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VS #1-5
VS : Ligne de Front
Dans le futur, la guerre est devenu un sport hyper-médiatisé. La gladiateur Satta Flynn va découvrir à ses dépends que la nouvelle génération de soldats est plus dangereuse que jamais et que la lumière des feux de la rampe brûle tout ce qu'elle touche.
Contient les épisodes US : VS (2018) 1-5, inédits.
Contient les épisodes US : VS (2018) 1-5, inédits.
144 pages, Hardcover
First published August 8, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
March 6, 2019
This story is really underdeveloped. Some sort of future where war is commercialized, it reads like a rip-off of Rollberball, with one past-his-prime hero, Satta Flynn (the only character who is developed past the surface, and even then, just barely), making a stand against the corporate overlords who run everything (and who wear little trees on their heads?). The only thing worthwhile here is the artwork by Esad Ribic, which is wasted on Brandon's cliched rubbish.
February 9, 2019
I bought this because Esad Ribic is one of my favorite artists working in comics today. After finishing, I can say that's mostly the only reason there is for anyone else to pick it up.
Ribic's art, colored by Nic Klein, is incredible. There's tons of massive sci fi set pieces for him to work with and he delivers. After all the recent years of super heroes, I really enjoyed seeing him in a different genre.
The story is a mess. It's just a jumble of sci fi ideas that don't fit together well and are never properly fleshed out. It pulls together a bit in the final issue of the volume, but it still never reaches any real clarity. I don't have a ton of exposure to Ivan Brandon, but I've read better from him.
If you like Ribic, buy this to look at the stunning illustrations, if you aren't a huge fan of him skip this one.
Ribic's art, colored by Nic Klein, is incredible. There's tons of massive sci fi set pieces for him to work with and he delivers. After all the recent years of super heroes, I really enjoyed seeing him in a different genre.
The story is a mess. It's just a jumble of sci fi ideas that don't fit together well and are never properly fleshed out. It pulls together a bit in the final issue of the volume, but it still never reaches any real clarity. I don't have a ton of exposure to Ivan Brandon, but I've read better from him.
If you like Ribic, buy this to look at the stunning illustrations, if you aren't a huge fan of him skip this one.
September 12, 2018
Ribics art is amazing. Its 5 Star quality, I just wished it came with a great story. The scifi story is basically war for sport and tv profit etc commercialisation etc. Not the best by a long margin.
December 4, 2018
This book never really gets passed the surface level pitch. Basically, its the future, war is a spectator sport, complete with ads and corporate greed - in other words, commercialism and money rule all. There are "all star" soldiers, which our main character happens to be one. And he is the old gruff war veteran who wants to keep fighting but his age and several wounds are slowing him down. But his popularity soars and to capitalize on this fever pitch, the "powers that be" try to setup a situation where he is killed to make more money of his image.
I mean, its not a bad plot, but not terribly original. The problem is that we can telegraph all the "beats" of the story, and sometimes the plot moves.... at an odd pace.
However this is mostly forgiven for the art. Esad Ribic can really put together some beautiful visuals. So even if the story is derailing a bit, its still a please to look at. Ill always check out a book that is drawn by Ribic just to take in the visual aspect of it.
Overall, and uneven plot held together by beautiful artwork fail to really capture my attention, but check it out for the art if for nothing else.
I mean, its not a bad plot, but not terribly original. The problem is that we can telegraph all the "beats" of the story, and sometimes the plot moves.... at an odd pace.
However this is mostly forgiven for the art. Esad Ribic can really put together some beautiful visuals. So even if the story is derailing a bit, its still a please to look at. Ill always check out a book that is drawn by Ribic just to take in the visual aspect of it.
Overall, and uneven plot held together by beautiful artwork fail to really capture my attention, but check it out for the art if for nothing else.
August 5, 2018
Every Generation Gets The "Rollerball" It Deserves
So, in 1975 we got the original James Caan "Rollerball". He was tough, independent, knew right from wrong, and stood up to the crooked corporate "man" to the very end. Of course the only female characters were ex-wives and girlfriends.
Then in 2002 we got the CGI, hyper-violent, incoherent mess of "Rollerball", led by a shlubby, bland "hero" who was accompanied by a cheesecake female teammate who got naked a lot. Oh, and any political or social comment was left on the cutting room floor.
Now we have this "Rollerball", (although not explicitly and not in name). We're back to the original, and this time our worn out and used up hero, Satta Flynn, struggles against the crooked government "man". And forget the "game" angle; call it war and get on with it. At least this time the hero is accompanied by a next gen superior female warrior and a punch-happy wise-cracking female sidekick. So, yeah, I think we're making some progress here.
The general plot and message, (that old gladiators don't retire or take orders, but go out on their own terms), is fine by me. And this has been a good story since we first chipped picture stories onto rocks. So again, no complaint from me.
This is beautifully drawn, not too talky, and loaded with clever little jokes and dystopian future bits around the margins. I'm willing to overlook or skim the heavy-breathing, confusing battle scenes because they're really just background. Anyway, if you look closely or go through them a second time the battle and action sequences get clearer. I didn't entirely get who or what the almighty Oversight was and there's some stuff about a "Holy Stone", but I figure that was just the required incomprehensible babble that's part of the package in a book like this. No harm done, though.
So, this was a darkly humorous, self-aware, and clever treatment of some familiar material, but still very entertaining. The artwork is rave worthy on many levels, which was a major bonus. This was a nice find.
(Please note that I had a chance to read a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
So, in 1975 we got the original James Caan "Rollerball". He was tough, independent, knew right from wrong, and stood up to the crooked corporate "man" to the very end. Of course the only female characters were ex-wives and girlfriends.
Then in 2002 we got the CGI, hyper-violent, incoherent mess of "Rollerball", led by a shlubby, bland "hero" who was accompanied by a cheesecake female teammate who got naked a lot. Oh, and any political or social comment was left on the cutting room floor.
Now we have this "Rollerball", (although not explicitly and not in name). We're back to the original, and this time our worn out and used up hero, Satta Flynn, struggles against the crooked government "man". And forget the "game" angle; call it war and get on with it. At least this time the hero is accompanied by a next gen superior female warrior and a punch-happy wise-cracking female sidekick. So, yeah, I think we're making some progress here.
The general plot and message, (that old gladiators don't retire or take orders, but go out on their own terms), is fine by me. And this has been a good story since we first chipped picture stories onto rocks. So again, no complaint from me.
This is beautifully drawn, not too talky, and loaded with clever little jokes and dystopian future bits around the margins. I'm willing to overlook or skim the heavy-breathing, confusing battle scenes because they're really just background. Anyway, if you look closely or go through them a second time the battle and action sequences get clearer. I didn't entirely get who or what the almighty Oversight was and there's some stuff about a "Holy Stone", but I figure that was just the required incomprehensible babble that's part of the package in a book like this. No harm done, though.
So, this was a darkly humorous, self-aware, and clever treatment of some familiar material, but still very entertaining. The artwork is rave worthy on many levels, which was a major bonus. This was a nice find.
(Please note that I had a chance to read a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
July 27, 2018
Two major reasons I gave up on this book, and quickly – one, I hate a book that is just fighting for fighting's sake, and this one is just that. Two, I hate pages peppered with semi-diegetic TV soundbites or (worse) social media threads. And, yet again, that's what we have – while watching people that look too similar and whom we can't possibly care about fight, we get the commentary of some eye-in-the-sky voyeurs, feeding this stuff to the public. So our hero is half cyborg warrior, half Youtube influencer, which might be enough to keep you here, but it certainly wasn't enough for me. Artwork comes from an alternative universe where 2000AD was done fully airbrushed, and not with its usual grit – again, fine for some, but not a pull. Shame.
October 22, 2018
Great artwork. Not an original plot. At all. I didn't feel robbed but really quite standard.
UPDATE: Looking back a few days later, none of this has stuck in my mind except the tension between Flynn and Devi. The ruling "baddies" are also unremarkable. Great art but don't think I'll be following further.
UPDATE: Looking back a few days later, none of this has stuck in my mind except the tension between Flynn and Devi. The ruling "baddies" are also unremarkable. Great art but don't think I'll be following further.
August 29, 2019
Hubo cosas en Vs. que me gustaron mucho. El arte entre ellas, pero muchos aspectos de ciencia ficción sobre el mundo en el que habitan los personajes. Lamentablemente, de manera integral, esta obra tiene muchos detalles que pueden entorpecer la experiencia.
La trama nunca queda completamente clara. En la parte de atrás menciona que ahora las guerra son televisadas y que los soldados son como celebridades. Pero eso nunca es mencionado de manera directa en la obra, a veces los soldados se llaman jugadores entre ellos, lo que me recordaba a Ready Player One, pero las muertes no son como en un videojuego, lo que me confundía.
Sabemos que las empresas patrocinan a estos jugadores y eso queda claro por varios diálogos. Pero las empresas no son claras, y aunque vemos escenas en las que se reúnen y conspiran, no nos quedan claro sus motivos.
El protagonista nunca es construido, es completamente uni dimensional. Lo único que quiere es matar y vive para la guerra. La coprotagonista Devi tampoco es desarrollada de ninguna manera.
El final del cómic es completamente incomprensible. Cada tanto que iba entendiendo algo, volteaba la página y terminaba más confundido. El arte tampoco ayudaba a veces. Aunque es bellísimo, Ribic escoge sus viñetas de manera extraña; en las escenas de acción, cuando conviene ver un plano más amplio de la acción, nos muestra un close up de piernas peleando o de torsos dando vuelta y no es para nada claro.
Me gustó mucho los cuadros de texto con publicidad y con mensajes de patrocinadores. Eso se me hizo muy novedoso. También hubo varias escenas del protagonista que me gustaron mucho, cuando está en aprietos y pierde puntos de sus protagonistas y terminan quitándole su prótesis, eso me gustó mucho. Los anuncios de los patrocinadores al terminar el cómic también me gustaron, tanto en diseño como la idea.
Tal vez esta idea, en manos de un escritor más experimentado se podría haber vuelto una obra referente de la ciencia ficción.
La trama nunca queda completamente clara. En la parte de atrás menciona que ahora las guerra son televisadas y que los soldados son como celebridades. Pero eso nunca es mencionado de manera directa en la obra, a veces los soldados se llaman jugadores entre ellos, lo que me recordaba a Ready Player One, pero las muertes no son como en un videojuego, lo que me confundía.
Sabemos que las empresas patrocinan a estos jugadores y eso queda claro por varios diálogos. Pero las empresas no son claras, y aunque vemos escenas en las que se reúnen y conspiran, no nos quedan claro sus motivos.
El protagonista nunca es construido, es completamente uni dimensional. Lo único que quiere es matar y vive para la guerra. La coprotagonista Devi tampoco es desarrollada de ninguna manera.
El final del cómic es completamente incomprensible. Cada tanto que iba entendiendo algo, volteaba la página y terminaba más confundido. El arte tampoco ayudaba a veces. Aunque es bellísimo, Ribic escoge sus viñetas de manera extraña; en las escenas de acción, cuando conviene ver un plano más amplio de la acción, nos muestra un close up de piernas peleando o de torsos dando vuelta y no es para nada claro.
Me gustó mucho los cuadros de texto con publicidad y con mensajes de patrocinadores. Eso se me hizo muy novedoso. También hubo varias escenas del protagonista que me gustaron mucho, cuando está en aprietos y pierde puntos de sus protagonistas y terminan quitándole su prótesis, eso me gustó mucho. Los anuncios de los patrocinadores al terminar el cómic también me gustaron, tanto en diseño como la idea.
Tal vez esta idea, en manos de un escritor más experimentado se podría haber vuelto una obra referente de la ciencia ficción.
September 21, 2019
Again, Image has titled a TPB limited series as Volume 1, despite no new issues even being thought into the pipeline.
VS is a stunningly gorgeous comic with very little substance. Esad Ribic will likely be the only draw for readers as the plot lines and modern day commentary on war and social media aren't spun on their head and offer no knew types of thinking, just another story idea from concepts created by someone else.
VS was limited to five issues. With such a short amount of time to tell a story, most of the story focuses on fast pace action in the war arena. Truly the best and most interesting part of the story is hidden in issue four, where two of the main characters have a moment to actually talk. These few short panels give the reader a glimpse of what could have been, should the writers want to expand on the series, but nothing more.
For those that want to support the beautiful art of Esad Ribic, perhaps it's an easy pick up. For fans of the medium who want good story telling . . . there's better options out there.
VS is a stunningly gorgeous comic with very little substance. Esad Ribic will likely be the only draw for readers as the plot lines and modern day commentary on war and social media aren't spun on their head and offer no knew types of thinking, just another story idea from concepts created by someone else.
VS was limited to five issues. With such a short amount of time to tell a story, most of the story focuses on fast pace action in the war arena. Truly the best and most interesting part of the story is hidden in issue four, where two of the main characters have a moment to actually talk. These few short panels give the reader a glimpse of what could have been, should the writers want to expand on the series, but nothing more.
For those that want to support the beautiful art of Esad Ribic, perhaps it's an easy pick up. For fans of the medium who want good story telling . . . there's better options out there.
March 24, 2019
A curious book to be sure.
The art was the reason I bought, as I imagine to is for a great number of the buyers. And that art is nothing short of incredible. Ribic's pencils are detailed and a treat. Every panel feels like it could live on as a cover to any other book. And his eye for action and proper poses is nothing short of incredible. For a book that focuses on physicality and warfare, Ribic treats the readers to some of the best action panels.
Now, the story. I defy anyone to tell me that they understood the entirety of it the first time they read it. I would sometimes have to stop, go back a page or so, and re-read. It isn't complex per se, just, oddly structured.
That being said, it is interesting, and very certainly engaging, and ultimately, that is the reason I read these.
Buy it for the pencils, and you might be mildly amused by some of the more clever story beats.
The art was the reason I bought, as I imagine to is for a great number of the buyers. And that art is nothing short of incredible. Ribic's pencils are detailed and a treat. Every panel feels like it could live on as a cover to any other book. And his eye for action and proper poses is nothing short of incredible. For a book that focuses on physicality and warfare, Ribic treats the readers to some of the best action panels.
Now, the story. I defy anyone to tell me that they understood the entirety of it the first time they read it. I would sometimes have to stop, go back a page or so, and re-read. It isn't complex per se, just, oddly structured.
That being said, it is interesting, and very certainly engaging, and ultimately, that is the reason I read these.
Buy it for the pencils, and you might be mildly amused by some of the more clever story beats.
July 6, 2021
En el futuro soldados mediáticos combaten por la gloria de sus patrocinadores. Los combates, que se desarrollan entre grupos reducidos de combatientes, se transmiten en riguroso directo por televisión y están supeditadas a las necesidades de este medio, debiendo detenerse a menudo para transmitir mensajes publicitarios.
El protagonista es Satta Flynn, la mayor superestrella del espectáculo, seguido por una multitud de seguidores que lo adora, pero que ha alcanzado la cumbre de su carrera y comienza su declive.
[+] Reseña completa en Alt+64 wiki: http://alt64.org/wiki/index.php?title...
El protagonista es Satta Flynn, la mayor superestrella del espectáculo, seguido por una multitud de seguidores que lo adora, pero que ha alcanzado la cumbre de su carrera y comienza su declive.
[+] Reseña completa en Alt+64 wiki: http://alt64.org/wiki/index.php?title...
October 2, 2018
Science fiction tale in a dystopian future – lots of battles but not much else
A colourful series taking place in a dystopian future in which forces battles for the entertainment of the people with corporate sponsorship. Now always clear in my opinion and not particularly interesting unless a lot of fighting action is what you enjoy. The main character is manipulated and a favourite of the masses.
The artwork is reasonably clear but very colourful. As you will have gathered, I was not enthralled by this creation.
A colourful series taking place in a dystopian future in which forces battles for the entertainment of the people with corporate sponsorship. Now always clear in my opinion and not particularly interesting unless a lot of fighting action is what you enjoy. The main character is manipulated and a favourite of the masses.
The artwork is reasonably clear but very colourful. As you will have gathered, I was not enthralled by this creation.
January 12, 2020
This was a bit frustrating to read -- there was some interesting-seeming worldbuilding that never got very fleshed out, and some associated clever design work sprinkled throughout the volume, but the writing overall was quite choppy and didn't provide depth anywhere. Couldn't really recommend this even to a sci-fi fan.
December 17, 2022
This one is actually 3.5 but for the gorgeous art I am marking it as 4.
Story is a little bit of a letdown. Let me explain - we are introduced into this alien galaxy where war is something that is fully commercialized, war parties fight under camera lenses and ever present commercials, soldiers get improved or lose their enhancements as combat takes place (once sponsors give up, soldier is left to his own devices). All of this happens under the auspices of control asteroid, mysterious star ship controlled by even more mysterious parties that see these direct-to-stream combat as a very useful way of controlling the population of the system and making sure everyone stays in their place.
Story is not bad, and if this went over multiple volumes it would make more sense. As it is, entire story line seems rushed and .... somehow incomplete. For example ending is very open ended - what actually happens is something left to the reader (although taking into account the dystopian atmosphere it is not so hard to imagine the final outcome).
So story is 2.7 points. I have a feeling they wanted to do more and then series was cut down.
What carries the entire book is gorgeous Esad Ribic's art. He manages to bring to life the entire universe, weird aliens, fractions participating in combat and finally the ever present commercials, news and (of course) censoring of the information when things go the other direction for the rulers-to-be.
Esad's work is straight 5 points.
Interesting book, a bit of disjointed story-line but gorgeous art.
Recommended to SF fans but be warned that story (as it is presented) might not be everyone's cup of tea..
Story is a little bit of a letdown. Let me explain - we are introduced into this alien galaxy where war is something that is fully commercialized, war parties fight under camera lenses and ever present commercials, soldiers get improved or lose their enhancements as combat takes place (once sponsors give up, soldier is left to his own devices). All of this happens under the auspices of control asteroid, mysterious star ship controlled by even more mysterious parties that see these direct-to-stream combat as a very useful way of controlling the population of the system and making sure everyone stays in their place.
Story is not bad, and if this went over multiple volumes it would make more sense. As it is, entire story line seems rushed and .... somehow incomplete. For example ending is very open ended - what actually happens is something left to the reader (although taking into account the dystopian atmosphere it is not so hard to imagine the final outcome).
So story is 2.7 points. I have a feeling they wanted to do more and then series was cut down.
What carries the entire book is gorgeous Esad Ribic's art. He manages to bring to life the entire universe, weird aliens, fractions participating in combat and finally the ever present commercials, news and (of course) censoring of the information when things go the other direction for the rulers-to-be.
Esad's work is straight 5 points.
Interesting book, a bit of disjointed story-line but gorgeous art.
Recommended to SF fans but be warned that story (as it is presented) might not be everyone's cup of tea..
February 25, 2023
I feel that the editing for this graphic novel that would have dealt with panel placement, letter box placement, characters and showing how the action was done lacked, which made the graphic novel lack punch and overall cohesion, leaving me confused.
I think Decorum does everything better than VS Vol. 1 (obviously, in many more pages and chapters.)
I think Decorum does everything better than VS Vol. 1 (obviously, in many more pages and chapters.)
November 18, 2024
Lacks a lot of explanations, shockingly poor action sequences that skip their violence, confusing Mature rating (everything is censored, this could have been given to kids), boring, interchangeable characters and settings...aside from the great art, this comic was a complete letdown that I should have skipped.
January 13, 2026
Worth the price of admission for Esad Ribic’s art alone. He provides a sense of scale and grandeur that makes one of the best in the business. The story is interesting enough albeit with a convoluted ending. That said, I got it for Ribic’s art and boy did he deliver. Awesome stuff and that too in the Californian but in the British way “Awe-some”
October 29, 2019
Esad Ribic è dio.
Punto.
Questo volume (letto nell’edizione italiana Panini) è illustrato in maniera davvero pazzesca da Ribic, con tavole che lasciano totalmente senza fiato da tanto sono belle.
La storia è avvincente. Pura sci-fi.
Un gioiello inaspettato.
4 stelle e mezza.
Punto.
Questo volume (letto nell’edizione italiana Panini) è illustrato in maniera davvero pazzesca da Ribic, con tavole che lasciano totalmente senza fiato da tanto sono belle.
La storia è avvincente. Pura sci-fi.
Un gioiello inaspettato.
4 stelle e mezza.
February 4, 2020
One star for the art, which was really lovely. Everything else about this was just not good. The writing, the plot, the characters, none of it made sense. I mean, the concept is okay I guess, that in the way way future, people will watch commercialized wars for funsies, but this was just not it.
August 14, 2024
Cool concepts and world building. A mix of The Running Man and Starship Troopers but with original twists on those premises. Unfortunately, the plot gets a bit muddled and the latter third of the book feels both rushed and incomplete.
August 17, 2018
Bland sci-fi war sports drama with fantastic art. None of the characters are likable and the drama feels forced. Luckily Esad Ribic turns in some gorgeous artwork. Skip it.
August 20, 2018
Nice Art... But that's it... Not a good comic.
September 3, 2018
If it wasn’t for Essad Ribic’ art, I would never have read this. Pretty boring
February 26, 2019
I don’t care for any of the characters (which makes a narrative hard for me to endure). Not for me.
March 4, 2020
To much fighting not enough story sorta boring
January 15, 2021
Um sci-fi medíocre, mas só a arte do Ribić já valeu
May 7, 2021
The story is really underdeveloped but the art by Esad Ribiç is fantastic and it has some really cool graphic designs.
July 13, 2022
The art and world-building are so great they paper over the somewhat ho-hum plot and satire.
January 10, 2024
Красиво в статике, но часто не очень ясно что происходит.
Сюжет напоминает сразу всю НФ, но непонятно а что именно происходит.
Гиммик с рекламой забавный.
Сюжет напоминает сразу всю НФ, но непонятно а что именно происходит.
Гиммик с рекламой забавный.
February 10, 2024
one word: ESAD RIBIĆ. the artwork is incredible but it’s undermined by the underdeveloped narrative. if both had clicked this would’ve been one hell of a story.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews