Wanted
by J.G. Jones, Mark Millar
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Book Reviews of Wanted
Book Review: Lowbrow, Cheap-O Fun
Summary: 3 Stars
The first third of this trade paperback is shallow, pointless, and slow. When the plot and multiverse concepts kick in by the fourth issue, the series reaches its high point (and, wow, there's even a little character development!). But then the ending comes along and ruins it all with a generic, all-too-tidy twist.
It's rather enjoyable, but only when (1) the characters aren't behaving like high society snobs (Mister Rictus is the only true villain here; ironically, everybody else is as "evil" as spoiled preppies, (2) when the story abandons its angst and adopts genuine conflict, and (3) when the dialog doesn't come off as wanna-be gangsta (like a mid-nineties indie rip-off of Pulp Fiction).
I was disappointed, and the writing was a tad amateurish. But it was lowbrow, cheap-o fun.
Book Review: Cool and annoyingly pointless
Summary: 3 Stars
Artistically this is very well done; the art is some of the best I've ever seen in a comic medium. It also makes "Sin City" look like a clean comic/movie by comparison. I find it very unlikely the upcoming film adaptation will accurately reflect the grittier moments of this work; they just go too far for most film audiences to accept. I thought the ending was a bit lazy on the part of the authors. While it does fit with the story, I just don't like an ending the purposely goes out of its way to not make any substantial points. Then again expecting points from a story where characters have profanity for names might be a little too much. It was consistent with the rest of the comic, but it missed some great opportunities to make points and insights into life.Book Review: Not for the Meek
Summary: 5 Stars
After having this referred by a few friends I decided to pick it up but was surprised at some of the negative reviews but decided to check it out anyway and to be honest, I was glad I did. The story is original and completely off-the-freaking-wall with a diverse cast of characters (one character is made entirely out of human crap). Now I will admit, the comic is juvenile and pretty perverse but if you just sit back and take the comic without a bit of seriousness, it's a good time. But if you can't handle a lot of cussing, perverse jokes and the such, then don't read this comic. But if you like a story with completely B.A. characters who don't take crap from anyone and can shoot off a come-back as fast as they kill people in it, then it'll be a good time.Book Review: Please, sir, may I have some more?
Summary: 4 Stars
Now I get why fans of the "Wanted" comic find the movie less than satisfying, although on BluRay it's an irresistible ride and (no disrespect intended) with better music.
Darker and more comic-oriented than the movie adaptation, the "official" story of our hero and his genetic heritage is deeper, stranger, more daring and even funnier. Often laugh-out-loud funny. And the only thing that will slow down your read is the gripping art, for which you will find extremely entertaining commentary in the feature-rich appendix.
If you like Millar, grab this one. If you think "Kick-Ass" was not rough enough, grab this one. And if you REALLY, REALLY LIKE "Wanted" the movie, strap this on as soon as possible.
Book Review: Boring.
Summary: 1 Stars
For better or worse, the book has very little in common with the film based on it. Don't expect a similar story to the movie.
I was excited to dig in to Wanted after glancing at some of the elaborate artwork, but was disappointed to find a lack of depth or anything actually interesting. When a book primarily aimed at exploring every carnal desire you could think of can actually be called boring, it's pretty clear that this is a book that misses the mark completely. No lesson is learned, no characters are developed, no point is made at all - Wanted feels more like a chore than a fun read.
Great artwork wasted on a weak story and boring characters.