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The Kill Lock #1-6
The Kill Lock
If one dies, they all do! Banished for their crimes, four robots are bound to each other's fates in this sci-fi graphic novel.
Each found guilty of an irredeemable crime, four robots find themselves banished from their home world and bound together by the Kill Lock--a programming link that means if one of them dies, they all will. Now a soldier, an addict, a murderer, and a child find themselves forced to protect each other while in search of a cure to survive. Their only clue is a bot known as The Axial, supposed to be the creator of the Lock and keeper of its secrets.
Each found guilty of an irredeemable crime, four robots find themselves banished from their home world and bound together by the Kill Lock--a programming link that means if one of them dies, they all will. Now a soldier, an addict, a murderer, and a child find themselves forced to protect each other while in search of a cure to survive. Their only clue is a bot known as The Axial, supposed to be the creator of the Lock and keeper of its secrets.
176 pages, Paperback
First published October 20, 2020
14 people are currently reading
147 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
January 26, 2021
I quite enjoyed this one and fell in love with the robots!! 😫 Well that one needed smacked but I digress!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
December 14, 2020
Four banished robots have received the Kill Lock, if one of them die, they all die. Now they are on a hunt for the cure to the Kill Lock. The four consist of an alcoholic laborer, a fanatical killing behemoth, an innocent defective child, and the artisan, a sociopath monster. It's a bit odd in places how human they are treated, such as how do robots get drunk or grow from children into adults? But once you get past that it's a terrific story with fantastic art. I love the interaction between the four of them.
December 6, 2020
3.5 Stars
This was a unique sci fi graphic novel featuring only artificial intelligent characters. The artwork was absolutely stunning. The presentation reminded me a quite a bit of the graphic novel series, Descender. The characters and story weren't quite as well designed, yet I still enjoyed this one. I would recommend this one to anyone who enjoys AI stories as much as I do.
This was a unique sci fi graphic novel featuring only artificial intelligent characters. The artwork was absolutely stunning. The presentation reminded me a quite a bit of the graphic novel series, Descender. The characters and story weren't quite as well designed, yet I still enjoyed this one. I would recommend this one to anyone who enjoys AI stories as much as I do.
June 17, 2022
Good premise, but doesn't live up to its full potential. One of the four vastly overshadows the others in terms of presence and personality - and it's the worst one, the most boring one, and the one I'd last wish to see succeed. The other three are fine but they get the short end of the stick in every way.
Also, cliffhanger ending with no resolution.
Also, cliffhanger ending with no resolution.
January 22, 2022
(4,4 of 5 for best sci-fi drama with robots)
Kill Lock describes space society which is formed by sentient robots of different classes and purposes. And those who deviate are punished by Kill Lock. This brings us to the drama of four very different robots linked together in life and death, looking for a way out. It explores morality, law, good and evil in simple and beautiful ways.
The art is excellent, the style reminds me of concept arts from sci-fi games. I like it even if I would appreciate it to be a bit less messy and in action scenes less chaotic.
But the story is the main hero of this comic. It's great, with perfect tempo and graduating to the finale with excellence. I love how turned out all that playing with classic tropes and archetypes. The drama between robots on the edge of their society is well written, for me, it's way better than Lemire's similar "small tragic people and their big problems". This is hidden comics gem.
Kill Lock describes space society which is formed by sentient robots of different classes and purposes. And those who deviate are punished by Kill Lock. This brings us to the drama of four very different robots linked together in life and death, looking for a way out. It explores morality, law, good and evil in simple and beautiful ways.
The art is excellent, the style reminds me of concept arts from sci-fi games. I like it even if I would appreciate it to be a bit less messy and in action scenes less chaotic.
But the story is the main hero of this comic. It's great, with perfect tempo and graduating to the finale with excellence. I love how turned out all that playing with classic tropes and archetypes. The drama between robots on the edge of their society is well written, for me, it's way better than Lemire's similar "small tragic people and their big problems". This is hidden comics gem.
November 27, 2020
Four robots have been sentenced to "The Kill Lock", a procedure that bonds their lives together. If one of them were to die, the other three would also explode and die. Forced together they live their lives in exile in search of a cure for their own condition. Our cast of characters include a child who's barely achieved sentience, a holy warrior, an alcoholic labourer, and a psychopathic engineer who designs other robots. It's a dark twisting sci-fi tale that mixes some 'flawed' robots seeking redemption (in trying to save the child) with a sadistic maniacal evil monster serving only himself (aka the engineer, aka the delightfully twisted best character of them all). Being a short limited series, everything is planned. You gradually discover more about the characters and can make your own judgments about whether The Kill Lock is 'just' or 'deserved'. And you slowly uncover some darker conspiracies that motivated the characters' crimes in the first place. It's a dark adventure that I'd personally recommend to people who want to see a crazy evil robot (and three others) doing weird sci-fi things in space.
January 3, 2021
The Kill Lock is a surprisingly emotional entry to the science fiction graphic novel genre. I wasnt quite sure what to expect from it but it ended up delivering on every front.
It's a fairly simple premise set in a distant future where there seem to be more sentient robots than organic life left in the universe. The Kill Lock follows four of these robots who have been sentenced to death. They do this by attaching their programming to each other and banishing them to an isolated world.
review continued at https://amanjareads.com/2021/01/01/th...
It's a fairly simple premise set in a distant future where there seem to be more sentient robots than organic life left in the universe. The Kill Lock follows four of these robots who have been sentenced to death. They do this by attaching their programming to each other and banishing them to an isolated world.
review continued at https://amanjareads.com/2021/01/01/th...
January 23, 2021
Livio Ramondelli is one of my favourite artists. His work on IDW's Transformers comics is gorgeous. Now the world knows he is as talented a writer as an artist and I couldn't be happier for him
This is a completely original story. The fact that this is completely his own idea and he's never done any writing is remarkable. The fact that he devised and created full issues during his free time in between commitments drawing other comics is nothing short of amazing.
Sticking to what he's best known for this focuses on robots. The difference being that it's entirely populated by robots with no humans in sight for the reader to "identify with" (the usual reason they appear in a story featuring aliens, robots etc). Fortunately this isn't an issue at all as the four main characters are so well developed that I genuinely cared what happened to them.
The premise is an interesting one. 4 machines of different class are found guilty of an irredeemable crime. They are bound together by a programme that means if one dies they all perish - The Kill Lock.
Each personality is so different to the other which makes for incredible interactions between the four. Couple that with the fact that the reader is left to decide whether their punishment is justified makes for a great story. As well as this Livio's art is as breathtakingly beautiful as ever. His style works so well in showing off alien worlds, each character's unique look is shown with remarkable detail and his splash pages are jaw droppingly beautiful.
If I had to find something to fault I would have to say it is some of the fonts used. Nothing major but as there is a different one for each of the main characters I didn't find all the easiest to read. The Wraith especially took some getting used to.
As well as all 6 issues the trade contains all the covers, concept art with comments and psychological profiles for 5 of the characters. All in all this is great value for money.
I really hope this is a series that will be continued. There's so much more story to tell and the way this ended was a complete shock.
This is a completely original story. The fact that this is completely his own idea and he's never done any writing is remarkable. The fact that he devised and created full issues during his free time in between commitments drawing other comics is nothing short of amazing.
Sticking to what he's best known for this focuses on robots. The difference being that it's entirely populated by robots with no humans in sight for the reader to "identify with" (the usual reason they appear in a story featuring aliens, robots etc). Fortunately this isn't an issue at all as the four main characters are so well developed that I genuinely cared what happened to them.
The premise is an interesting one. 4 machines of different class are found guilty of an irredeemable crime. They are bound together by a programme that means if one dies they all perish - The Kill Lock.
Each personality is so different to the other which makes for incredible interactions between the four. Couple that with the fact that the reader is left to decide whether their punishment is justified makes for a great story. As well as this Livio's art is as breathtakingly beautiful as ever. His style works so well in showing off alien worlds, each character's unique look is shown with remarkable detail and his splash pages are jaw droppingly beautiful.
If I had to find something to fault I would have to say it is some of the fonts used. Nothing major but as there is a different one for each of the main characters I didn't find all the easiest to read. The Wraith especially took some getting used to.
As well as all 6 issues the trade contains all the covers, concept art with comments and psychological profiles for 5 of the characters. All in all this is great value for money.
I really hope this is a series that will be continued. There's so much more story to tell and the way this ended was a complete shock.
November 22, 2021
I read a digital copy of this book.
The Kill Lock follows four robots, sentenced to well...The Kill Lock. This is a sentence that means these four robots have to survive together because if one dies, all four die. It is a fate for criminals and those at the lowest of the pecking order, yet these four seem to have a slightly different story. The soldier, cast to this fate for betraying his own, the addict, the murderer, and then a child, who has done seemingly nothing except existing, have all been brought together by the kill lock. The rest, compelled by their humanity (well...as much humanity as robots can feel) attempt to find the designer of the kill lock, not for themselves, but to free the child. However, something more sinister seems to lurk below the surface of all of this. Can they really trust one another? Can they save the child?
I really liked this story, I thought the art was great. I love things set in space, especially when we get really expressive and explosive skies, and this book was no exception to that. I loved the dynamic between the robots and I would be really interested to read more from this world tbh.
The Kill Lock follows four robots, sentenced to well...The Kill Lock. This is a sentence that means these four robots have to survive together because if one dies, all four die. It is a fate for criminals and those at the lowest of the pecking order, yet these four seem to have a slightly different story. The soldier, cast to this fate for betraying his own, the addict, the murderer, and then a child, who has done seemingly nothing except existing, have all been brought together by the kill lock. The rest, compelled by their humanity (well...as much humanity as robots can feel) attempt to find the designer of the kill lock, not for themselves, but to free the child. However, something more sinister seems to lurk below the surface of all of this. Can they really trust one another? Can they save the child?
I really liked this story, I thought the art was great. I love things set in space, especially when we get really expressive and explosive skies, and this book was no exception to that. I loved the dynamic between the robots and I would be really interested to read more from this world tbh.
December 31, 2024
After reading the first issue back when it was released, I was really hooked, but took my sweet time to pick up the collected edition.
The concept is very fresh and original, but somehow in the end, I was expecting a little bit more.
I have very ambivalent feeling about the art. Sometimes, it’s quite epic and other times I was not exactly sure what I was looking at.
Still, it’s well worth the read.
The concept is very fresh and original, but somehow in the end, I was expecting a little bit more.
I have very ambivalent feeling about the art. Sometimes, it’s quite epic and other times I was not exactly sure what I was looking at.
Still, it’s well worth the read.
September 21, 2021
Four robots are, as punishment for their crimes, tied together with killing protocol - Kill Lock - if one of them dies, every one of them die. Although three of them kind of deserved their fate, only crime of the youngest of them was, that he was faulty. They travel together across the planets in search of potential cure, contemplating about their crimes and protecting young one.
Don't expect any great world building, it's just society of robots, that have their social casts, history and kind of a personality evolving, even bad habits like 'alcoholism' and sociopathy. Author doesn't go into details, but for the purpose of the story it's just sufficient. There are some short retrospective lines building background for each of the main characters, but most of the time it's just ride forward. Sometimes filled with action, sometimes with thought, even with few(cynical) jokes.
Although concept of the story is not innovative, it's well executed and also delivers quite interesting and unexpected twist at the end.
Visually it's probably nothing you'll remember for longer period, it got little bit of that cheap digital art feeling seen in web comics. Panels focuses mostly on characters and their faces, environment is slightly sketched in background, and action scenes are quite messy. Lettering for one character is using gothic font, which is awful and quite unreadable on some panels. But despite the mentioned, I didn't mind it at all, and books manages to deliver quite enjoyable and interesting story, which is great for something independent and done only by one person.
Don't expect any great world building, it's just society of robots, that have their social casts, history and kind of a personality evolving, even bad habits like 'alcoholism' and sociopathy. Author doesn't go into details, but for the purpose of the story it's just sufficient. There are some short retrospective lines building background for each of the main characters, but most of the time it's just ride forward. Sometimes filled with action, sometimes with thought, even with few(cynical) jokes.
Although concept of the story is not innovative, it's well executed and also delivers quite interesting and unexpected twist at the end.
Visually it's probably nothing you'll remember for longer period, it got little bit of that cheap digital art feeling seen in web comics. Panels focuses mostly on characters and their faces, environment is slightly sketched in background, and action scenes are quite messy. Lettering for one character is using gothic font, which is awful and quite unreadable on some panels. But despite the mentioned, I didn't mind it at all, and books manages to deliver quite enjoyable and interesting story, which is great for something independent and done only by one person.
October 24, 2020
Κείμενο στο Smassing Culture
Τελικά τα ανδροειδή ονειρεύονται ηλεκτρικά πρόβατα
Το καλό στοιχείο των μικρών εκδοτικών εταιριών κόμικ είναι ότι πολλές φορές θα πάρουν ρίσκα και θα δώσουν ευκαιρίες σε όχι και τόσο γνωστούς καλλιτέχνες να δημιουργήσουν τις δικές τους ιστορίες. Σίγουρα οι ιστορίες αυτές δεν είναι ��λες αριστουργήματα και σίγουρα δεν λέμε ότι όλοι αυτοί οι δημιουργοί είναι ταλαντούχοι. Όμως υπάρχουν και αρκετές φορές που κάποιες από αυτές τις ιστορίες ξεχωρίζουν μέσα από αυτή την τεράστια σαβούρα και να δημιουργούν νέα εδάφη και προσδοκίες στους αναγνώστες των indie comics. Και το Kill Lock του Livio Ramondelli είναι μία από αυτές.
Στη συγκεκριμένη ιστορία πρωταγωνιστές είναι τέσσερα ρομπότ τα οποία είναι καταδικασμένα το καθένα για διαφορετικά εγκλήματα. Εξορισμένα από τον τόπο τους, λοιπόν, καλούνται να επιβιώσουν σε ένα αφιλόξενο περιβάλλον. Όμως τα βάσανά τους δε σταματάνε εκεί. Και οι τέσσερις τους είναι συνδεδεμένοι με έναν μηχανισμό που ονομάζετε kill lock, και που συνδέει τις ζωές τους μεταξύ τους. Αυτό σημαίνει ότι αν ένας από αυτούς πεθάνει τότε και οι υπόλοιποι θα πεθάνουν μαζί του. Έτσι λοιπόν τέσσερα άτομα με εντελώς διαφορετικές ιδιοσυγκρασίες αλλά και ηθικές αρχές καλούνται να συνεργαστούν προκειμένου να επιβιώσουν.
Ο Ramondelli δεν είναι ένας παντελώς άγνωστος δημιουργός. Πρόκειται για έναν από τους βασικούς καλλιτέχνες της εκδοτικής IDW, ο οποίος έχει ασχοληθεί κυρίως με τον τίτλο-ναυαρχίδα της εταιρίας, Transformers, όπου έκανε το σχέδιο σε πολλές ιστορίες της σειράς. Στο Kill Lock – πάλι από την IDW – τον βλέπουμε αυτή τη φορά πολύ πιο απελευθερωμένο καλλιτεχνικά και μας προσφέρει μία βίαιη, σκληρή αλλά και στο βάθος πολύ τρυφερή και έξυπνη ιστορία. Ο ίδιος χρεώνεται τόσο το σενάριο όσο και το σχέδιο της ιστορίας – πράγμα εξαιρετικά σπάνιο για τα δεδομένα των αμερικανικών κόμικς – και το αποτέλεσμα είναι πραγματικά αξιοθαύμαστο.
Στην ιστορία συναντάμε το ρομπότ-πολεμιστή, ένα ρομπότ-εργάτη, ένα ρομπότ παιδί και ένα ρομπότ δολοφόνο. Το καθένα έχει τον δικό του χαρακτήρα και μία “εξανθρωπισμένη” οπτική του δημιουργού, η οποία βοηθάει τον αναγνώστη να ταυτιστεί εύκολα με του χαρακτήρες. Ένα από τα πιο ενδιαφέροντα χαρακτηριστικά της ιστορίας είναι το ότι το ανθρώπινο στοιχείο απουσιάζει εντελώς από την ιστορία. Η ιστορία δε μας λέει αν υπήρξαν ποτέ άνθρωποι στο σύμπαν της ιστορίας, ούτε πώς δημιουργήθηκαν τα ίδια τα ρομπότ.
Ο Ramondelli επιλέγει συνειδητά αυτή την ιστορία τοποθετώντας τα ρομπότ στον ρόλο της ανθρωπότητας δίνοντάς τους όμως τέτοια ανθρώπινη υπόσταση όπου είναι αδύνατον να μην ταυτιστείς μαζί με τους ήρωες. Χάρη στην προϋπηρεσία του στα Transformers επίσης, το σχέδιο του καταφέρνει να σου κόψει την ανάσα καθώς τα εξαιρετικά post-apocalyptic τοπία αλλά και τα διαφορετικά μοντέλα των διαφόρων ρομπότ που παρελαύνουν μέσα από την ιστορία καταφέρνουν να σου κρατήσουν αμείωτο το ενδιαφέρον στον τομέα του σχεδίου.
Σεναριακά το κόμικ επίσης μεγαλουργεί. Η ιστορία του Kill Lock είναι σκληρή, ωμή αλλά και συνάμα πάρα πολύ ανθρώπινη – χωρίς οι πρωταγωνιστές της να είναι καν άνθρωποι. Ο αναγνώστης ανακαλύπτει μέσα από τους χαρακτήρες των τεσσάρων αυτών ρομπότ αρχέτυπα χαρακτηριστικά τα οποία μετατρέπονται σε ανθρώπινες φυσιογνωμίες. Με το ανθρώπινο στοιχείο να απουσιάζει, όπως είπαμε, από την ιστορία, ο Ramondelli επιλέγει να μεταφέρει τα ανθρώπινα χαρακτηριστικά στους ήρωες της ιστορίας.
Έτσι έχουμε τέσσερα ρομπότ που το καθένα έχει ανθρώπινη ιδιοσυγκρασία. Αυτό είναι ένα από τα καλύτερα στοιχεία του κόμικ και μας αποδεικνύει περίτρανα ότι αν μία ιστορία έχει ψυχή, τότε ο αναγνώστης μπορεί να ταυτιστεί με ήρωες οι οποίοι δεν είναι καν άνθρωποι. Άλλωστε, αυτό που κάνει τα κόμικ τόσο ξεχωριστά και υπέροχα είναι ακριβώς το γεγονός ότι μπορούν να μας προσφέρουν ιστορίες που άλλα media θα δυσκολεύονταν ιδιαιτέρως να δώσουν.
Το Kill Lock είναι μία ιδιαίτερη ιστορία, η οποία δυστυχώς πέρασε απαρατήρητη από τον περισσότερο κόσμο. Θες ότι η IDW λόγω και των οικονομικών προβλημάτων που αντιμετωπίζει αρκείται στο να προωθεί περισσότερο τους μεγάλους της τίτλους, θες το γεγονός ότι πλέον η indie αγορά έχει μεγαλώσει ραγδαία με αποτέλεσμα αρκετοί τίτλοι να πέφτουν στην “αφάνεια”, όπως και να έχει, ο συγκεκριμένος τίτλος δυστυχώς δεν πήρε την αναγνώριση που του άξιζε. Και είναι κρίμα γιατί αυτή η ιστορία μέσα σε 6 κεφάλαια κατάφερε να μας δώσει πράγματα που άλλες ιστορίες δεν κατόρθωσαν να μας δώσουν σε δεκαπλάσια κεφάλαια. Να παραδώσει μία ιστορία με ψυχή και νόημα που θα μείνει στον αναγνώστη για πολύ καιρό αφού τη διαβάσει. Μπορεί το Kill Lock να μην είναι η καλύτερη ιστορία του 2020, είναι όμως μία πολύ πρωτότυπη ιστορία που αξίζει να τη διαβάσουν όλοι όσοι ψάχνουν κάτι διαφορετικό στις ιστορίες τους.
Τελικά τα ανδροειδή ονειρεύονται ηλεκτρικά πρόβατα
Το καλό στοιχείο των μικρών εκδοτικών εταιριών κόμικ είναι ότι πολλές φορές θα πάρουν ρίσκα και θα δώσουν ευκαιρίες σε όχι και τόσο γνωστούς καλλιτέχνες να δημιουργήσουν τις δικές τους ιστορίες. Σίγουρα οι ιστορίες αυτές δεν είναι ��λες αριστουργήματα και σίγουρα δεν λέμε ότι όλοι αυτοί οι δημιουργοί είναι ταλαντούχοι. Όμως υπάρχουν και αρκετές φορές που κάποιες από αυτές τις ιστορίες ξεχωρίζουν μέσα από αυτή την τεράστια σαβούρα και να δημιουργούν νέα εδάφη και προσδοκίες στους αναγνώστες των indie comics. Και το Kill Lock του Livio Ramondelli είναι μία από αυτές.
Στη συγκεκριμένη ιστορία πρωταγωνιστές είναι τέσσερα ρομπότ τα οποία είναι καταδικασμένα το καθένα για διαφορετικά εγκλήματα. Εξορισμένα από τον τόπο τους, λοιπόν, καλούνται να επιβιώσουν σε ένα αφιλόξενο περιβάλλον. Όμως τα βάσανά τους δε σταματάνε εκεί. Και οι τέσσερις τους είναι συνδεδεμένοι με έναν μηχανισμό που ονομάζετε kill lock, και που συνδέει τις ζωές τους μεταξύ τους. Αυτό σημαίνει ότι αν ένας από αυτούς πεθάνει τότε και οι υπόλοιποι θα πεθάνουν μαζί του. Έτσι λοιπόν τέσσερα άτομα με εντελώς διαφορετικές ιδιοσυγκρασίες αλλά και ηθικές αρχές καλούνται να συνεργαστούν προκειμένου να επιβιώσουν.
Ο Ramondelli δεν είναι ένας παντελώς άγνωστος δημιουργός. Πρόκειται για έναν από τους βασικούς καλλιτέχνες της εκδοτικής IDW, ο οποίος έχει ασχοληθεί κυρίως με τον τίτλο-ναυαρχίδα της εταιρίας, Transformers, όπου έκανε το σχέδιο σε πολλές ιστορίες της σειράς. Στο Kill Lock – πάλι από την IDW – τον βλέπουμε αυτή τη φορά πολύ πιο απελευθερωμένο καλλιτεχνικά και μας προσφέρει μία βίαιη, σκληρή αλλά και στο βάθος πολύ τρυφερή και έξυπνη ιστορία. Ο ίδιος χρεώνεται τόσο το σενάριο όσο και το σχέδιο της ιστορίας – πράγμα εξαιρετικά σπάνιο για τα δεδομένα των αμερικανικών κόμικς – και το αποτέλεσμα είναι πραγματικά αξιοθαύμαστο.
Στην ιστορία συναντάμε το ρομπότ-πολεμιστή, ένα ρομπότ-εργάτη, ένα ρομπότ παιδί και ένα ρομπότ δολοφόνο. Το καθένα έχει τον δικό του χαρακτήρα και μία “εξανθρωπισμένη” οπτική του δημιουργού, η οποία βοηθάει τον αναγνώστη να ταυτιστεί εύκολα με του χαρακτήρες. Ένα από τα πιο ενδιαφέροντα χαρακτηριστικά της ιστορίας είναι το ότι το ανθρώπινο στοιχείο απουσιάζει εντελώς από την ιστορία. Η ιστορία δε μας λέει αν υπήρξαν ποτέ άνθρωποι στο σύμπαν της ιστορίας, ούτε πώς δημιουργήθηκαν τα ίδια τα ρομπότ.
Ο Ramondelli επιλέγει συνειδητά αυτή την ιστορία τοποθετώντας τα ρομπότ στον ρόλο της ανθρωπότητας δίνοντάς τους όμως τέτοια ανθρώπινη υπόσταση όπου είναι αδύνατον να μην ταυτιστείς μαζί με τους ήρωες. Χάρη στην προϋπηρεσία του στα Transformers επίσης, το σχέδιο του καταφέρνει να σου κόψει την ανάσα καθώς τα εξαιρετικά post-apocalyptic τοπία αλλά και τα διαφορετικά μοντέλα των διαφόρων ρομπότ που παρελαύνουν μέσα από την ιστορία καταφέρνουν να σου κρατήσουν αμείωτο το ενδιαφέρον στον τομέα του σχεδίου.
Σεναριακά το κόμικ επίσης μεγαλουργεί. Η ιστορία του Kill Lock είναι σκληρή, ωμή αλλά και συνάμα πάρα πολύ ανθρώπινη – χωρίς οι πρωταγωνιστές της να είναι καν άνθρωποι. Ο αναγνώστης ανακαλύπτει μέσα από τους χαρακτήρες των τεσσάρων αυτών ρομπότ αρχέτυπα χαρακτηριστικά τα οποία μετατρέπονται σε ανθρώπινες φυσιογνωμίες. Με το ανθρώπινο στοιχείο να απουσιάζει, όπως είπαμε, από την ιστορία, ο Ramondelli επιλέγει να μεταφέρει τα ανθρώπινα χαρακτηριστικά στους ήρωες της ιστορίας.
Έτσι έχουμε τέσσερα ρομπότ που το καθένα έχει ανθρώπινη ιδιοσυγκρασία. Αυτό είναι ένα από τα καλύτερα στοιχεία του κόμικ και μας αποδεικνύει περίτρανα ότι αν μία ιστορία έχει ψυχή, τότε ο αναγνώστης μπορεί να ταυτιστεί με ήρωες οι οποίοι δεν είναι καν άνθρωποι. Άλλωστε, αυτό που κάνει τα κόμικ τόσο ξεχωριστά και υπέροχα είναι ακριβώς το γεγονός ότι μπορούν να μας προσφέρουν ιστορίες που άλλα media θα δυσκολεύονταν ιδιαιτέρως να δώσουν.
Το Kill Lock είναι μία ιδιαίτερη ιστορία, η οποία δυστυχώς πέρασε απαρατήρητη από τον περισσότερο κόσμο. Θες ότι η IDW λόγω και των οικονομικών προβλημάτων που αντιμετωπίζει αρκείται στο να προωθεί περισσότερο τους μεγάλους της τίτλους, θες το γεγονός ότι πλέον η indie αγορά έχει μεγαλώσει ραγδαία με αποτέλεσμα αρκετοί τίτλοι να πέφτουν στην “αφάνεια”, όπως και να έχει, ο συγκεκριμένος τίτλος δυστυχώς δεν πήρε την αναγνώριση που του άξιζε. Και είναι κρίμα γιατί αυτή η ιστορία μέσα σε 6 κεφάλαια κατάφερε να μας δώσει πράγματα που άλλες ιστορίες δεν κατόρθωσαν να μας δώσουν σε δεκαπλάσια κεφάλαια. Να παραδώσει μία ιστορία με ψυχή και νόημα που θα μείνει στον αναγνώστη για πολύ καιρό αφού τη διαβάσει. Μπορεί το Kill Lock να μην είναι η καλύτερη ιστορία του 2020, είναι όμως μία πολύ πρωτότυπη ιστορία που αξίζει να τη διαβάσουν όλοι όσοι ψάχνουν κάτι διαφορετικό στις ιστορίες τους.
April 13, 2022
Before I begin this review, I want to give big shout out to the youtube comic book channel "Thinking Critical" (https://www.youtube.com/c/ThinkingCri...). If you haven't check this channel out I highly recommend it for those comic book readers looking for open & honest reviews on the comic book medium. The main host "West" recommended this series on his best books of the week and after reading it this book is amazing. First, I have to say the art by Livio Ramondelli is quite breath taking. He draws some of the best robots I have ever seen. The way he was able to get this machines to show emotion with showing mouths or eyes is fantastic. Next, the story being told her is familiar but the scifi twist on the wondering heroes troupe was done well. If fact this is probably one of the best stories I have read this year. The robots all have their own distinct personalities and motives for working together but the extreme circumstances have forced them to be together. Livio found a way to make ideas about war, faith, morality and courage feel timeless in this book. It never came across preachy or as the other trying to force the reader to agree with the author. This book was intelligently written. This book proves we are in a bit of a renaissance for independent comic book creation. Do yourself a favor and jump into the Kill Lock. You will not be disappointed. Also check out Livio's art at https://livioramondelli.com/index.php.... I can not wait to read the next arc.
September 5, 2023
This book gave me major deja vu. I feel like I read or watched this or something very similar to it, but maybe it was just the robots from the game Stray it reminded me of. The art is very detailed, looking like digital painting in every comic with more shading and such than most American style comics I've read. Each robot is protagonist is vastly different from the others, in both looks and personalities, and you get to learn the history of robot society through their vastly different backstories. It did get a little confusing for me at times, but the main story following the four robots remained interesting right until the end, and definitely ended in a way I did not expect and that also didn't feel contrived.
October 28, 2020
Un excellent one shot de science fiction. Mérite le détour.
January 2, 2023
Story 1
Art 2
Confusing storytelling and layouts
Muddy dark colors, awful lettering
Good premise, but couldn’t really get in
A pain to finish
On top of this, the TP IDW binding is trash.
Art 2
Confusing storytelling and layouts
Muddy dark colors, awful lettering
Good premise, but couldn’t really get in
A pain to finish
On top of this, the TP IDW binding is trash.
March 30, 2025
Space robot criminals. Four criminal robots are tied together by a program which says if one of them dies, they all die. Instead of teaching empathy, the robots go on a quest to find out if there's a way to get around the program. Strong characters and art.
December 13, 2022
Awesome story and art. Hope Livio has the chance to make more issues at some point.
March 23, 2023
I'm a big fan of the author/illustrator. He does great Transformers and Star Wars art (among other things), but I've never read anything that he's written. I was pleasantly surprised by the story. Basically a society of robots. Different classes of robots do different jobs. When robots severely break laws, four robots get "kill locked" together, meaning if one dies, they all die. How do they handle that punishment? There are a few minor things that I didn't like (e.g., robots consuming alcohol doesn't make sense to me), but the overall story was very enjoyable and the art was terrific. I recommend this TPB. I'm looking forward to reading the sequel.
October 5, 2021
An absolutely brilliant comic - both in terms of story and artwork - about four condemned robots who will all die horribly if any of them die. Thus bound together to survive, they struggle to find a way to reverse their irreversible condition. Super-interesting, high-concept sci-fi with some tremendous action scenes, but above all, deeply compelling characters who continually surprise us with their depth and nuance. Livio Ramondelli is very much a creator to watch, whether he's doing more Kill Lock, or anything else.
January 3, 2022
Quatro robots têm o seu destino interligado. Em comum, o serem alvo de um castigo exemplar - quando um robot comete um crime ou apresenta defeitos, é marcado, e o seu destino unido ao de mais três. Se um for destruído, os restantes também o serão. Quatro robots que procuram uma cura para o seu castigo, e que, num delicioso volte-face final, afinal se percebe que um engendrou a situação. Um futurismo assustador, numa galáxia onde toda a vida é robótica, e um estilo gráfico pesado, muito pictórico e bem estruturado.
April 23, 2021
Four robots tied together via a code where, if one dies, they all do. The kicker: there *might* be a way out of it, if rumors are true.
There's a certain "heist"-like appeal to this; it's robots sneaking around trying to find a way out of the Kill Lock while interacting with a bunch of other scum-bucket bots. Good stuff. Highly recommended for fans of Descender or for people who just want to read a good sci-fi story about bots.
There's a certain "heist"-like appeal to this; it's robots sneaking around trying to find a way out of the Kill Lock while interacting with a bunch of other scum-bucket bots. Good stuff. Highly recommended for fans of Descender or for people who just want to read a good sci-fi story about bots.
January 10, 2022
You can see our full review here: https://youtu.be/0G387864Txw
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May 12, 2025
A solid robot Sci-fi story. Reminds me of Descender but with less humans. It follows 4 robots with a destiny to die together but it will not be so simple. There are big bold character with distinct personalities and the story has a some good plot twists. The more I read the more I wanted, it gets really good as the story unfolds. The art can be hard to read in some panels with the action and whatnot but I still enjoyed the heck out of this.
September 26, 2025
If Transformers, ABC Warriors, and Warhammer 40K had a love child, it’d probably read a bit like this.
Sure, I don’t love the ending, c’est la vie. It’s a nifty journey, and a premise I’d enjoy seeing retold with human characters somehow, with a more whimsical tone ala O Brother, Where Art Thou.
Really enjoyed the extras in the volume, the making of sketches and notes, plus heaps of fun bonus covers from talented folks.
Sure, I don’t love the ending, c’est la vie. It’s a nifty journey, and a premise I’d enjoy seeing retold with human characters somehow, with a more whimsical tone ala O Brother, Where Art Thou.
Really enjoyed the extras in the volume, the making of sketches and notes, plus heaps of fun bonus covers from talented folks.
February 6, 2021
Gorgeous story about fate, atonement, and self improvement under incredible odds. Four "criminal" robots are doomed by a "Kill Lock" a program that kills all four robots if one of them dies. The art is incredible, the world building establishes a universe that I would love to explore further. Great scifi.
June 11, 2022
Four robots from four different classes and life found themselves bound together by a programming link called the Kill Lock. A criminal sentence that means, if one dies, they all die!
Gorgeous art, brilliant story, and absolutely engaging characters! I did not expect to love it this much. So so so well created! Go read it...now.
Gorgeous art, brilliant story, and absolutely engaging characters! I did not expect to love it this much. So so so well created! Go read it...now.
September 24, 2024
Four robots are connected by 'the kill lock' as a punishment. This robot universe feels huge, the characters are all distinct and have fitting backstories. The angst and even gore are great. I really liked this graphic novel, the lettering is even supportive of the characters and the story and the robot design is fun and fitting. Sci-fi be sci-fying, and I like it.
January 30, 2021
Charming book that immediately drags you in with all of the characters involved. A character you appreciate despite their level of dastardly doings & are forced to care for their existence due to the predicament set upon the group traveled. Wonderful art & just an all around joy to read!
July 21, 2021
I described this book to my non-reader partner and they loved it. It had a unique story, the art style is amazing, and I super enjoyed the character design. I didn't know my heart could break for robots.
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