RuinWorld: Eye for An Eye

RuinWorld #1-5

by Derek Laufman

Adventurers Rex and Pogo trek across the Ruinlands searching for treasure and magical artifacts, along with their not-always faithful companions.

It’s every adventurer for themselves in the Ruinlands! Join Pogo and Rex as they set out on a quest to hunt for valuable artifacts and magical weapons across the land. Along with plenty of not-always faithful companions, our heroes must battle dangerous tribes of Toadies, survive giant stone Golems, and stop a catastrophic world-ending disaster, all while evading a cunning gang of thieves trying in a race to the biggest treasure of all time. Cartoonist Derek Laufman (Marvel Superhero Adventures) leads an unforgettable journey as Rex and Pogo misadventure their way across the Ruinlands, facing dangerous foes and fair-weather friends alike!

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Comic Book, Childrens

144 pages, Paperback

First published May 21, 2019

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a lot of fun with this. It's an anthropomorphic Dungeons & Dragons adventure at its heart. Speaking of heart, the book has a lot of heart along with humor and fun, colorful art. Anyone, young or old, who is in to fantasy can have a good time reading this book.

Received a review copy from Boom and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the artwork and style and I hope this series doesn't stop here.

Individual issue reviews: #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5

Total review score: 3.6

[Mehsi · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.


Welp, I had high expectations. I just love adventure, I love RPG stuff, I love treasures, I loved the cover. However, I had to drag my ass through this book to get through it.

For many reasons, since I am quite tired I am going for a good/bad review.

Good:
-That art! I just loved the art style, I loved the colours used, I loved the character designs.
-The magic items. Especially that hammer. Give it to me, please!~
-Undead Army! OOHhhhhh.

Bad:
-The characters. I didn’t like any of them. Not that pig, not the foxcat, not at all the insect dude. Yes, sorry, I just finished the book and I have no clue what their names are. I saw them, and within a few panels forgot about them. That is how much I cared about the characters. The insect dude was just annoying and icky and I wanted to throw him for some kind of mythical creature. The pig was annoying and dumb (seriously, they had to add the whole we will be eating you trope and the character in question once again being to dumb/oblivious to it) and kept bringing his team into danger without even knowing what was going on, he tried spells while he should just have been carrying around the team’s stuff.
The fox dude? Urgh. I don’t like a guy who is grumpy 99% of the time.
-The story. It was chaotic… messy… I was mostly confused on what was going on. First they are after Barri/Barry/Bari? because he was an asshole and stole their map, then there was some evil baddie who Barry/Barri/Bari was indebted with, who also knew Rex, then there is more running and adventuring, saving that dumb pig, then getting oils for the sick fox/cat, undead army,
-It didn’t help that we have more POVs, especially when one is for that stupid insect.
-And of course, the insect instead of helping or I don’t know running away, goes for the treasure. Greedy little ass… Oh, and now we should feel sorry for him as he had a moment of brightness. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAH. rolls around laughing
-The ending? Why the hell did they leave that gold outside? They finally have gold/money and they don’t seem to freaking care?

Phew, it took me quite a long time to get through this one, and even some Brooklyn Nine-Nine motivation to really get through it + write a review. sighs Hopefully, my next book is better. This is the second book today that I haven’t liked. Rating it 1.5 for the 3 points I mentioned in the good part.

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/

[Jess Smiley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting and whimsical adventure, packed with strong characters, magical weapons, and fantastical landscapes.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of Ruinworld through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Ruinland is an adventure story, through and through. It had a healthy dose of humor, there’s plenty of action, treasure, oh and did I mention that all of the characters are animals? So in short, it’s a perfect fun read.
The series follows the adventures of Rex and Pogo. These two are desperate to prove something of themselves, and they’d love to get some treasure while they’re at it. Of course nothing else goes perfectly for travelers like this, so our pair comes up against plenty of danger, and they even make a few (adorable) friends along the way.



Ruinland: Eye for an Eye was everything I had expected and hoped from this new series. It’s fun and light, but also had an interesting plot. I love relaxing adventure stories like this, especially when the main characters are so drastically different as these two are.
The characters are hilarious and adorable, which admittedly is a pretty major bonus in my book. I loved how all the different characters interacted, but more importantly I approve of the decision to add on to the main crew as time went on. It helped to balance the group, plus it added more interesting points (and plots).
There was more than one point during this read that I found myself laughing out loud. It seemed like there were so many funny lines thrown around, and maybe it’s just me, but many of the characters seemed pretty deadpan when delivering their lines, which just made it funnier for me.
Despite how casual this series is, there actually was some character development going on. I can tell you what each of the four characters is hoping to get out of their adventures, and why they joined the group. I can even tell you how and why they’re misunderstanding each other. It’s all very well done.
I really hope that Ruinworld continues coming out with new issues. This is exactly the sort of escape I needed, and I’m not ready to see it stop anytime soon.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Ruinworld: Eye for An Eye' written and illustrated by Derek Laufman is a graphic novel about animals questing for treasure, and I loved it.

Adventurers Rex and Pogo are travelling across the Ruinlands seeking fortune. Only Pogo is only a farmboy and not as skilled as Rex. When they find a map, then get it stolen, they find themselves in lots of trouble. With the help of some new friends, like thieving squirrel, Kale, and a frog princess named Lula, they might just find the treasure and maybe even save the world.

I really loved this. The art is perfect and very action-oriented. The characters are fun and funny. The world-building is solid. As someone who likes fantasy adventure, this hit all the right notes for me.

It works great as a kids comic too. There is a lot to laugh at, and it doesn't feel like anything is shorted by aiming it at a younger audience. I look forward to reading more adventures with this group.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from BOOM! Studios and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Cibele · Rating 5 out of 5]

First I would like to thank Boom! Studios for granting me the chance to read this graphic novel! It was a nice adventure to read, with awesome characters and amazing illustrations!

We start the book with Rex and Poggo, a half-bredd of fox and cat and a pig, that work as artifact hunters. In his first mission, Poggo ends up releasing a monster out of a box, and finding a map to a amazing treasure. And that's where the adventure really begins.

With nice characters with nice background for all of them, we follow the adventure to find this treasure, the gang starting to grow at each new stop. A squirrel that used to work with Rex before, a frog princess that doesn't want to marry the son of a evil frog queen.

As well as fight the big bad wolf and his group of evil dork doings.

Great art, great plot. Really amazing graphic novel for the ones that like a nice adventure with magic!

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This very fun graphic novel, takes Tomb Raider, Indiana Jones, and the animated Lord of the Ring, blends it up and spills out into this adventure story. These anthropomorphic animals are ruin hunters, but not very successful ones. This rollicking adventure will see the characters running from meat eaters, raising the dead, and challenging a hammer only Thor could lift. A great read for ages 8 and up.
#LitsyAtoZ #GN
#readharder
#nancydrewchallenge #19
#BNFantasyChallenge #talkinganimals

[Adam Sequoyah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of fun. But...
I always have a problem with an overabundance of italicized words in comic books. This one has an overabundance. But, even worse -- much worse -- this graphic novel's words in italics are somehow always on the wrong ones. Super annoying.

MPA ratings: PG for violence and for rude humor

[Engel Dreizehn · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC Copy...It's magical world full of adventure, spells, exotic locales, and more adventure that completely inhabited by anthropomorphic animals and our heroes may or may not be the biggest misfit losers (but with skill and heart!) in this world. Enjoyable to read.

[Graham Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just discovered Laufman this year on Instagram and I love his fun design style. This was a really uppity romp through a fantasy world and every aspect of it was great. Eventually I'll get a copy for my library.

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute little fantasy store, with a forgettable plot and even forgettabler characters (even when it's aimed at a young audience).

Lovely art, though!

2.5 stars

(Read as five single issues)

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Pogo is the worst

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read! My library has it with kids graphic novels so keep that in mind with your expectations. I would read another by this author.

[Christa Seeley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the artwork in this comic. It had great energy and colours and the characters were just so adorable. But I found the story a little disjointed and hard to get into.

[Mario Alba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun for all ages!

[Kinga · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was pure enjoyment!

[Randy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Simply put: Fantastic, humorous, exciting, awesome!

[Raven Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one, cute but strange little land with pigs, I'll probably be placing this in the hands of my Juv readers, I know quite a few who would get a kick out this one! I really loved the art style, and the coloring that's what caught my eye initially, the cover art. I can't wait for more!

[Teresa Grabs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Take a little Goonies, add in a dash of Indiana Jones, and a whole lot of originality and you have RuinWorld!

Pogo (a pig) and Rex (half-fox/half-cat) are out looking for treasure, but what they find instead is life-threatening adventure and friendships that are worth more than all the gold in Ruinland. Pogo ignores warnings as any good adventurer does, and ends up costing Rex his sword. They meet up with Barri, a bug and sort-of friend, who had run into the wrong side of a gang and its leader. With the help of new friends along the way, everyone learns a little more about themselves and how to stand up for what they believe, even when it’s not easy.

Fantastic graphic novel and I hope to read more about Rex and Pogo in the future!

Thank you NetGalley and Boom! Studios for the opportunity to read an advance reader copy.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is incredibly fun. Pogo, a farmboy, and Rex, a seasoned adventurer, are out hunting for Ruins when they stumble across a legendary treasure map - which, of course, every rogue and scoundrel for miles is also after. Adventures with bugs, foxes, wolves, and all sorts of critters ensue. It's waaay more delightful than I am capturing in this review - just trust me.

[Miranda]

Received and ebook arc from the publisher via netgalley for review.

Thanks for giving me the chance to read!
It was rather quirky and fun art style and colors.
It would appeal to the more middle grade readers getting into comics with animal characters and adventure.