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Blade Runner: Origins
Blade Runner: Origins, Vol. 1: Products
Travel to the world of Blade Runner 2009 and discover the origins of the BLADE RUNNER DIVISION.
When a Tyrell Corporation scientist working on an experimental new type of Replicant is discovered dead in her laboratory, the victim of an apparent suicide, LAPD detective CAL MOREAU is called in to investigate. What he uncovers is a conspiracy of silence so deadly it could change the world as he knows it. Set ten years before the events of the first Blade Runner film, this is the world on the cusp of environmental collapse, and the beginning of the mass Off-world migration to the Off-world colonies. Through its rain-soaked streets, LAPD Detective CAL MOREAU, a PTSD sufferer, must travel as he attempts to unravel the truth behind a seemingly routine suicide that soon reveals itself to be just the thin end of a vast conspiracy, one that runs to the very top of the Tyrell Corporation tower.
When a Tyrell Corporation scientist working on an experimental new type of Replicant is discovered dead in her laboratory, the victim of an apparent suicide, LAPD detective CAL MOREAU is called in to investigate. What he uncovers is a conspiracy of silence so deadly it could change the world as he knows it. Set ten years before the events of the first Blade Runner film, this is the world on the cusp of environmental collapse, and the beginning of the mass Off-world migration to the Off-world colonies. Through its rain-soaked streets, LAPD Detective CAL MOREAU, a PTSD sufferer, must travel as he attempts to unravel the truth behind a seemingly routine suicide that soon reveals itself to be just the thin end of a vast conspiracy, one that runs to the very top of the Tyrell Corporation tower.
112 pages, Paperback
First published August 18, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 48 reviews
September 1, 2021
The classic science fiction film Blade Runner has spawned quite few graphic novel spin offs recently. I enjoyed all three volumes of Blade Runner 2019 & the first volume of Blade Runner 2029 was very promising. Now we have a new story with Blade Runner: Origins. So, what went wrong ?
This prequel sees the birth of the Blade Runner department & presents us with a collection of new characters. Sadly I couldn't engage with any of the characters or the plot. The two star rating I have given is for the artwork alone, as the story & characterisations are pretty lacklustre.
Hopefully other people will enjoy this graphic novel, but it had little to keep my attention. Perhaps there are now too many Blade Runner stories in print. It's a little like releasing too many Star Wars films in a short space of time & you end up with the hugely disappointing Solo. Too many Blade Runner spin offs seem to have evoked the law of diminishing returns.
This prequel sees the birth of the Blade Runner department & presents us with a collection of new characters. Sadly I couldn't engage with any of the characters or the plot. The two star rating I have given is for the artwork alone, as the story & characterisations are pretty lacklustre.
Hopefully other people will enjoy this graphic novel, but it had little to keep my attention. Perhaps there are now too many Blade Runner stories in print. It's a little like releasing too many Star Wars films in a short space of time & you end up with the hugely disappointing Solo. Too many Blade Runner spin offs seem to have evoked the law of diminishing returns.
December 18, 2022
So far I have only read the first instalment in this trilogy (correct me if there will be further issues please) but I am already hooked - which means now I have to go and collect the other 2!
But seriously the story is intriguing and I have no idea where it will end up - which is great news considering the danger with all prequals or origin stories is that you already know where they will end (since you already know what is happening now) however here I have no idea and that intrigues me.
As with the other recently publications the artwork is amazing and really atmospheric the book really captures the world I came to love in the original film. I have to say that you can see this series has been created by someone who really pays attention and is a fan of the original.
So yes I would highly recommend this book - I guess we shall see where it all takes us
But seriously the story is intriguing and I have no idea where it will end up - which is great news considering the danger with all prequals or origin stories is that you already know where they will end (since you already know what is happening now) however here I have no idea and that intrigues me.
As with the other recently publications the artwork is amazing and really atmospheric the book really captures the world I came to love in the original film. I have to say that you can see this series has been created by someone who really pays attention and is a fan of the original.
So yes I would highly recommend this book - I guess we shall see where it all takes us
October 7, 2021
Just another excellent BLADE RUNNER title.
What a time to be alive!
What a time to be alive!
October 19, 2021
It's not a Blade Runner volume if there's not an individual holding a gun on the cover. I'm not sure that consistency is critical to my appreciation of the series (probably the opposite, really), but this first volume in the Origins prequel series continues the Blade Runner trend of noir detective tales told simply and compellingly.
There's no Ash in Products, so we instead follow former Off-World soldier, current L.A. cop Cal. He's one of several white-haired characters in this volume, which leads me to my primary complaint with Products - the characters are difficult to tell apart, even with above average artwork. Introductions are perfunctory and first names are rarely used. Products (and perhaps the whole Origins series) is far more plot-focused than the character-driven, atmospheric 2019 series.
That's not a bad thing, since the plot is pretty interesting here. The Tyrell scientist working on an experimental replicant has "committed suicide" and Cal is assigned the case. It's an obvious setup, though it's unclear why Cal deserves to take the fall. The scientist's brother and close friend help/hinder Cal's investigation (). The experimental replicant on the loose seems to be fodder for future volumes - all of which I'm of course looking forward to. These Blade Runner comics continue to be the gold standard when it comes to expanding a film universe.
There's no Ash in Products, so we instead follow former Off-World soldier, current L.A. cop Cal. He's one of several white-haired characters in this volume, which leads me to my primary complaint with Products - the characters are difficult to tell apart, even with above average artwork. Introductions are perfunctory and first names are rarely used. Products (and perhaps the whole Origins series) is far more plot-focused than the character-driven, atmospheric 2019 series.
That's not a bad thing, since the plot is pretty interesting here. The Tyrell scientist working on an experimental replicant has "committed suicide" and Cal is assigned the case. It's an obvious setup, though it's unclear why Cal deserves to take the fall. The scientist's brother and close friend help/hinder Cal's investigation (). The experimental replicant on the loose seems to be fodder for future volumes - all of which I'm of course looking forward to. These Blade Runner comics continue to be the gold standard when it comes to expanding a film universe.
August 28, 2022
Review for the whole series
I love Blade Runner as much as the next guy. Maybe even more. But this series doesn’t keep up with the promises the title let hope for.
The plot is so poorly handled it hurts: Narration is confused and confusing (to have 3 characters with white crewcuts doesn’t help btw) with too many dialogues (some sounding phony). Some long scenes are utterly useless (Ilona’s flashback stands out in that regard) and transitions are all shot to hell. I didn’t even clearly understand Cal’s actions at the end and the twist with the Nexus 5’s identity was contrived as fuck.
I actually wondered if K. Perkins had ever written other comics or if it was her first series. Apparently not but she hasn’t got many under the belt and she clearly needs to hone her writing skills.
Art is mostly good but neither amazing nor flawless. Colors help a great deal in setting an atmosphere close to Ridley Scott’s movie.
So these origins kinda jumped the gun and remain a disappointment as far as I’m concerned.
I love Blade Runner as much as the next guy. Maybe even more. But this series doesn’t keep up with the promises the title let hope for.
The plot is so poorly handled it hurts: Narration is confused and confusing (to have 3 characters with white crewcuts doesn’t help btw) with too many dialogues (some sounding phony). Some long scenes are utterly useless (Ilona’s flashback stands out in that regard) and transitions are all shot to hell. I didn’t even clearly understand Cal’s actions at the end and the twist with the Nexus 5’s identity was contrived as fuck.
I actually wondered if K. Perkins had ever written other comics or if it was her first series. Apparently not but she hasn’t got many under the belt and she clearly needs to hone her writing skills.
Art is mostly good but neither amazing nor flawless. Colors help a great deal in setting an atmosphere close to Ridley Scott’s movie.
So these origins kinda jumped the gun and remain a disappointment as far as I’m concerned.
March 4, 2022
Reasonably good, but I prefer the Blade Runner 2019/2029 graphic novels.
April 26, 2023
Love this series. Great art and story.
January 26, 2023
Continue to love the art and panelling of these Blade Runner series. The setup for this character is moderately interesting: a black man coming out of an oppressive streets joins the force as the only means of taking some agency back, but ends up being othered because he’s now a part of the system. Then, a nexus 5 escapes at the same time as a scientist is found dead, from what appears to be from suicide.
Things converge nicely, there’s an A and B plot, and again the character themselves and backstory is more compelling than the impetus for the actual plot. Which is something they’re kind of stuck with, given the characters are always Blade Runners. Even if this one is the “first” one (which seems kind of unclear despite the crawl at the start saying that it’s so). Another stylistic difference is that there’s very little discern between the different years of each of these series. It’s a bit more low tech with the vehicles, but otherwise it seems about the same, weirdly.
Gets the job done though, and who knows, maybe the plot will surprise me. The other ones have, at times.
Things converge nicely, there’s an A and B plot, and again the character themselves and backstory is more compelling than the impetus for the actual plot. Which is something they’re kind of stuck with, given the characters are always Blade Runners. Even if this one is the “first” one (which seems kind of unclear despite the crawl at the start saying that it’s so). Another stylistic difference is that there’s very little discern between the different years of each of these series. It’s a bit more low tech with the vehicles, but otherwise it seems about the same, weirdly.
Gets the job done though, and who knows, maybe the plot will surprise me. The other ones have, at times.
December 25, 2021
I am a huge Blade Runner fan and have pretty much all of the spin off material. I'm also someone who specifically loves the Titan comics, starting with Blade Runner 2019. I absolutely loved Ash and her adventures, so I was willing to give this spin off a try.
I was always interested in the origins of the Blade Runner universe and was curious if they would incorporate more elements from Phillip K. Dick's novels. Well, they don't but I really enjoyed Cal Moreaux's adventure. He's even more of a noir PI than Ash and feels almost like a Frank Miller character (only less sleazy--okay, nothing like a Frank Miller character).
There's brain uploading, body swapping, a young idealist trying to take down a megacorportation, and indivisible ninjas. I think this could end up being as good as the 2019 one.
I was always interested in the origins of the Blade Runner universe and was curious if they would incorporate more elements from Phillip K. Dick's novels. Well, they don't but I really enjoyed Cal Moreaux's adventure. He's even more of a noir PI than Ash and feels almost like a Frank Miller character (only less sleazy--okay, nothing like a Frank Miller character).
There's brain uploading, body swapping, a young idealist trying to take down a megacorportation, and indivisible ninjas. I think this could end up being as good as the 2019 one.
December 11, 2023
Gorgeous artwork and a promising start to Bladerunner origins.
August 20, 2021
Unlike BladeRunner 2019 this story arc does not have that feeling of completeness.
Starting years before Ash we follow our detective Cal Moreau as he tries to solve the mysterious case of suicide of one of Tyrell Corp highest ranking scientists working on Nexus 5 Replicant product line.
What starts as a suicide slowly (and I mean slowly) evolves into something more sinister and soon we find Cal trying to stay alive and evade Tyrell Corp security people.
Problem with this book is that it is not ..... relaxed would be a word. I haven't read a book so tense, teeth grinding and constantly on the verge of scream and agony - and for no reason whatsoever. At least reason cannot be discerned from the book itself. There are flashbacks for Cal's past and some twist and turns but they all seem half-baked, no conclusion in them - what do they mean, what is their importance? Hopefully story will get better defined in volume #2.
All in all interesting read, but in need of some story-wise polishing. Art is good, giving same look and feel as 2019 story line. You definitely feel you are reading about same futuristic world in these two books.
Recommended to fans of noir and SF. Only beware, this book is more like a warm-up for what is to come.
Starting years before Ash we follow our detective Cal Moreau as he tries to solve the mysterious case of suicide of one of Tyrell Corp highest ranking scientists working on Nexus 5 Replicant product line.
What starts as a suicide slowly (and I mean slowly) evolves into something more sinister and soon we find Cal trying to stay alive and evade Tyrell Corp security people.
Problem with this book is that it is not ..... relaxed would be a word. I haven't read a book so tense, teeth grinding and constantly on the verge of scream and agony - and for no reason whatsoever. At least reason cannot be discerned from the book itself. There are flashbacks for Cal's past and some twist and turns but they all seem half-baked, no conclusion in them - what do they mean, what is their importance? Hopefully story will get better defined in volume #2.
All in all interesting read, but in need of some story-wise polishing. Art is good, giving same look and feel as 2019 story line. You definitely feel you are reading about same futuristic world in these two books.
Recommended to fans of noir and SF. Only beware, this book is more like a warm-up for what is to come.
November 26, 2021
Wait, that's it? The story ends right when it actually seems to be going somewhere, after 100 pages of meandering character introductions and unsatisfying mysteries. I'm not exactly sure why, but it really didn't feel like Blade Runner to me. Maybe I read it too quickly? But none of the characters connected; the action was occasionally confusing because the characters didn't feel very distinct, and while the art did set the scene (there are some beautiful landscape panels especially), to me if came off like half-baked fan fiction. Maybe if I reread it, or read the next volume I'd get a little more out of it, but I spent the whole book waiting for things to happen, only to be left with a practical cliffhanger. Maybe it's that I didn't really connect the central conceit to being something that was a required prerequisite for the later stories, and that's why it didn't connect. Other Blade Runner fans will probably get more out of it than I did. But this is definitely not an entry point into the world.
February 6, 2023
The format for these Blade Runner prequels is generic after 6 volumes of Blade Runner 2019/2029 but it just works. Jaded cop? Check. Replicants just trying to live? Check. Folk out to get said replicants? Check. Again Titan deliver a solid chapter to the universe and this volume sets up just enough to bring me back for the next volume.
3/5
3/5
January 27, 2022
Very good, atmospheric mystery that could go directly to the big screen and I'd be first in line to buy a ticket...
June 28, 2022
Interesting characters. Tyrell is coming to power. Replicants are becoming unreliable.
August 25, 2022
I should quit with this series while I'm still ahead. Each story starts off promising, like a new expansion of the Blade Runner universe, only to devolve into trite predictability.
November 22, 2021
Poorly executed.
The plot, and it's a pretty loose and dodgy plot, centers on a dead scientist who may have transferred her memories (or her consciousness?) to a replicant. There is a lot of potential there, but this book doesn't do much with it.
Mostly, this is full of stock Bladerunner footage; lots of rainy days and nights, foot chases, and flying cars set amongst an architectural background of mixed squalor and mega structures.
The dialogue is sparse and lackluster. The story is badly handled. The art is good enough, but doesn't save the book.
The plot, and it's a pretty loose and dodgy plot, centers on a dead scientist who may have transferred her memories (or her consciousness?) to a replicant. There is a lot of potential there, but this book doesn't do much with it.
Mostly, this is full of stock Bladerunner footage; lots of rainy days and nights, foot chases, and flying cars set amongst an architectural background of mixed squalor and mega structures.
The dialogue is sparse and lackluster. The story is badly handled. The art is good enough, but doesn't save the book.
March 7, 2022
El cómic está ambientado en 2009, diez años antes de los acontecimientos narrados en la película Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982).
El desencadenante de la historia es la aparición de un cadáver en las instalaciones de la Tyrell Corporation, el de Lydia Kine, una de sus mejores bioingenieras.
Cal Moreaux es un detective de la policía de Los Ángeles al que le es asignado el caso para que lo cierre sin armar escándalo. Obviamente, no será así.
[+] Reseña completa en Alt+64 wiki: http://alt64.org/wiki/index.php?title...
El desencadenante de la historia es la aparición de un cadáver en las instalaciones de la Tyrell Corporation, el de Lydia Kine, una de sus mejores bioingenieras.
Cal Moreaux es un detective de la policía de Los Ángeles al que le es asignado el caso para que lo cierre sin armar escándalo. Obviamente, no será así.
[+] Reseña completa en Alt+64 wiki: http://alt64.org/wiki/index.php?title...
April 20, 2022
Not for me. The art is dark, muddy, and confusing. I can't tell if the protagonist is a black dude, a white dude, or something in between. Not that his race matters to the story, but just to say that people don't have a consistent look. I wasn't able to tell characters apart until the very end. And this book doesn't contain a complete story, though I doubt I'll seek out the second part. Also it was much more action-driven than story-driven, I felt. The plot was pretty pedestrian. I dunno. Just not for me.
June 6, 2021
Hmmm 🤔 - not really sure what to make of this take on the Blade Runner universe. It doesn’t feel as strong or as compelling as the 2019/2029 books.
April 17, 2022
Early in the 21 Century, the Tyrell Corporation advanced Robot evolution into the Nexus phase – a being virtually identical to a human – known as a Replicant.
Superior in strength and agility, the Replicants were created to be used as off-world slave labor or in the hazardous, high-collateral combat situations or colonization of other planets.
Replicants who escaped and returned to Earth were hunted by special police squads – Blade Runner units – with order to kill any trespassing Replicant upon detection.
This is the story of the first Blade Runner…
.......
2009, Los Angeles, but not as we know it...
LAPD detective Cal Moreaux is called in to investigate the suicide of Dr Lydia Kine, a bioengineer with the Tyrell Corporation. The corporation wants the case dealt with quickly and quietly, and the police department wants the same thing: Tyrell is very rich and very influential. Moreaux's role here is as a "cleaner", someone who will swiftly tidy up the matter and make it go away.
Admitted to Kine's lab, he finds the scene undisturbed: the doctor has hanged herself from the ceiling. Her assistant Effie, who found the body, confirms that Kine was alone when she died. Before she can answer any more questions, Tyrell executive Ilora Stahl - tall, imposing and officious - appears to act as the official liaison for the investigation.
Learning little, Moreaux leaves... only to be approached by Marcus, Kine's brother. He insists that Lydia would never have committed suicide. He also says he is being followed. And he is, not by Tyrell's goons, but by someone - or something - much stranger...
Blade Runner: Origins by writers Mellow Brown, Mike Johnson and K. Perkins and artist Fernando Dagnino is a suitably noir-styled prequel to Ridley Scott's iconic 1982 movie. The same themes are in evidence (as in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, the 1968 novel by Philip K. Dick upon which the movie was based)... Can a machine feel? Can a robot truly have emotions? A soul???
In the science fiction universe, of course, the answer to this question will always be a resounding Yes. A synthetic psyche that looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, etc. cannot be denied its authentic status ... at least in the eyes of the author. And the reader will be left in no doubt, thanks to all the right emotional buttons being pushed to remind them that robots can feel fear, pain, anguish, hope, love...
Dagnino's images evoke the Eighties cyberpunk vibe of the movie: densely-packed cityscapes, neon glowing through the steam, soft-porn holograms, shady street vendors peddling borderline technology, surreal strippers in retro-futuristic sleaze pits... This is a world where opposites collide: the gleaming with the gritty; the shiny with the sordid. A world just a few steps ahead of our own, in which we are overloaded with information and stimulation, desensitised to the natural world, blinded to the suffering and injustices around us thanks to our high-tech bread and circuses. Distraction is the latest opium of the masses; apathy its fallout.
Callousness is the capital crime perpetrated in this narrative. The subjugation of a sapient class of beings has obvious parallels with issues of race and slavery. The spectre of the Replicant is a futuristic horror: a creature that looks human but kills without empathy. However, it also taps into more primal legends: the changelings, doppelgängers and golems of ancient myth. To the paranoid mind, the 'other' - a different race or culture - is a demon in disguise.
But, just like Mary Shelley's famous monster, it can also be the avenging angel, meting out judgement to humankind for our sins.
Superior in strength and agility, the Replicants were created to be used as off-world slave labor or in the hazardous, high-collateral combat situations or colonization of other planets.
Replicants who escaped and returned to Earth were hunted by special police squads – Blade Runner units – with order to kill any trespassing Replicant upon detection.
This is the story of the first Blade Runner…
.......
2009, Los Angeles, but not as we know it...
LAPD detective Cal Moreaux is called in to investigate the suicide of Dr Lydia Kine, a bioengineer with the Tyrell Corporation. The corporation wants the case dealt with quickly and quietly, and the police department wants the same thing: Tyrell is very rich and very influential. Moreaux's role here is as a "cleaner", someone who will swiftly tidy up the matter and make it go away.
Admitted to Kine's lab, he finds the scene undisturbed: the doctor has hanged herself from the ceiling. Her assistant Effie, who found the body, confirms that Kine was alone when she died. Before she can answer any more questions, Tyrell executive Ilora Stahl - tall, imposing and officious - appears to act as the official liaison for the investigation.
Learning little, Moreaux leaves... only to be approached by Marcus, Kine's brother. He insists that Lydia would never have committed suicide. He also says he is being followed. And he is, not by Tyrell's goons, but by someone - or something - much stranger...
Blade Runner: Origins by writers Mellow Brown, Mike Johnson and K. Perkins and artist Fernando Dagnino is a suitably noir-styled prequel to Ridley Scott's iconic 1982 movie. The same themes are in evidence (as in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, the 1968 novel by Philip K. Dick upon which the movie was based)... Can a machine feel? Can a robot truly have emotions? A soul???
In the science fiction universe, of course, the answer to this question will always be a resounding Yes. A synthetic psyche that looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, etc. cannot be denied its authentic status ... at least in the eyes of the author. And the reader will be left in no doubt, thanks to all the right emotional buttons being pushed to remind them that robots can feel fear, pain, anguish, hope, love...
Dagnino's images evoke the Eighties cyberpunk vibe of the movie: densely-packed cityscapes, neon glowing through the steam, soft-porn holograms, shady street vendors peddling borderline technology, surreal strippers in retro-futuristic sleaze pits... This is a world where opposites collide: the gleaming with the gritty; the shiny with the sordid. A world just a few steps ahead of our own, in which we are overloaded with information and stimulation, desensitised to the natural world, blinded to the suffering and injustices around us thanks to our high-tech bread and circuses. Distraction is the latest opium of the masses; apathy its fallout.
Callousness is the capital crime perpetrated in this narrative. The subjugation of a sapient class of beings has obvious parallels with issues of race and slavery. The spectre of the Replicant is a futuristic horror: a creature that looks human but kills without empathy. However, it also taps into more primal legends: the changelings, doppelgängers and golems of ancient myth. To the paranoid mind, the 'other' - a different race or culture - is a demon in disguise.
But, just like Mary Shelley's famous monster, it can also be the avenging angel, meting out judgement to humankind for our sins.
July 26, 2022
It’s subjectively impossible to give this book more than one star when the execution is this bad.
Between the writing and the art, the flow of the storytelling is so off that it leads to confusion constantly; transition between panels, between pages, panel composition, moments that make no logical sense within the logic of the story, word balloons going off panel with no real indication of which character is speaking. I’ve never read a comic this consistently bad. I’m taken aback by the praise on the cover, I can only assume the quotes come from friends of the creators.
This is really amateur stuff that feels like it lacks an editor who understands the basics of sequential storytelling in order to keep the artist and writers, who quite clearly don’t, in line. No amount of atmosphere can compensate for a book that is technically all over the place
Sadly this is becoming more and more regular in modern comics with the lack of strong editorial staff oversight, but I’m surprised at Titan and I’m surprised to see Mike Johnston’s name on there, given the other Blade Runner series he worked on is fantastic, and has none of these problems. My assumption is his involvement was limited to a story outline and not the execution or the script.
Shocking.
Between the writing and the art, the flow of the storytelling is so off that it leads to confusion constantly; transition between panels, between pages, panel composition, moments that make no logical sense within the logic of the story, word balloons going off panel with no real indication of which character is speaking. I’ve never read a comic this consistently bad. I’m taken aback by the praise on the cover, I can only assume the quotes come from friends of the creators.
This is really amateur stuff that feels like it lacks an editor who understands the basics of sequential storytelling in order to keep the artist and writers, who quite clearly don’t, in line. No amount of atmosphere can compensate for a book that is technically all over the place
Sadly this is becoming more and more regular in modern comics with the lack of strong editorial staff oversight, but I’m surprised at Titan and I’m surprised to see Mike Johnston’s name on there, given the other Blade Runner series he worked on is fantastic, and has none of these problems. My assumption is his involvement was limited to a story outline and not the execution or the script.
Shocking.
July 7, 2023
This is my review for the entire Blade Runner: Origins series Vol 1-3. I do enjoy exploring the world of Bladerunner so when I saw there was a spin-off based on it, I had to read it for myself. Now that I'm done with the series, I have to say I was a little dissapointed in it. Although I think Cal Moreaux is pretty badass and if I see a cosplay of him, I would freak out! The plot however was a little convoluted. The narrative was hard to follow and I had to keep reminding myself who's who. Especially a certain twist with Dr. Lydia Kine. It's cool to understand the origin of how the Bladerunner department was first formed, but this isn't a story I would't come back to. The illustrations were nice in some of the panels including some of the cityscapes that really encapsulated this dystopian soul crushing city. I don't regret reading it though, and if your big fan of the bladerunner universe, I would say to give Origins a shot, but if you are just looking for a good Cyberpunk story, you may have to look someplace else. Overall, it was fine, and I look forward to starting the 2019 series.
November 1, 2021
Thought this would be a one-volume story but it spirals off into a pretty unsatisfying “to be continued” structure at the end. Kind of like the Alien universe, the expansion of the Blade Runner universe seems stuck in a rut that this story tries to break out of be taking these issues of identity and really asking “what does it mean when programmed memories allow total identity transference to a replicant?” It’s a thought-provoking idea not sufficiently addressed here. The existence of the Nexus 4 and 5 are teased but otherwise I’m not sure we’ve seen them. I think Villeneuve set the high bar for taking the story beats of the original film and updating them with a lot of attention to the quality of the story and works building. 2049, ultimately, this is not. Never a great sign when you spend nearly a hundred pages with a central character (Marcus) and can only infer a few things about their past. Hopefully that’s thematically relevant in a future volume.
October 1, 2021
Surprisingly, this series has been less popular with reviewers than the other BLADE RUNNER offerings from Titan Comics. For me, this is the series that grabs my interest, from the characters, the storyline, and the atmospheric art.
This takes place ten years before the events of the BLADE RUNNER film, and relates the early days of the Tyrell Corporation into the Nexus phase of robot/android development. The alleged suicide of a Tyrell bioengineer brings detective Cal Moreaux into the investigation. His work reveals a cover-up and a murder committed by a Nexus 5 prototype.
This first story arc is a well-written introduction to the continuing story, and holds a lot of promise for great things to come.
This takes place ten years before the events of the BLADE RUNNER film, and relates the early days of the Tyrell Corporation into the Nexus phase of robot/android development. The alleged suicide of a Tyrell bioengineer brings detective Cal Moreaux into the investigation. His work reveals a cover-up and a murder committed by a Nexus 5 prototype.
This first story arc is a well-written introduction to the continuing story, and holds a lot of promise for great things to come.
June 12, 2022
A nice prelude to the world of Blade Runner, offering up the origins of replicants and the first Blade Runner. It's got a good feeling for the setting, diving straight into the corruption of corporations and their corrosive effect on society. However, there's a bit of a muddled story, mixing transhuman personality transfers with replicants, and I'd need to see where that went, and whether it was an interesting story or just a mess. But unfortunately this tells just a bare fraction of that story. It doesn't feel particularly decompressed, but we're a long way from really knowing much.
August 2, 2023
Blade Runner origins – Volume 1 – Products
#1 – “They say you’d want to fight any obstacle with your last breath once you discover what life really is ..” – Cal
#2 – “Was that a Replicant that threw that dumpster at us?”
#3 – “Let me guess: You tell yourself you took this job to help your family?”
#4 – “Do you know what the world sees when it looks at you? I do. It sees nothing. And no one.” – Replicant leader ***
#1 – “They say you’d want to fight any obstacle with your last breath once you discover what life really is ..” – Cal
#2 – “Was that a Replicant that threw that dumpster at us?”
#3 – “Let me guess: You tell yourself you took this job to help your family?”
#4 – “Do you know what the world sees when it looks at you? I do. It sees nothing. And no one.” – Replicant leader ***
June 19, 2025
I was excited to read Origins after reading the 19-29-39 trilogy, but the reality is that so far I'm pretty disappointed. I've found it difficult to follow with too many almost indistinguishable characters that are, without exception, unlikeable and underdeveloped, including the protagonist. Additionally the plot is confusing and unexciting. I'm still gonna read the other two volumes but I hope this gets better.
August 1, 2023
I'm torn reading this. It differs from Dick who I am reading right now but has a lot in common with the Ridley Scott movie.
Where does that leave me? I am stuck between wanting to read more of this version but I feel as if I'm missing the what does it mean to be human aspect. What is left is another corporate murder junket. It could be fun but I am starting to be burnt out by all this.
Where does that leave me? I am stuck between wanting to read more of this version but I feel as if I'm missing the what does it mean to be human aspect. What is left is another corporate murder junket. It could be fun but I am starting to be burnt out by all this.
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