Battle Chasers Anthology Integral

Battle Chasers #0-9

by Joe Madureira, Adam Warren, Ignacio Bentz (Translator)

Una ecléctica banda de valientes héroes formada por la joven Gully, en la búsqueda de su padre; Garrison, el legendario espadachín; Knolan, el habilidoso mago; Calibretto, el golem, y Red Monika, la mercenaria, unen fuerzas contra un loco cuyo reinado oscuro amenaza al mundo entero. Pero antes siquiera de tener alguna esperanza de cumplir su misión, tendrán que superar uno de los mayores obstáculos… ¡llevarse bien! Este volumen recopila todos los números publicados de uno de los cómics más queridos de todos los tiempos. ¡En esta edición de la obra de Joe Madureira y Munier Sharrieff se combinan elementos de fantasía, steampunk y ciencia ficción con aventura y acción desbocadas. Editor  IMAGE

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

312 pages, Hardcover

First published April 13, 2011

Reviews

[Jim Ef · Rating 4 out of 5]

7.0/10

An action packed adventure, set in a fantasy world.

It is definitely focused more on moving the story forward and on it's action scenes. Yet, there is some character development, that gives a welcoming emotional touch.

The art shines on fighting sequences and it is quite good overall. It still is a late 90's Image book, so you know what to expect. There is an exaggeration on body figures and expressions.

I would rate it lower if the story would just end after these 9 issues, but there is going to be a conclusion after many many years

[Shadowdenizen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Those who were comics-fans in the 90's likely remember "Battle Chasers" and it's eccentric creator Joe Madureira.

Hot off the the heels of his acclaimed run on X-Men, Joe Mad went to the creator-owned well and created "Battle-Chasers" to launch Image's new "Cliffhanger" imprint (along wiht Humberto Ramos [who did the Vampire-Saga "Crimson"], and J. Scott Campbell [who created "Danger Girl"].)

Amd what a launch it was! All 3 titles did well initially, but "Battle Chasers" eclipsed the other two. And all was well for a time in comic-bookdom.

But then the long delays between issues began, which begat the fan's inevitable groaning and grumbling. In all, only 9 issues of BattleChasers (plus a short-story) were ever made. And then Joe Mad withdrew from comics to focus on video-games.

SO, this volume is a sop to those fans who want a collected version of everything 'Chasers related, with little to nothing "new" added.

Physically, the book is quite aesthetically pleasing, and the artwork contained within is top-notch. And the story is competent, if a bit derivative (basically a "Kitchen-Sink" style anime/fantasy series.)
(Keep in mind that this is the 90's, so "Big Boobs" were the order of the day- check out not only Red Monika from this series, but Jim Balent's "Catwoman", amongst others.)

So, (putting aside the "Incomplete" problem) I gave this a 3.5 "Manga-Riffic" rating (since I"m feelikng generous, we'll round up to 4.)

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Far better than I used to remember, Madureira's artworks are awesome and the covers/pin-up gallery in the end of the volume is great too, but series was canceled with issue #9 so this fantasy story, an action packed mix of Lodoss, Final Fantasy, Warcraft (Sebastius Nefar and Arthas Menethil are just twins), Dragon Ball (Knolan is based on Muten... just look at his cloud!), Thundercats (Garrison's sword is just the same of Lion-O) and Lupin III (Red Monika is a fantasy version of Fujiko Mine providing fan-service for the young readers) never had a real ending.







Maybe now that a Battle Chasers videogame is released, Mad is going to take back his creature and continue it, but I'm not holding out much hope about it.





Such a shame.

[Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Battle Chasers by Joe Madureira is a tale of sword and sorcery with great storytelling and superb artwork. But like so many of the Image/Wildstorm comics of 1990s suffered from terrible scheduling and delays and is one of the few books that ended because it's creator decided to leave the comic business altogether.

Nine year Gully's home is attacked by men who turn into werewolves, in the attack her father disappears and Gully is left with a pair of magical gloves. She is befriended by the WarGolem Calibreto and the wizard Knolan. Eventually the great warrior and swordsman Garrison also comes to her aid.

Garrison is haunted by the death of his wife and has refused to take up the sword. He is even asked by the thief and mercenary, Red Monika, to help in freeing a prisoner but he refuses. Red Monika and Garrison are childhood friends but have found themselves on opposite sides of the law. Garrison soon realizes that Red Monika and her actions are somehow tied to the attacks on young Gully and he once again takes up his sword to protect the child Gully and save his friend Monika.

With over the top characters and great battles, Battle Chasers was one of the most popular titles to come out of Image comics. But like most of the creator owned comics of this time, it just couldn't put out a monthly title on a monthly. The series ran from April of 1998 to September of 2001 and only produced 9 issues. In fact, issue 7 was delayed for 16 months!

Madureira eventually decided to leave the comic book business and go into designing video games and Battle Chasers was shelved without ever completely its story arc.

Still despite that, the comic has a strong cult following and was one of the more popular titles to come out of this era of Image/Wildstorm/Cliffhanger comics.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Joe Mad in the best thing he ever done, hands down!
This is a fantasy story in a sort of magical and steampunkish world. Young Gully on the seeker's trail to find her lost Father, Garrison a warrior of legendary reputation, finds help from a wizard called Knolan who saves her life, Calibretto, a war golem who she is initially afraid of and then becomes best friends with her, indeed a guardian.
This is pure Joe Mad magic! Always loved these book and yet I needed this one due to the fact it is complete. Everything put down on paper is featured here, and it is marvelous. The only down side is that there will be no more.
The artistry in line work, colors and letters is amazing. This is over the top, unapologetic and sexy as hell, as it should be. Red Monika herself is an anti-PC and irreverent take on mercenary ladies, beautiful, barely dressed and an ode to pin up art from the past. She is capable, dangerous and absolutely wonderful.
I cannot stress enough how good this book is and the many reasons why you should read it. Give it a try! You will not regret it!

Danny

[RG · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing artwork but felt like the story was unfinished. I guess being canceled at 9 issues wouldnt lesve much more room for expansion.

[Nuria · Rating 2 out of 5]

2'5/5🌟

[Kirk · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was 16 or so around the time this came out. I was looking through my old comics the other day and noticed an issue of this, and wondered whatever happened to the series. Well, I found the answer on Comixology, and it was fairly cheap. So I figured why not.

I was into a lot of shows/comics that met similar fates. Pirates of Dark Water is another example. What happened to that series?

They just sort of fizzle out and then they’re gone.

Of course, back when I was young I wouldn’t have known any better anyway. Almost everything I read and watched was episodic. Only my grandmother had cable, so the episodes she’d tape for me would give me a glimpse into shows, but I wasn’t a weekly viewer. The only place that sold a broad range of comics was an hour away, and we only went there once a month. The store was a bit out of the way, so I wouldn’t get many chances to drop in anyway. When I did, I might be able to sample five issues of different comics. By the time I got back there, the series would be over, or sold out, with old issues out of stock.

So Battle Chasers was a one-issue comic, like many of the others I bought back then. No different from the two issues of Darkness, or one issue of Witchblade I had. It wasn’t until my early to mid 20’s that I started seeing TPB’s in libraries.

This was supposed to be a review of Battle Chasers. I liked it well enough. That it wasn’t complete didn’t bother me much. That was the norm for me growing up. I guess that’s my point.

But it got me thinking a lot about barriers to entry back before the internet had developed to the degree it has today. Being rural and working poor limited my access to a lot of films and comics that I really wanted as a kid.

On one hand, it makes me really appreciate the access to comics and film I have now. On the other, it makes me wonder if my life would have been different had I had more access to more reading and viewing material as a kid.

My first real taste of unrestricted access came with music. It used to take almost 8 hours to download a song back then, but I had virtually infinite patience. And I listened to new music indiscriminately.

Video was still behind though, so when I wanted to learn about film, I downloaded scripts or read reviews with stills.

It was like knowing the ins and outs of something without ever actually experiencing it. My experience with film and comics was like a Cliff’s Notes version of what an actual viewer/reader had.

I guess that’s why I spend so much time trying to buy my past and re-experience it. I buy all the comics I didn’t get to read as a kid and watch the films I didn’t get to read. Play the games I didn’t get to play. I haven’t been disappointed yet, so I guess I shouldn’t really worry about it 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Nikolis Asimakis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extreme fan of the Darksiders videogame series. Checked out another game from the same creator, Battle Chasers: The Night War. Started playing it, but it was kinda in medias res, mentioning events I didn't know anything about. I loosely knew there was a comic series before the game, so I got it and read it.

Well... It was good. I liked the time I had with it. The artwork is top-notch, one of the reasons I loved Darksiders and the main reason I wanted to play Battle Chasers. The story is intriguing, though really minimal. Don't know many behind-the-scenes but it felt like a story for around 100-200 comic book chapters and we only got 9. We didn't even see the team-up that supposedly happened before the start of the game. The characters are interesting, even if a bit one-sided from the time we got to see them.

All in all, I had fun, but it was short lived, as the series. The artwork was amazing, a huge plus in this medium. I would love to see more chapters but with the game out I don't know if it will be revived or just continue as a game.

[Johan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining comic, type sword and sorcery, artwork is good, but it is a cancelled series.

[Peter Derk · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one has been on the ol' to-read list since, like...the 90's?

If you were following comics in the 90's, you know about Battle Chasers. Maybe you've never read it, but you sure as hell saw an ad for it in Wizard, you probably recognize the art, and there's a good chance that one of your primary memories is a mammary memory. There is a character in here with ridiculous jugs.

Before we get to that, in brief: It's pretty good, the art is great, the coloring is unbelievable, and I think it was the first book that I saw that looked this good, color-wise. The story is pretty basic, and it's VERY unfinished. So unfinished it's hard to really judge it on a story level. Again, if you were following comics in the 90's, you almost definitely got hooked on a homegrown property here and there that was running at a pace of 1 issue every...eh, 4 months? Maybe 19. Whatever. Battle Chasers got out about 10 issues in 3 YEARS. To compare, Crimson, from the same imprint, did 24 issues in that time, which also looked pretty great. Danger Girl, the third leg of that imprint's stool, did 7 issues. So I guess Battle Chasers is somewhere in the middle.

On one hand, you can have unfinished stuff, and that always sucks. On the other, you can have a Deadwood situation where you can tell halfway through the last season they found out it was the last season and had to scramble to kinda sorts wrap things up.

Okay, let's talk about jugs. I'm going to use the term "jugs" here because I think it's befitting of the silliness, it's descriptive of the subject matter, and it's short.

Jugs have a special place in comics. If no one out there is writing a history of jugs in comics, boy have I got a thesis for you, Women's Studies major!

I'm no scholar, but I'll do my breast. BEST. Damn it, best.

It's my guesstimation that big jugs didn't really start in the superhero game. If you look at old Wonder Woman, she was showing a lot of skin, but it seems like there was a line in the sand, but there was NOT a line on her chest. No cleavage, no side boob, none of that stuff.

No, the place where jugs first burst onto the scene was probably crime and horror comics. If you look these up, there seems to be some pretty strong themes. For example, women's prison is a popular motif. A femme fatale. Sometimes just someone busting down the door while a woman is getting dressed. On the horror side, I don't need to outline all of that. It's basically, "Well, SOMEONE has to get attacked by these skeletons, so why not a lady, and why not a busty lady!?" Sex and horror are linked, and that shit is too confusing to even theorize on.

But there's a ton of shit in these comics that, once the comics code was in place, wouldn't fly. Sure, there's a busty lady on one cover, but the one next to it is a guy with a needle about to stab him in the eyeball. It's like they were just pulling levers and pushing buttons to see what'd sell comics.

Interesting piece of comics lore, unconfirmed, is that DC once had a gorilla on the cover, that issue inexplicably sold WAY more than their other books that month, so for awhile it was like, "The more apes, the better!" Point being, I don't think these early publishers really knew what they were doing.

Batgirl was introduced because of Fredric Wertham's Seduction of the Innocent, which made out comics to be the ruination of the American boy. One of the book's accusations was of rampant homosexuality in comics, and DC was like, "Oh, shit. We better get a lady in there between this adult man and his boy wonder." Batgirl was basically the next closest thing to writing "No Homo" on the cover of every Bat Book. Complicated shit happened to Batgirl, and she only existed in comics briefly. However, she showed up in Batman '66, basically for the same reasons, which is HILARIOUS if you've ever watched that show, which, if it didn't invent camp, it sure as hell brought it to every living room in America.

Comics had a need to prove they weren't going to make America's boys into an army of fabulous wearers of short green shorts. Remember, this is the 50's and the 60's, and it would be totally acceptable to say, in a meeting, "We have to make sure everyone knows Batman AIN'T GAY!!!"

I think that's got something to do with why they went SO straight. Maybe a bit of overcorrection to the tune of 3 or 4 cup sizes.

If you look at Wonder Woman covers, shortly before the TV series, Wonder Woman had divested herself of her powers and was dressed in some cheesecake-y, and admittedly groovy lady spy getups. But for the most part, they weren't jugs-centric. She ended up back in her iconic costume for various reasons, one being the influence of Gloria Steinem. And slowly, the jugs-heavy covers start creeping in. Little lines of curves and cleavage, and perhaps most hilariously under the guise of a funhouse mirror in issue #231. After that, there was an awful lot of back-arching going on...

And here we saw a shift.

Prior to these shows, fantasizing about a comic book character was fantasizing about someone who never existed. But now there were real people attached to those characters. You weren't fantasizing about Wonder Woman. You were fantasizing about Lynda Carter. You weren't just drawing some fake lady who never existed and never would. You were penciling in the curves of Yvonne Craig.

And remember, this is the 1970's. What would be a socially acceptable way for a young person to have pictures of Lynda Carter in big stacks at home...how could this be packaged so that MOMS might actually buy them for their kids...?

Of course, there are other angles. I know some artists say they like drawing beautiful people. And that washes for me. Batman is basically a ripped dude painted gray. If you took a Batman image and changed the colors, it'd look really fucked up. Here, I'll do it:



So it's not just a lady thing.

Anyway, big jugs:

My wild theory is that things took off from there. Once the real-world connection was made in someone's mind, it was more socially acceptable to create fantasy versions of characters or to think about these characters as fantasy versions. It made more sense as a thing you could do.

And that has remained pretty true. ScarJo makes a pretty good analog for Black Widow. I mean, Chris Hemsworth as Thor? That dude who's Luke Cage? These new dreamboat actors have brought in a whole new segment of the audience, and I think it would be a mistake to assume this had nothing to do with people imagining Chris Hemsworth whenever they're reading a Jason Aaron book.

By my estimation, this whole comics/sexiness peaked with Marvel Swimsuit Editions.



I don't really know if these were a parody of Sports Illustrated or what. But this HAS to be the peak of mainstream comics brushing up against straight-up pornography (I haven't gotten into it here, but there are, of course, adult comics that are basically pornographic. But that's a whole different subject. It'd be like talking about porno flicks in comparison to what was going on in Scorsese movies or something).

But all of this begs the question: Why are comics obsessed with jugs?

Well...I don't think they are. Anymore than humans are, anyway.

You'll notice that whatever's fetishized in the culture shows up in comics. When everyone's talking about butts, guess what? Butts aplenty. When the thing is abs, you find 6 packs that start right above a dude's crank and end somewhere just below his chin. There's always been a place for straight, white teeth. Do Thor's arms need to be bare? Does Superman need to hug his nards and his buns in bright red fabric?

Jugs were the thing in the 90's. It's easy to forget. But look at your Pam Anderson. She made an entire career out of 'em! Tyra Banks? Heidi Klum? "Baby Got Back" came out in 1992, and think about it: This was a THING. This was a cultural moment. A dude saying, "Wait, everyone. Have we considered butts?" That song, today, wouldn't even be a blip. For many reasons, but partially because saying you're into big, round butts is nowhere near the statement it was in 1992. This was practically a political statement, Mix-A-Lot's hill he was dying on! Which had a butt crack in the middle, but still.

I think comics reflect culture rather than defining it. They stuff the jugs into a superhero costume, make them easier to define, but they didn't invent the idea of using jugs to appeal to people. I don't think comics are moving the mountain that is culture so much as they're reflecting it. So the real question is not why there are so many juggsy ladies in comics, it's why we're obsessed with them as a people.

And so, let's end by talking about jugs.

People who are into big jugs are kind of thought of as being immature dolts. Because that's something you're supposed to grow out of. This is THE MOST inappropriate venue for this, but whatever: I think that liking big jugs is no different from liking any other particular physical attribute.

How does this being an adolescent male quality make sense if a gay woman can also like big jugs? Or a straight woman, for that matter?

Why is it different to like lumps of flesh in Shape A and not in Shape B? Or Location X and not Location Y?

Spending $10,000 on veneers ain't no thing.

If nothing else, isn't this a pretty normal thing based on numbers alone?

I mean, it's obviously all an evolutionary thing. And while I don't think evolution is a good excuse to drag a woman by her hair back to your cave (Why do you even have a cave? Also, that's an impressive grip! Also, her hair must be very healthy, and I would like some product recommendations), I think that whatever gets someone going is really between them and anyone they're intimate with, and that's about it. I don't think most people can be "convinced" or "matured" to like things other than what they like, and besides, who gives a damn?

There you go. An extremely subjective, not well-researched look at jugs in comics.

I leave you with the Punisher, who apparently took the day off from twisting the heads off criminal assholes to wear this on the beach. Go ahead, tell him he'd look prettier if he smiled.

[Francesca Giardiello · Rating 2 out of 5]

Idea carina, narrazione svelta e nonostante gli anni sul groppone è ancora ampiamente leggibile, ma che senso ha leggere qualcosa troncato a metà che non ha avuto modo e fortuna per essere concluso?

Preso singolarmente il volume meriterebbe assolutamente un voto più alto, ma non posso fare a meno di considerarlo come l'inizio di un qualcosa mai continuato e che quindi, come acquisto, risulta essere un totale fallimento.

[Johnathon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid trade that collects the entire "Battle Chasers" series by Joe Madureria, along with some unused art, that shows the potential for this story even if it took years to payoff. Madureria crafts a unique fantasy world, complete with wizards, mechs and super powered girls. The characters are interesting as well, especially Gully, a precocious young girl who inadvertently acquires a pair of magical gauntlets from her father, making one of the most powerful beings in the world. Madureira's art truly shines as well, delivering a manga-styled fantasy world that is gorgeous to look at, along with some breakneck action. The one downside is the story is a little rushed and sadly ends too early, as Madureria moved on to making video games (which thankfully did lead to the "Battle Chasers: Nightwar"). Overall, a nice read for a comic whose potential was never truly realized.

[Oliver Eike · Rating 4 out of 5]

When i was younger i thought that the series just was stopped as a import to Norway, because i first read this translated to Norwegian in a monthly collection magazine that took several series and mashed em into one book.

So it took me a few years to learn that i had read it all, that there was only 9 issues. And that was sad to learn. For the series had great potential. But if you are going to buy this, know that the series is incomplete. That there will not be coming more to the story.

Still, for a trip down nostalgia lane, i would say this was worth it for me.

[Jerry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Here's a series I've intended to read for a long time. I've heard so many positive things about this, that once I saw a digital edition on Comixology I went for it.

It's rare for me to so bitterly regret spending $14. I feel like buying $14 worth of toothpicks would've been more satisfying.

I give it one star for the art work, which was good especially considering the artist was 16 years old at the time. The 16 year-old artist was also the writer, and so you know where that leaves the story. Every possible cliche is here in full force. Drunken, Has-Been Warrior dude making a comeback. Check. Zany but powerful wizard reluctantly drawn into the plot. Check. Innocent, young heroine with mysterious past but in possession of potent artifacts left by her father. Check. Bad-ass, rogue chick with boobs two times the size of her head. Double check. I could go on.

But if this wasn't bad enough.... THE STORY IS INCOMPLETE. Please read that again, and be aware that you will be paying for a story that doesn't end. In fact, it stops on several major plot twists and a flashback. It's like the entire creative team was Raptured in the middle of writing this thing. The series was never finished, and won't be. It's just stuck in time.

I am so angry. I want my money back, but that can't happen. I can at least help you save your own.

[Kumasama · Rating 3 out of 5]

*Score: 7/10*

Classic Fantasy style story about a group of misfits trying to unravel an ancient mystery surrounding a legendary hero. This anthology collects all 10 released volumes, though the series was unfortunately never finished.

Pros: superb art, lots of details in the drawings. The characters while predictable are endearing and nicely come together as a team.

Cons: Unfinished, and nothing really original or mindblowing. Gets a bit messy with lots of characters at some point.

[Elton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This still holds up well after more than a decade. It's shame Joe Mad never finished this. I would probably have given this 5 stars if it were finished. And if Monika's boobs weren't so outrageously big.

[Steven Kirk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite series of all time. I collected all the issues and variant covers when they were originally released. I am so looking forward to the game finally being released in October as well as the completion of issues 10 -12 to give the serious the ending it never recieved.

[Emma Gear · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gonna be honest and admit that I mostly read this because I've recently started playing the game that was made based on this series nearly twenty years later and have been really enjoying it! But the comic itself is weak in the writing department and feels a bit disjointed and forced.

Which was strange considering how highly recommended I've heard this series came. My assumption is that it was a combination of right place at the right time, as well as the artwork which is still very solid all these years later. If you've read any of the other reviews of this series you'll definitely also be aware that this series is unfinished. It had 9 issues published (Plus an issue 0) and ends shortly after a bunch of big plot twists that seemed like they were going to drastically change how the world and characters in it were viewed.

But what's here can still definitely be cool at times. The story is mainly about a young girl who's the daughter of a legendary hero who left behind a pair of gauntlets for her. She puts them on and when she does she basically becomes superhuman in terms of strength and durability which makes her a force to be reckoned with even though she's only nine years old. But villainous types are after her as well as her gauntlets and she teams up with the pair of Calibretto + Knolan, an old war golem + a mage who swear to help her out, and Garrison, an old friend of her father's who's an expert fighter. The general design of the characters still holds up remarkably well, even if Red Monika's boobs can be ridiculous at times. Garrison may be a stereotypical ultra badass lone swordsman with a dark past stereotype but he still LOOKS very cool and it's nice to see him in action. Knolan, Gully, and Calibretto are also cool but I feel like the cast was too big for the strength of the writing to try and work with.

So this gets a three stars from me. The art is wonderful, there are a handful of very interesting moments, but the vast majority of the run is brought down by weak writing and trying to pull itself in too many directions while not exploring any of them to any real degree. I'd also recommend the game even if this isn't the place to do that. Calibretto, Knolan, and Garrison's designs are wholly unchanged from the comic which is a testament to how strong they truly are, while Gully only has minor alterations. Red Monika's the only one with a big change and honestly she needed it as she was definitely the stereotypical 90's example of sex appeal in a character in this series.

If you like Joe Madureira's art you'll probably find a lot to like from this even with the sub-par writing. And I love his art so yeah, 3 out of 5 baby!

[Robert Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess I read this just in time for issue #10 to come out -- 22 years after issue #9. Is catching up on this worth the 22-year wait?

Nope.

This is a very comic book comic book, almost the ultimate expression of what mattered from American comics in the 1990s. Hot Stuff artist with short attention span makes his dream comic. The drawings are nice, but the writing is middling at best. It's a superhero team book with as much visual pizzazz as can be applied -- a tale that was repeated about every other week in the latter half of the 90s, thanks to Image Comics and the indie explosion it fostered. Madureira is notable for being one of the last child savants fostered with little long-term payoff by 90's Image business practices. He quickly moved on to game design.

Madureira's a talented penciler and he has a cool design sensibility, even as a young man. The story is 100% "rule of cool", throwing everything in the pot of this world, from magical fantasy to sci-fi technology. Often times, it doesn't mix very well, and it reads like nonsense, like for example when one of our heroes utilizes a shoulder-mounted, laser-guided flamethrower in a fight against a werewolf. Clearly, Mad's priorities are not in realism, and if it wasn't such a common approach in American hero books, there'd something to admire about that. The story is saved by not being terribly complicated. Kid gets MacGuffin, baddies want MacGuffin, heroes form around kid to protect kid and MacGuffin. Heroes save city from baddies by actually just destroying the city while fighting the baddies. And that's really where the story so far ends, since, Battle Chasers has infamously been on a decades-long hiatus -- right as Mad started to flex his "intricate narrative full of intriguing twists" muscle (the sad tale of the clichéd secondary villain's clichéd origin is about where I mentally checked out.)

I guess Mad's decided to try to finish the first arc, at least, since there's apparently an animated TV show in the works. Here's hoping that the decades of work experience (and a dedicated team he's working with) will show in an uptick in quality for the storytelling. As it is, the anthology is a fun enough to spend an evening read, and I guess we can now look forward to seeing where the rest of the story goes.

[Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd never heard of Battle Chasers prior to the PS4 turn-based RPG game; I enjoyed its world-building and artwork presented by Joe Madureira, but felt the game was an in medias res midpoint that I'd somehow missed out on. Having finished the game, I stepped back and found the world of Battle Chasers, straight out of the 90's with its typical fantasy tropes, and while I enjoyed it, it didn't quite scratch the itch of wanting more - the problem with an unfinished series.

While the cast of Battle Chasers mimics that of an ensemble, the story center on young lass Gully, and the tribulations that come from a missing father and a powerful set of gauntlets left behind. This expands to a larger cast, who are fairly formulaic as a whole (the wizened wizard, the google, military man with a past of lost, etc.), but they've still got some charm to them. The story, across its nine issues, develops one of intrigue for the disappearance of Aramus, collapse of a sky prison, and who's really behind it all.

Characters get smidges of backstories, but nothing expansive; it takes halfway through the issues before the story really feels that it develops a set direction, and then...it ends. Battle Chasers has the misfortune of being an unfinished series, with the tie-in game serving as a quasi sequel that jumps forward quite a bit; the two feel relatively disconnected, although the game does reference a few events and instances that the comics establish.

Ultimately, Battle Chasers offered a glimmer of what could be, but for what it is, it's middle-grade fantasy that's enjoyable, but but been done better, and improved upon since. If it did continue, I'd have the slightest inclination of interest to see how this team really forms - but, captivated, I am not.

At least Darksiders is still going!

[Timothy Grubbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Battle Chasers was a ridiculous comic…

Battle Chasers Anthology by Joe Madureira collects the previously published issues of battle chases along with sketches, covers, and other relevent material.

I remember when this series first came out…practically a life time ago…and Joe Mads kept threatening to go back to it. Since then he worked in video games (even managing to release a Battle chasers game set long after the comic)…

Battle Chasers was part of the cliffhanger imprint with Danger Girl and Crimson and within the umbrella of the Wildstorm comics. Its quick success likely contributed to Jim Lee’s Wildstorm getting bought by DC comics shortly after…which gives me thoughts of similar buyouts and corporate acquisitions of properties with an inflated value that we see in the stock market and corporations.

Anyway, Battle Chasers was a fantasy comic involving a motley crew…Garrison a swordsman with a tragic past, Gully a little girl with super strength gloves, Knolan a wizard that is as cantankerous as he is powerful, and my favorite character Calibretto the war golem botanist. They barely work together during the series but that’s more because most of these issues are setting up the world and there’s barely time to breath or do something.

This was likely solely popular due to the art…and it’s nice even if it’s really muddled at times. It’s fun for younger readers, but reading this today I find the plots are as thin as Red Monika’s wardrobe (a character who was in most of the promotion despite only ever interacting with Garrison and barley appearing).

It’s a funny snapshot of past comics and if more than one issue of the latest “return” comes out then I’ll be very surprised…

[Ezma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Got some real mixed feelings on Battle Chasers. The biggest problem with the book is something you know as soon as you start reading, thanks to Loeb's introduction: this is an unfinished story. This is the first 9 issues and a couple side-stories of what feels like it would've been at least 30, 40 issues. A lot of concepts and characters are introduced with teases of backstory that never get answered. In fact so much gets introduced in these 9 issues that it feels like barely any story actually happens. It's a bit like playing the first 5 hours of a JRPG: a lot of exposition and worldbuilding and right as things are starting to build and go somewhere, your disc breaks and that was the only copy ever made.

One thing we can't debate is Madureira's fantastic, expressive art. Every page is a delight to look at and there's plenty of fun, wild character designs. If you're the type that can ignore the story completely and just enjoy this as an artbook, you'll probably get a lot more enjoyment out of it. And honestly, if the ultimate choice was between getting Darksiders or getting to see the rest of Battle Chasers, we would've went with Battle Chasers. Maybe that's really the most frustrating part of this book, knowing it was the last big work of an artist who went on to design characters for an alright video game series that doesn't highlight his strengths nearly as well.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Joe Madureira was my favorite comic book artist as a kid, and I loved this book in particular. However, due to the maddeningly slow and unreliable release schedule of the original comics I gave up on it before it was ever finished. To give you some context, when it was supposed to be released on a monthly basis, but they ended up releasing them once every 6 months on average. I was excited to come across the anthology and finally complete the saga. Yet once again, disappointment struck! The art and Joe Mad's unique style certainly holds up, but the writing is mediocre at best. It gets better and a bit more interesting as the story progresses, but you reach the end only to find out the series was never actually completed. The "anthology" is simply as far as they got before Joe decided to peace out and make video games. You're left on a cliffhanger (pun intended), with no resolution whatsoever. So I would call this book a mildly disappointing affair overall. I guess if you come into it knowing that and just want to appreciate the art and what could have been then you will be fine.

[Adam Hasser · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disclaimer: For other reviews saying that it's a shame the series got canceled and Joe Mad was never able to finish it, he canceled it. It was selling well, despite huge delays, and he chose to start a video game company instead.

I've always been torn about this series. I got all of original issues through my pull list back when it first came out. The first 6 issues are strong even if some of the characters/storylines are cliched. The art work is fantastic. The story was interesting and you want to find out how it plays out. Unfortunately all we really get is the set up. TBH you can see in some of the pages of the last 2-3 issues that not all of the art work looks exactly like Joe Mad's style. I don't know if it's because all he did was loose pencils and the inker did the rest or what but there is a definite change in there. You'd think with the connections that he has in the business that he would put together a 3 issue run to close out the main story line. Maybe he will. Until then it's 3 stars for me.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read most of these issues as they were being released during their original run (but missed a few due to unreliable release dates) and I had heard that the long awaited 10th issue was coming out any day now so...found a nice edition that pulls all of the current issues together and decided to revisit my childhood.

At a high level this is a really good story. Upon closer examination, the storytelling is fragmented and not as cohesive as I'd like. If you just look at one page, you will be blown away by the art BUT if you look at a whole issue the art is lacking in subtlety. You can do great things with art or you can make really good pictures (e.g. Jim Lee) and this does fall into the latter.

My words make it seem like I didn't live/love this and that's not the case (it's just not as great as I remember). I do love the characters, I like the story, I love the pacing and I really like the art. This is worth reading and owning and I'm really looking forward to the 10th issue.

[Luke John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never read Battle Chasers at the time, but can remember the artwork catching my eye. Coming to it so late though, and crucially with the 90s long since ended, this volume served more as an artifact of the comic landscape at the time. Adolescent and bursting at the seams with muscular heroes and one particularly (some would say obscenely) proportioned female character, this just isn't the kind of book that would get made today. That's a good thing though, in my view, comics have matured over the last 20-30 years and Image has had a fair amount to do with that. Yet there is still something interesting about reading a work from Image in the early days, overblown in it's art style and messy in its narrative. You never get the sense that Battle Chasers is really heading anywhere. The writing feels like it is unplanned, new characters introduced on a whim and the story following nothing but the writers fancy at the time. Battle Chasers is a mess, but an entertaining one, if only as a relic of the excesses of 90s comics.

[Nick McDowell · Rating 5 out of 5]

To my memory this was the last great comic book of the 1990s/early 2000s that absolutely everyone agreed on. It was hugely influential on art in other mediums, to be plain, Blizzard Entertainment aped this art style raw for Warcraft 3 and World of Warcraft. It follows that all the myriad of companies that then aped Blizzards style are themselves lineal descendants of Battle Chasers.

In my opinion this is the kind of generational product that can elevate an entire platform. The sort of comic that could draw enough new eyes to the industry to be the tide that raises all ships so to speak.

One person who disagreed was famed author of Battle Chasers, Joe Madureira! He got bored and fucked right off! An unresolved cliffhanger left in his wake! He said he wanted to work in the vidja games.

Plus or minus 20 years of a charming, but ultimately not completely remarkable, "Darksiders" game franchise, I am told that Battle Chasers is back in town.

To the Battle Chasers that was, I give five stars. To the Battle Chasers published recently, I am eager to see.

[Brendan Mckillip · Rating 2 out of 5]

When Battle Chasers first came out in the mid-90's I remember it being the coolest thing. I bought the first issue, the art knocked my socks off, the story seemed like it could be interesting, but then didn't buy any additional issues because there just was room in my comic book budget at the time. I didn't give the book much thought after that. 25 years later I decided to revisit and see how things turned out. What I learned is that I didn't miss much. The art for the series run was spectacular, but the story turned out to be nearly non-existent. Joe Madureira - who wrote and drew Battle Chasers - had plenty of great ideas, but unfortunately didn't know how to narratively put them together in a way that made sense or even tell a coherent story. In the end you get lots and lots of great artwork. But that's all you are getting.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh what could have been. Joe Madureira could have went down as one of comics' most legendary creators. Battle Chasers showed what could have been, well, for the most part. His artwork is simply dynamic. He could have chosen any book or created his own, like here. He just needed the right partner to write with. He sadly didn't have that here and then was side-tracked in so many different directions. Reading this you can see where the focus starts to wane. Overall, a tremendous start to a potentially very good series. The back half of the book starts going downhill and then obviously ends without completion. Also, Adam Warren's pages should be stricken from memory.