Cover Image: Chimera

Chimera

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Member Reviews

This was one of the most enjoyable graphic novels I’ve ever read. The characters are all cleverly written and the story balances out creepy as hell evil, heart warming moments and general hilarity.

The illustrations are a perfect fit for the story, my favourite aspect being that the women are drawn to be powerful rather than sexy (always a good way to judge a graphic novel).

The story flips back and forth between ‘then’ and ‘now’, which tells us how the ragtag group of alien and human thieves got together and found themselves on a mission to steal a mysterious artefact. The synopsis isn’t wrong when it suggests that fans of Star Wars and Firefly will enjoy this story, it’s got all the best bits of those series and a fascinating slant to it.

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I picked this graphic novel up because of it's crazy beautiful cover art, the promise that it would be perfect for fans of Star Wars and the description on Netgalley (a covert mission in the midst of a galaxy being ripped apart by an interstellar holy war; whuuut?!). As it turned out, actually getting through the entire story was pretty hard. I started reading this novel about 5 times, before actually being able to finish it.
There were actually a couple of things that I really liked about Chimera. The artwork is just beautiful. I loved the color schemes, the details and the overall look of the entire novel. I also liked the idea of a galaxy, multiple planets, all sorts of creatures and a war amongst them. We get to see a lot of characters, both human and not so human, of all kinds of shapes and sizes, and all of them are shown in great detail. What was also pretty good about this novel, was the fact that we shift between "now" and "then" which creates a bit of a backstory as well.

Even though this novel seems to have everything I like, from beautiful artwork to an actual backstory, there still as something that made it difficult for me to finish this book. I didn't really feel invested in the story, there wasn't a connection with any of the characters, and the plot line was a bit confusing. I am not the best in keeping up when there are a lot of names/organizations/planets/etc. thrown at me without much of an explanation, and that is kind of what is going on in this graphic novel. I'm not the kind of person who has the patience to go back a couple of pages to re-read something, so I was confused at times.

All in all, I think this is a decent graphic novel, it just wasn't the right fit for me.

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WOW! I loved this graphic novel. I loved the dark fantasy story line, and was (as always) amazed by the illustrations in this collection. The wide variety of characters kind of reminded me of Star Wars. This is going to be a popular choice at the comic book stores, and personally, I would love to see more volumes in this collection. I will definitely be recommending this to all of my Saga loving friends. Can't wait to see this blow up all over the internet. People are going to love it!

I have received a much appreciated digital copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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Chimera is a beautiful story with gorgeous artwork. Now where is volume 2?! The end was intense. This would be a good read for any Numenera players out there.

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I see a lot of people comparing it to Saga. I can see where the similarities lie. (I read it thinking it was illustrated by the same artist.) The story telling is similar, profanity dropping and killing without a lot of fanfare. The story, however, is unique. Very interested in seeing where this leads.

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This is a great read-alike for Saga. (I'm not going to compare its merits to Saga because Saga is one of those singular series that is so spectacular it seems unfair to compare other books to it - I will only go so far as to say that readers who enjoy Saga will find similar elements in this comic). The illustrations are inventive, along with the world-building, and the plot is satisfyingly complex. That complexity makes it a slow read during the first quarter of the book or so, while the reader grapples to understand exactly who the players are and what the heck is happening, but the weirdness of the characters is enough of a hook to keep going. I'm eager to find out what happens in the next volume. Recommended for middle school and up (swearing, violence)

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Chimera is a graphic novel that will have a huge appeal for fans of Star Wars or Dune, or people who enjoy their sci-fi with a heavy dose of religious existentialism. It's not my ideal read, but I have to admit it was very well crafted. The colours used in all the art are spectacular, with the rich oranges and yellows of the desert that open the book contrasting beautifully against the introduction of Cassandra, in a stark, dark, grey world.

I was delighted to see that one of the main characters, Charlie, has a boyfriend, and even more delighted to see that said boyfriend, Gideon, has a large birthmark on his face. Neither the guys' sexuality nor Gideon's birthmark are ever mentioned, which is astonishingly refreshing - particularly the latter, since this is a graphic novel so it is very visible. Kudos to the author for including this representation so matter-of-factly.

You do have to focus to keep the various flashbacks straight, but I liked that we got an insight into most characters, showing how they got to where they were. The camaraderie between the thieves' gang was very well written - you could believe they had travelled together for a while. I love found families like this.

One small negative point is that I didn't love the font used in the majority of the speech bubbles. The slanting of the letters made it a little difficult to read, especially the letter D, meaning that I quite often read words like 'godhood' as 'gophoop'. This jarred me out of the story a little, when I had to stop and reread.to get a sense of what was going on.

Overall, this one wasn't my cup of tea story-wise, but I thought that the artwork was stunning, and I'll definitely be recommending it to my friends who like their sci-fi a bit heavier than I do.

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3 stars

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked this story! It reminded me of Marvel’s Gurdians Of The Galaxy, AND YAS, they are my favourites!

Basically, we follow 4 thieves who are sent on a suicidal mission, when in the meantime, there’s a war starting, bc this creepy thing called “the God”, wants to be the true & also the only one in the whole universe - and he can achieve that just with this mysterious object called the “Chimera”. And yeah, you guessed right, the quartet of our thieves is also trying to find this major object.

The characters are amazing, every single one of them has its own backstory (sometimes the past and present was confusing but nothing I couldn’t handle), flaws & sufferings....

My favorite character was Russel, for sure. This “doggy” creature ( really reminded me of the Egyptian god Anubis ) was just precious. His story was the most interesting & also, I would say the hardest one.

Alice... warrior who vanished from the “God´s” sight as far as she realised something was really off.

Wex... intelligent reptile & translator who has its own demons & is trying to forget about it by helping these 3 individuals.

Charlie... Alice’s brother who was just an ordinary boy, but one day everything changed after he lost his love & home at the same time.

The adventure was really enjoyable, great plot twists (time to time I was just like “What!?” “Are u kidding me?”) & OMG the ART... just wow. All those colors & details... I am speechless.

When i was a kid I’ve never read comic books... but after this novel, I think, it will definitely change.

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What an incredible book to read on May the 4th!! A perfect space opera to read on Star Wars day. Great for any Marvel fan, specifically for Gaurdians of the Galaxy fans.
So I love this book, i want more. I want more NOW. I need more. I love the art style, especially the unique creatues depicted here. I was a little unsure about the whole “Holy War” thing, but it added a unique appeal.
I was totally engrosses in the story the whole time.
Need more now.

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"There's a brother who's ball deep in killer robots, and a sister who's the lapdog of god himself. Who do ya wanna rescue first?"

It took me a little while to warm up to this title, but once I did it was a really great read. A really interesting story about a being waging war to become the 'one true god' in a galaxy with many planets and many other gods, not to mention all the other people and creatures that get sucked up into its plans. This volume did a good job of introducing the characters and the world and the art and character design is absolutely gorgeous. I'll definitely be checking out the next volume of this!

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Dune, Egypt and Star Wars wrapped neatly in a packaged comic
"There's a brother who's ball deep in killer robots, and a sister who's the lapdog of god himself."

We have a rebel group, and instead of the Empire, we have the Conclave. What I love about "Chimera" is that the rebels aren't all good and the Conclave isn't all bad. The beings in this universe are looking for the mystical chimera, a planet which will bring riches beyond one's wildest measures. The large dragon goat is hounding them on.

We follow Alice, her brother and a dog-person named Russel. There's also a MacGuffin called a looking glass intertwined within the plot. The planet is a Tatooine-like place with a lot of atmospheric potential, but the drawings very much zoom-in on character creation and detract from the world itself.

Russel: The essence and soul of a well-drawn character
"Thievery, engineering, cards...anything you're not good at?"

Russel is a beautifully crafted character with the complexities of a person found in a 500-page novel. I think that his characterisation and development were skillfully interwoven to form a well-rounded being.

Losing my Religion
"Don't look at me like that. When you do that thing like you're looking into my goddamned soul."
"I never took you for the type to believe in the soul"
"Which god damned yours? You've certainly got a buffet like of options.



Throughout the story, religion is often discussed and debated around, but in no way that I found thought-provoking.

Conclusion
Honestly, the world is beautiful and it's unlike anything I've experienced before; it seeps with immersion and fresh thought, but the characters are bland and the point-of-view zips back and forth too quickly for me to follow.

There are sweet, emotional moments but the plot it patchwork and motley at best. The character do not develop, and the politics of the system don't present with a very fresh take.

I'd recommend this book to any comic lovers. The world building is great, even though it lacks in the character department.

"By the grace of the conclave, this monastery and its apostate refugees have been allowed to live out their devotion to their absurd faith"

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WOW! The artwork and story are phenomenal. I don’t traditionally pick up Sci-Fi work, but the synopsis was intriguing.
The story is simple and reminds me a little of Star Wars. A galaxy that is held be a god and his minions, there is a war being led by a resistance coalition. A small group of thieves and soldiers come together on a covert mission to obtain an object that the god seeks which could be pivotal to ending the war. Within this group, there is a traitor who has made a deal because his family is threatened.
This appears to be the first installment in a series. This section builds the understanding of the characters, their history, and how the covert group was formed.
The artwork is brilliant and story very interesting with twists. Definitely leaves you with a cliffhanger and I can’t wait for the next installment!
Thank you NetGalley and publisher, Comicker Press, for the opportunity to read this ARC.

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In the middle of a galaxy suffering of war, a team of thieves comes together in order to retrieve a precious object. They will be able to stay out of all the turmoil, as long as they can retrieve Chimera. But the team will have to navigate through hostile environments and meet dangerous creatures along their path. At the same time, a traitor lies among them, putting the whole operation at risk.

Chimera is a very well illustrated graphic novel. It certainly doesn't disappoint visually. Its story, however, is appealing, but too complex for the length of the novel. I strongly felt that it either had to be more simple, or a lot more elaborate. Some scenes felt abrupt, while if they were more lengthy, they would probably feel easier to comprehend. The plot reminded me strongly of a mixture of Star Wars and the Guardians of the Galaxy, which is ambitious, but was not carried out carefully enough as to become a good enough concept.

All in all, I believe Chimera has room for improvement, but it can certainly reach its true potential with a little more effort on the plot part.

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I was raised on comic books. Nowadays, I don’t read them often, but I still enjoy a good graphic novel. Experiencing the story and world building through plot, art and dialogue feel great when it’s done well. Let’s take a look at Terry Ellis’ Chimera Vol. 1.

When a covert mission goes wrong, a crew of thieves finds themselves caught in the middle of a vicious, interstellar holy war involving a self-proclaimed god, the Resistance Coalition, and the Zodiacal Conclave. There’s a traitor in the group, and each character has a troubled past.

The story is definitely character driven. Each of characters is flawed, but they're great as a team. Throughout the story, we get a glimpse into characters' backstories. They’re placed and used in a way that serves the plot and doesn’t jar the narrative. In short, the heroes are hard to resist, especially when you have a soft spot for troubled rogues.

Art is good and tight. There’s plenty of vibrant details, and some panels are a thing of beauty. On the other hand, some were bizarre and less attractive but, overall, I think the art is this novel's forte.

The plot is interesting, mostly unpredictable and compelling. I wouldn’t call it innovative but Sci-fi, fantasy and horror elements are used skillfully. An essential theme of the book is religion and its potential to devastate everything. It’s close to the way I see things, and I appreciate this kind of social commentary.

Chimera Vol. 1 is an entertaining and somewhat smart graphic novel that uses science fiction and fantasy elements to create a compelling package. Not all questions are answered, but that’s a good thing. It means a sequel may be written in the future. I’ll be sure to read it.

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This graphic novel has lovely art, but the story line is rather choppy, so it makes it hard to follow along. Many characters get their short "intro" storylines, all coming together, but a more linear approach might have been more enjoyable.

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3,5 stars

Volume 1 of Chimera is the collection of the first six issues of this graphic novel series. Based on the synopsis, a crew of thieves and sci-fi, I got instant Six of Crows and Firefly vibes. It wasn’t quite that good. But I am interested in more.

Let us start with the art which drew me to click on this book on Netgalley on the first place. It has solid art for the most part, all in color. I did think that in the first two issues the drawn motion of full body and falling rocks felt stiff and unnatural. But as I was absorbed by the story I can’t remember seeing more of this later on in the volume. In the back there are a few gorgeous illustrations, including the front cover. They are stunning.

As mentioned this story focuses on a crew of thieves who are send on a difficult mission of retrieving something called the Chimera. Unwillingly this draws them into a holy war that is drawn out over various planets. The story is told through now and then pieces. There was a bit too much changing between the timelines for me which made it hard to keep all the lines straight as it concerned some of the back story of our cast. I also felt there was a bit too much religious going on but that is a personal feeling.

I wasn’t sure about the characters initially but as the story continued they started growing on me and I especially took a liking to rough Russel. For that reason I hate the ending because, ouch, right in the feels.

There is still a lot left to explore in the world building, these characters and the plot. And I can’t wait to see where this is all going.

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I liked it more than I thought I would. This book collects the first 6 issues, and the first issue was interesting but nothing too amazing. As this volume continued and started to get deeper into the plot, I found that I genuinely wanted to know where things would go. I like the art, the characters seem like they could be interesting (even if only a few of them grabbed me in this volume), and overall I think this is a solid start to a series.

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A fantastic graphic novel. Very reminiscent of Saga, but with its very own flavor.

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While I'm reading it, I feel a bit lost. The story itself is not clear enough.
Only worth 1 star in my opinion.

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This was just cool! It was fun, exiting and action packed. It did show a hint of typical first comic in a series, but that's understandable. The need for world building and character development is there, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I will definitely be checking out this series further down the road!

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