci-fi/fantasy story to not take ten pages to explain the world and society fully, but instead gave a few quick blurbs and showed the rest. Having read several comics that did the exact opposite, I was delighted to see how well-crafted the story and world end up being.
The dialogue isn’t abundantly detailed, making it very believable. Why would anyone over explain the world that they already live in? The brothers are introduced quite well; the ground floor has been laid for them to develop into three-dimensional characters. There aren’t any other characters of importance at the moment, which is actually nice. Too often sci-fi worlds have dozens of characters.
Finally, the artwork. The Giants look amazing. They’re show-stealers for sure, and there’s this Cloverfield element to them that’s pretty damn cool. They’re like giant battle stations in a way. The human characters are well illustrated and designed well. The style reminds me of several artists that I like, so it was just a treat to see. This instantly became one of Dark Horses’ best-looking titles. The coloring is also worth mentioning since it gives the world all of its personality. There’s a hefty amount of red and yellows used, which makes for a great contrast against the black and white that is the rest of the world.
Its been a while since I can remember getting excited for a Dark Horse title. Hopefully, Giants is a look at the direction the publisher is heading because this is an absolute delight. It’s a polished product with masterful artwork and a skilled storytelling. If you’re looking for something new to read this week, give Giants a shot.
The story follows two brothers, possibly from different mothers, that are looking to join a gang. Society has been moved underground due to the giant fucking monsters that walk the surface and fight with each other for dominance. Much like the surface, gangs fight for dominance underground. Gogi and Zedo are tired of living scared and want full membership into the Bloodwolves; their job is to steal some Ambernoir from a rival gang. The Ambernoir isn’t explicitly explained, but it seems to be highly explosive and come from the corpse of the giant monsters on the surface. The mission gets complicated, and the brothers don’t quite succeed but do manage enough to get sent on a far riskier mission to the surface.
The first issue feels short. There’s so much going on in the world that you really could use more information and time with the characters. The last several pages in particular end up feeling strangely rushed. Otherwise, it’s a very tight issue. It was also very refreshing for a sci-fi/fantasy story to not take ten pages to explain the world and society fully, but instead gave a few quick blurbs and showed the rest. Having read several comics that did the exact opposite, I was delighted to see how well-crafted the story and world end up being.
The dialogue isn’t abundantly detailed, making it very believable. Why would anyone over explain the world that they already live in? The brothers are introduced quite well; the ground floor has been laid for them to develop into three-dimensional characters. There aren’t any other characters of importance at the moment, which is actually nice. Too often sci-fi worlds have dozens of characters.
Finally, the artwork. The Giants look amazing. They’re show-stealers for sure, and there’s this Cloverfield element to them that’s pretty damn cool. They’re like giant battle stations in a way. The human characters are well illustrated and designed well. The style reminds me of several artists that I like, so it was just a treat to see. This instantly became one of Dark Horses’ best-looking titles. The coloring is also worth mentioning since it gives the world all of its personality. There’s a hefty amount of red and yellows used, which makes for a great contrast against the black and white that is the rest of the world.
Its been a while since I can remember getting excited for a Dark Horse title. Hopefully, Giants is a look at the direction the publisher is heading because this is an absolute delight. It’s a polished product with masterful artwork and a skilled storytelling. If you’re looking for something new to read this week, give Giants a shot.
November 1, 2018
This was an interesting book - a post-apocalyptic future where giant creatures rule the world and humans try to survive in the cracks, harvesting ambernoir from the creatures as a fuel. The story itself, focusing on two friends who end up on diverging, then conflicting paths, isn't anything particularly memorable, but the art is beautiful in a haunting, cold way, and the color work does a lot to bring it to life. A couple of characters are memorable; Gogi and Uron especially, with other characters serving their purpose without doing much else. There are a few interesting ideas but ultimately I think the story fails the world and the art a bit. Still worth a look, though.
April 7, 2019
A well-told post-apocalyptic story with Kaiju and intense relationship drama that borrows heavily from Akira, Japanese monster flicks and genre tropes.
The drawing style is semi-realistic cartoonish with lots of Franco-Belgian, Manga and Indie American influences. Especially the dynamic movement in the action scenes is pure eye candy, making you fliip the pages faster than light.
Even though the monster designs are cool, I really loved the relationship between the two main characters.
The book may lack originality, but it's still a recommended and fast-paced story for fans of post-apocalyptic monster mash-ups and intense character drama!
The drawing style is semi-realistic cartoonish with lots of Franco-Belgian, Manga and Indie American influences. Especially the dynamic movement in the action scenes is pure eye candy, making you fliip the pages faster than light.
Even though the monster designs are cool, I really loved the relationship between the two main characters.
The book may lack originality, but it's still a recommended and fast-paced story for fans of post-apocalyptic monster mash-ups and intense character drama!
March 30, 2022
Awesome artwork, great "kaiju" monsters, good combat/chase scenes and an overall entertaining plot.
The characters are interesting but should have been more developed.
The story plays rather quickly, in around 120 pages, and the reader doesn't have much time to feel empathy or care much about the fate of some characters.
It's an interesting tale about a bleak and cold future, but it contains a few (plot) holes that take some air (pun intended) out of the story.
Anyway, I recommend it for the gorgeous art and action scenes.
The characters are interesting but should have been more developed.
The story plays rather quickly, in around 120 pages, and the reader doesn't have much time to feel empathy or care much about the fate of some characters.
It's an interesting tale about a bleak and cold future, but it contains a few (plot) holes that take some air (pun intended) out of the story.
Anyway, I recommend it for the gorgeous art and action scenes.
November 8, 2018
If you ignore the monsters and dystopian world, this is a good graphic novel about friendship, bonding through adversity, the desire to belong to a group that accepts you, and survival. Sure, there are monsters but it's the story between Gigo and Zedo that is the real crux of the story. They consider themselves to be brothers and are trying to get into a gang but after Gigo leaves Zedo behind, Zedo gives up on the friendship. Focus on that and how Uron came to live top side shows how gang membership isn't what it claims to be.
February 24, 2019
Amazing art with a fun, quick and engaging story.
November 30, 2018
Keďže som vyrastal na Godzille a Súboji Titanov, mám odjakživa rád monštrá. A komiks Giants od Dark Horse Comics ma teda okamžite zaujal.
Povrch ovládla zima a obrovské príšery. Ľudia sa museli stiahnuť do podzemia, kde doslova prežívajú. Ísť na povrch sa rovná samovražde, ale práve na povrchu sa nachádza surovina, o ktorú sa v podzemí kruto bojuje. Výhodou komiksu od bratov Valderramovcov je, že monštrá nie sú v popredí. Svet, ktorý sledujeme im síce patrí, ale oveľa viac sa tu riešia životy ľudí. Konkrétne osudy dvoch kamarátov, ktorí sa snažia vo vojne gangov odtrhnúť si svoj diel. Všetko sa ale zmení výstupom na povrch. Menia sa okolnosti, vzťahy, motivácie, ciele a aj fakt, kto je vlastne monštrum. Giants je skvelá post-apo záležitosť, s monster vyznením, ale dominujúca dobrým príbehom a postavami. Vrelo odporúčam.
Povrch ovládla zima a obrovské príšery. Ľudia sa museli stiahnuť do podzemia, kde doslova prežívajú. Ísť na povrch sa rovná samovražde, ale práve na povrchu sa nachádza surovina, o ktorú sa v podzemí kruto bojuje. Výhodou komiksu od bratov Valderramovcov je, že monštrá nie sú v popredí. Svet, ktorý sledujeme im síce patrí, ale oveľa viac sa tu riešia životy ľudí. Konkrétne osudy dvoch kamarátov, ktorí sa snažia vo vojne gangov odtrhnúť si svoj diel. Všetko sa ale zmení výstupom na povrch. Menia sa okolnosti, vzťahy, motivácie, ciele a aj fakt, kto je vlastne monštrum. Giants je skvelá post-apo záležitosť, s monster vyznením, ale dominujúca dobrým príbehom a postavami. Vrelo odporúčam.
February 18, 2023
This is one of the better kaiju comics out there. As the editor notes in the first issue, the Valderramas understand that the human characters are what make a kaiju story interesting, not the kaijus.
There's nothing too original in this story, but it's quite fun anyways. The main problem holding this story back is that it needs an additional 40 pages, at the very least, in the middle focusing on character growth instead of letting it all happen in between issues. As it is, it's rushed, but makes for a short and sweet read.
There's nothing too original in this story, but it's quite fun anyways. The main problem holding this story back is that it needs an additional 40 pages, at the very least, in the middle focusing on character growth instead of letting it all happen in between issues. As it is, it's rushed, but makes for a short and sweet read.
June 14, 2023
7/10
Dentro de un carácter que deriva más bien a juvenil, a veces tira de tópicos muy típicos, pero lo cierto es que me ha resultado interesante y entretenido.
El diseño de los monstruos está muy logrado.
Dentro de un carácter que deriva más bien a juvenil, a veces tira de tópicos muy típicos, pero lo cierto es que me ha resultado interesante y entretenido.
El diseño de los monstruos está muy logrado.
January 25, 2019
Didn't care much for the turf war crap beautiful art though
June 26, 2019
Entretenida, se lee de un tirón. Super bien dibujada. Deja con ganas de saber más. Tanto de la historia, los personajes como de los creadores.
August 9, 2019
The best of friends can become the bitterest of enemies. Ambernoir is similar to ambergris.
June 21, 2020
it's okay.
February 26, 2024
Des idées sont intéressantes, l'exécution beaucoup moins.
June 25, 2024
Los hermanos Valderrama funcionan como un engranaje perfecto y eso queda reflejado en su obra: sincera, nostálgica, vibrante, dinámica y llena de alma. GIGANTES no es un simple divertimento para los amantes de los “kaiju” porque sus páginas esconden mucho más. A veces, los antagonistas no son los monstruos que pensamos.
Una gran sorpresa que va acompañada de su secuela, donde no se baja el listón de calidad.
Una gran sorpresa que va acompañada de su secuela, donde no se baja el listón de calidad.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews