Archangel

Archangel #1-5

by William Gibson, Michael St. John Smith

Science Fiction Superstar William Gibson's first graphic novel! The U.S. political leaders of 2016 abandon the radioactive planet they ve destroyed and harness the power of humanity s last hope: The Splitter, a colossal machine designed to manufacture a bright new reality for them to infiltrate and corrupt.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Fiction, Alternate History, Time Travel, Graphic Novels Comics

Audible Audio

First published August 29, 2017

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

William Ford Gibson is an American-Canadian writer who has been called the father of the cyberpunk subgenre of science fiction, having coined the term cyberspace in 1982 and popularized it in his first novel, Neuromancer (1984), which has sold more than 6.5 million copies worldwide.

While his early writing took the form of short stories, Gibson has since written nine critically acclaimed novels (one in collaboration), contributed articles to several major publications, and has collaborated extensively with performance artists, filmmakers and musicians. His thought has been cited as an influence on science fiction authors, academia, cyberculture, and technology.


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William Gibson. (2007, October 17). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 20:30, October 19, 2007, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?t...

Reviews

[Lyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s William Gibson so I’m going to like it, but also like many of his books, I’m left not exactly sure what I think about it.

Gibson is the heir to Philip K. Dick’s rich SF legacy, producing thought provoking, imaginative work that stretches boundaries.

Surprisingly, this is his first graphic novel, collecting single issues from the IDW run. Similar in tone to Terminator – which borrowed heavily from Dick’s short stories – this is about a time travel book where agents have gone back in time to change the course of history. Most of our action takes place in the waning days of WWII. Gibson is good enough to throw in some twists and turns. The art is also notably very good.

Ultimately this kind of left me needing more. I liked everything about it, but I don’t think I loved it.

It happens that I will assign a three star to a Gibson book and then I read it again a year later and LOVE it, such is his magic.

We’ll see.

[Chad · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is my most disappointing read in quite some time. I usually love Gibson, but maybe he needs some time to figure out how to work in comics.

Everything happens so fast, the art is regularly hard to follow, and some of the core plot elements just don't make any sense. For example: the villain comes from a post-apocalyptic reality looking for a new world to escape to. But his plan is to change our history so it matches his. Which would also ruin our world, right?

[H (trying to keep up with GR friends) Balikov · Rating 2 out of 5]

Parallel universes
Time Travel
A critical moment in 20th century history
The USA at a crossroads
Two competing teams of time travelers
A WWII venue
More than adequate artwork
The master storyteller Gibson

Not a bad formula for a graphic novel.
So why doesn’t it work for me?

When I figure it all out I will let you know.
Big disappointment is what I am trying to process right now.

[Stewart Tame · Rating 3 out of 5]

RAF lieutenant Naomi Givens is an intelligence officer stationed in Berlin in 1945, when events propel her into the adventure of a lifetime. Investigating reports of a downed aircraft seemingly far advanced from what she’s familiar with, she finds its pilot, who’s been captured by US forces.

He tells her that he’s from the future, from an alternate timeline in which a nuclear war has left much of the USA a radioactive wasteland. An agent from his timeline has been sent back to destroy the Soviet fleet, gathered at Archangel, and that he (the pilot) has been sent back to prevent this from happening …

This was a fun read. Jackson Guice’s art is as lovely as ever. Storywise, this is fun, though one of Gibson’s lesser efforts. It's not bad, by any means, just not great.

[Sud666 · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had potential. It is not exactly terrible, but I get the feeling this could have been MUCH better.

Taking place in 2016, the world is destroyed. The leaders who caused this mess decide to use a machine known as the Splitter. This creates an alternate universe where they can go back and manipulate history. The premise is good, the execution-not so much.

The "heroes" go back in time to hunt down the leaders. Turns out they choose to go back to 1945, right before the US drops the bomb on Hiroshima. Hoping to change world events (by destroying the Soviets) they are stopped by an intrepid female Brit and an American. As far as why they would stop the nuking of the Soviet Union and Stalin? Beats the hell out of me- but then again liberals (the writers, not the intrepid Brit and the American) do love Communists and what a shame it would have been if the World had been deprived of Joe Stalin. *sigh*

Anyways-great concept. Not so great execution. The artwork is decent throughout. This is one of those books, if asked my opinion, I would most like shrug and make a noise like "meh". You will too if you read it.

[Tom LA · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. All the online reviews of this book that I could find OUTSIDE of Goodreads are incredibly positive. They are also dishonest, because this is barely a 3 stars book, as hundreds of Goodreads reviews can confirm.

The concept is somewhat intriguing but the execution is seriously lacking: every action scene is an unintelligible mess, many characters have often the same face, and overall it’s really difficult to follow the story and to understand what is going on. Many other reviewers had the same complaint. Strangely, not the bloggers or the online magazines who get paid to write their content.

[Jake · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was really frustrating, because I wanted very badly to like it more than I did. The art style is just not very understandable, at least as someone who’s only read a couple dozen comics in their life. Specifically, the characters faces are all very indistinct, and their expressions are completely unrecognisable. This wouldn’t have been as much of a problem if they weren’t all also wearing identical military uniforms. The action sequences, of which there are many, were incredibly hard for me to follow and I spent several minutes on each page before moving on without much confidence that I understood what had just transpired. If you were to subtract the minimal dialogue, my understanding of the story would be that a lot of olive and brown happened, there was a redhead, some explosions, and some purple happened. Also there were flies.

It looks pretty on my bookshelf, and there’s the novelty factor of it being a graphic novel by William Gibson. The story (as I understood it) was fairly ordinary time travel/multiverse stuff but serviceable. I just wish I hadn’t spent the whole time reading it wondering if I’d suddenly developed face-blindness.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Archangel, by William Gibson, is a time travelling science fiction graphic novel. It follows a team of resistance fighters who travel back to 1945 to try and stop the Dictator of the United States from bombing Archangel, USSR in 1945, and to redirect the bomb to Nagasaki as intended. This book mixes science fiction with WWII espionage to create an interesting mix of genres. The illustrations are good, while the plot and story, while fair, are by no means stellar. I found the book to be fun, if cliched. A fun quick read, but not my favourite graphic novel of the year. Still, it showcases Gibson's talent as a storyteller well, and I would recommend it for fans of science fiction.

[Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tremendous graphic novel written by William Gibson with Michael St. John Smith. Art by Butch Guice, Alejandro Barrionuevo, and Wagner Reis. Originally intended as a screenplay, it evolved into this graphic novel. While the story is a little confusing in parts, the graphics are amazing, bold colors. Space travel, multiverses, and attempts to go back to 1945 and impact events.

Check it out.

[Xisix · Rating 4 out of 5]

William Gibson of Neuromancer fame collaborates with Michael St. John Smith on this sci-fi WWII alternate dimension spy thriller. World is destroyed by nuclear bombs so courtesty to science there is another Earth in which agents can travel. Sinister government wants to take over another planet.
Wish that story was longer with few more twists, turns and character development though this was fast read.

[Ademption · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars rounded up. As a William Gibson short story, this would have succeeded. But Gibson clearly does not understand how to write for comics. Most of the layouts and scenes were poorly arranged. I was often confused about the characters and their actions in each scene. Though, I could easily follow the overall plot and the illustration was serviceable. In fiction, Gibson is coolly obtuse when dealing with gritty scifi technology. His enigmatic cyberpunk style becomes a confusing mess when it is directly illustrated. Gibson could eventually master the comic form, but he should read some Will Eisner and Scott McCloud before his next graphic venture. This reminded me of when Michael Jordan briefly played minor league baseball. Gibson is a gifted aesthete, but this isn't his sport.

[Edward · Rating 2 out of 5]

Missing something

This book is like watching a highly acclaimed tv series that has four seasons under its belt and you start it a few episodes into season two. It's missing a whole storyline somewhere. Who are these people? What's going on? Where are we going when it's over? These are the questions you'll ask yourself while reading and when you're done.

[manuti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Como fan de William Gibson voy a ser parcial y puntuar por encima. Al leer este cómic hay que tener en cuenta que en parte se pensó como el guión para una película y que por lo tanto el dibuja a veces me ha dado la impresión de ser un "story-board" coloreado, no sé hasta que punto eso será así realmente.
La historia en sí tiene una base que luego en parte ha utilizado el autor en su obra The Peripheral pero en este caso va del presente al pasado. También puede tener cierto parecido con El hombre en el castillo, incluso más con la serie de TV que con el libro.
En cualquier caso, me ha parecido interesante y entretenida y creo que si hicieran la película tendría su público. Le doy 4 estrellas, ****, y recomiendo el cómic a los fans del creador de Neuromante en especial.
ALERTA SPOILER
El final fue cambiado sobre la marcha y es un revienta cabezas interesante.

[Suvama]

A book that left a mark on my understanding and many, many questions. Those questions that are good for the spirit because they keep it moving.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

review - https://youtu.be/UzFI9PPlrT4

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

Another massive disappointment in the novelists writing comics category. Really an adapted screenplay (and we’ve seen plenty of evidence that screenplays are not Gibson’s strong suit) this is a storytelling mess. The story feels massively incomplete, paring everything down to a single through line with little to no context or world building. Made worse by the incredibly mediocre art throughout (the advertised artist seems to have just done character designs and maybe layouts for the first chapter). I’m immediately moving on to read another William Gibson book just to wash the taste out of my mouth.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good story that would have been better with a longer length to let world building and characters breath a bit. The main art by Guice was a bit of a letdown. It was well rendered in detail but had some confusing layout choices and broken-looking action sequences. I had to go over fights more than once to work out what happened. The comic covers by Tula Lotay were gorgeous as were the graphic pages by James Biggie, any of which would make great no-context wall art.

[Jonathan Harbour · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent sci-fi alt reality by William Gibson. it surprised me! very good read and art. like usual, most reviewers are useless.

[Joseph Inzirillo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm torn on this one. Leave it to William Gibson to hit me in the gut with a graphic novel. On one side, the story really makes you think about our choices as a society and the risks of the nuclear age. On the other hand, the story itself felt a little lacking. Maybe it was the format. It's a good read, regardless of my indecisiveness.

[M · Rating 3 out of 5]

William Gibson creates a love-letter to science fiction and war with his Archangel volume. In an underground bunker of a dystopian 2016 America, a team of scientists were able to create a divergent alternate Earth, one that is just becoming embroiled in World War II. Power-hungry VP Junior Henderson heads to that world to establish a regime completely controlled by his family. Determined to prevent Henderson from ravaging a second world, a crew of rebels are undertaking a last-ditch scheme. A tattooed Pilot with advanced technology is shunted into this world to find and stop the psychopath by any means necessary. Teaming with RAF Lieutenant Naomi Givens and US Army Captain Vince Matthews, the Pilot must find a means of preventing a nuclear apocalypse. The final pages of the volume reveal that the defeat of one tyrant may have instead created a greater evil. Gibson sets up an intriguing premise, one that blends futuristic advancement with historical drama. Despite the rollicking story, the book does seem to come to a screeching halt upon its conclusion; one wonders if a sequel is in the works to continue fleshing out Gibson's overall story. The art designs from Butch Guice are detailed, but the male characters often become muddied from page to page; having to try and determine who is who can be a main detractor from the enjoyment of this volume. Archangel soars high with its overall notions, but does tend to fall back to earth upon its conclusion.

[Michael · Rating 1 out of 5]

Original story, but not very well told, thin in fact and compounded by the varying quality of the art, at times messy and poorly laid out and hard to follow sequentially. It is fun, more than anything else, but not a great tale in the scheme of things. It's a bit disappointing, but as a side-project for first-time graphic novelist Gibson, not a big deal. The man's an excellent writer when he takes his time, a prose stylist, a cool culture visionary, and an insightful thinker. Too bad this medium didn't work out as I had hoped it would, but goes to show how graphic novels, comics, manga, and so on, are a medium of its own right to be taken seriously by the wider population as a form achieving elevated storytelling, and sophisticated art, at its highest execution.

[Neşet · Rating 3 out of 5]

Çizgi Düşler Yayınevi, güzel bir basım ve özenli çeviriyle hazırlamış kitabı. Resimlerde gözüken küçük ayrıntılar için bile not düşmüş çevirmen, böyle gözden kaçabilecek küçük trivial bilgilerin bırakılması benim gibi çömez çizgi roman okurların hoşuna gidebilir.

Zamanlar arasında sıçrayan, ülkeden ülkeye sıçrayan biraz yoran bir okuma deneyimi oldu.

[ChevalierBayard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fan de William Gibson, je m'attendais à une histoire un peu plus novatrice que celle-ci, qui malgré son thème original manque un peu de surprises. L'avant dernière image offre cependant une des conclusions les plus étonnantes que j'ai pu voir. Cette édition est complétée par joli cahier graphique et un court texte de Gibson qui explique rapidement son intérêt pour la seconde guerre mondiale, sa découverte du processus de création d'un roman graphique, et comment l'Histoire bien contemporaine a su emmener son grain de sel durant ce processus même ; nous offrant cette conclusion dont j'ai fait mention et que je vous laisserai secrète même si cela me démange de faire le contraire ! Bref! Encore une très bonne lecture signée William Gibson !

[Joey Nardinelli · Rating 2 out of 5]

Time travel narratives grounded in these ideas of quantum mechanics and string theory are often best served by leaving timelines as all inherently separate so as to not deal with the convoluted Grandfather issues. That, or be fun. This is sadly neither.

This follows what is mostly a Terminator-style plot but without the fear of AI, keeping the technology slightly more grounded amid the idea of replacing a historical figure in the past. The ideas happen fast and furiously and rarely make sense most often due to poor character development and characters that for much of the novel look very similar to many background characters, blurring the visual clarity significantly. Picked this up on a whim, but can’t think of many reasons to recommend it even to Gibson fans save for maybe the setting and the tactical cloak. For something that came out just five years ago, it feels wildly dated.

[Joelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

An Audible performance to compare all others....

This espionage thriller is not my usual fair. It honestly gave me anxiety and stressed me out the further and further the characters proceeded. the narrators and sound effects are the best production I’ve heard. Well except for the harp strings in the background music. Otherwise definitely a 5 by 5 compilation of voices and sounds!

[Will · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting sci-fi thriller until issue 4&5 where the action becomes messy and the art takes a stumble.

Looking at the character sketches included in the back pages it's clear some content was cut, and it shows.

Also the last page is just terrible.

It's enjoyable despite it's flaws, however I can't say that I wasn't disappointed.

[Edgar Cotes Argelich · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aquesta ucronia que ens proposa William Gibson, no té aquella intel·lectualitat i deix filosòfic que et ve al cap quan penses en l’autor, però aconsegueix el que vol ser: un còmic d’acció entretingut, que juga amb els elements de la ciència-ficció. I és impossible evitar el somriure de complicitat irònica amb la pàgina final.

[jboyg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gibson Is A Freakin' Genius!

He wrote one of my all-time fave SF novels, NEUROMANCER, and his status as progenitor of the cyberpunk style has never been seriously challenged. This graphic novel is a strong example of his writing prowess and the artists are first-rate; a fast, thrilling read.

[David Cordero · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly entertaining

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting alternate history science fiction, sort of like Terminator if it was set in 1945.