On reflection, there really isn't a lot of action in Invisible Republic. There's a mystery of sorts but really the hook into this story is just how thoughtful the details are. It makes for a delightful bit of SciFi. ( )

Yet another new Image series to make me rue having to wait forever until the next TP comes out.

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Panels Read Harder: Comic set in space. ( )

This graphic novel is nominated for the 2016 Hugo.

It's pretty okay, especially if you like good art and fist-pumping origin stories for SF revolutions. The characters are all plot driven, split between a span of 42 years, with a reporter trying to get the truth and the cousin of the ringleader who's just trying to get by.

Like I said it's pretty okay. The art is better than the story, though. I don't have any issues with either, except that this kind of thing is pretty standard for certain types of SF. It's particularly good only in terms of how it tells its story, not the actual story.

Or at least not yet. This is just early days, so far, but nothing particularly stands out as brilliant just yet. I may change my mind later on down the road when I see what kinds of craziness develops, or even if a lot of craziness develops, but then again, I might not.

I'm honestly not quite sure why it was nominated for the Hugo, except for the subject material. I Do like generational starships and politics after settling down, but for this to mean more than just "huh, this is mildly interesting," It's going to require a full beginning, middle, and end. I've *seen* a ton of comics do just that, easily, in just five issues. Unfortunately, this is a much bigger story begging a longer and more dedicated readership.

I'm sure a lot of people will get a big kick out of this one, though, so don't take just my word for it. The art is pretty awesome. ( )

The revolutionary regime that ruled a colonized moon for forty years has fallen, and there's general political and economic collapse and chaos. An offworld reporter is tracking down a story, when he stumbles on the journal of Maia Reveron, long-forgotten cousin of the deposed dictator. And what she has to say casts a very dark light on the man. The story proceeds to flip back and forth between Maia Reveron's story, and reporter Croger Babb's story.

The art is dark, dark enough that at times it's a bit hard to make out. I didn't find any of the characters at all easy to like. In the end, I didn't care what happened to any of them.

Not recommended. ( )

There are a lot of solid elements here, from art to characters to dialogue. But the story seems to lack any sort of stakes for me. This literally sets itself up as the secret story behind the rise of a recently deposed local strongman on a backwater moon far from Earth in the distant future. Sorry to be provincial, but that's like coming across a four-page secondary feature in the middle of a news magazine about the history of a small country on a distant continent. Everything is very important to the people who live there and the journalist who has immersed himself in the story, but chances are, if I'm pressed for time, I'll probably skip it. Best case scenario, I might skim the first dozen paragraphs and chide myself lightly for not caring enough. Consider me chided. ( )