Thank you, DC comics, for sending me a free copy! All the opinions are my own.

I really loved reading this graphic novel!
Set on Krypton, the story follows two characters, very different from one other. Zahn is a Re, from and élite classs, while Sera is a Ur, a soldier. Both of them are programmed to be and act in a certain way. Their paths shouldn't cross, but slowly they start to question the truth about their government, about the groundquakes and the lies they are told. Between uprisings, esperiments and rebellion, in a society bound by caste, rules and lies, they will have to find a way to uncover the truth and save everyone.

The story is captivating and really interesting, dealing with themes like government lies, caste system, deaths and sacrifices. The artwork is amazing, the characters are well written and crafted and I can't wait to read what will happen next.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It has been a while since I've read anything by Claudia Gray. As a big fan of the Firebird series, I was super excited to see what she did with this story, that focuses on the destruction of Krypton.

The beginning was a little slow and although it took some time for things to build up, I loved how fast-paced it got in the second half of the book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait for book 2!

House of El Book One: The Shadow Threat comes out on Jan 5, 2021

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

This was such a great look into the history of Krypton! I loved seeing all the action, and learning more about Kryptonian characters and lore! Anyone that loves Superman should pick this up, and I highly recommend it!

In comic books, there are a few famous disasters. Thomas and Martha Wayne being gunned down in an alley; Crisis on Infinite Earths; oh, and the horrific destruction of Krypton which leads to Superman coming to earth.  The new graphic novel House of El Book On: The Shadow Threat is the first in a graphic novel trilogy about the destruction of Krypton.

In the first graphic novel, we are introduced to Zahn, the child of Krypton's wealthy elite, and Sera, a soldier who is basically an afterthought to most of Krypton. The way the world is structured, the two should never even come into contact, but an extinction-level event brings them together. Sera is used to experiencing groundquakes and being put into situations where she's not expected to survive. Zahn has discovered an underground world of people fighting to find out what is really going on despite leadership's continued promises that everything is fine. 

If you're a Superman fine, chances are you're going to enjoy seeing figured like General Zod, Jor-El and Lara, and a few references sprinkled through. I wasn't a big fan of this one, despite the fact that I've loved others involving the Teen Titans and Wonder Woman. House of El feels extremely heavy handed on the important concepts of global warning and leadership looking out for their own interest. These are definitely serious threats, but this one felt like they were pushing it a touch too hard. Sera and Zahn are hard to connect to as characters and I found myself not really caring too much when there were other figures like Lara and Jor-El doing serious work. 

House of El Book One: The Shadow Threat is available from DC January 5, 2021.

Before Superman, there was Krypton, and Krypton, before it exploded, has quite a backstory, and House of El is delving into that.

Each person is genetically engineered to be the perfect thing that they are supposed to be. If you are to be a soldier, you are the perfect one. but what if you weren't genetically engineered. That is the mystery at the heart of this, the first in what it is assumed to be a series of stories told before Superman was even born.

This first volume, only begins to touch on what makes a perfect, anything. If you are born into a house, does that make you what it is? Are all the genetics in place, and what happens with the things are removed.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

I received an advanced copy of House of El: The Shadow Threat through NetGalley so that I could share my review with you!

On Krypton, each person is designed to be perfectly suited to their role in life. Creating perfect citizens is the most efficient way to create a perfect society, yet something still seems amiss. This seemingly perfect society masks a restless lower class and a dying planet, two problems that collide on numerous fronts. Zahn is one of Krypton’s wealthy elites, created to one day help rule the planet. Sera is one of Krypton’s soldiers, made to be obedient, fearless, and strong. In the ideal Kryptonian model, the two never would’ve crossed paths. But, when Sera becomes the first test subject in a secret experiment, their lives become irreversibly intertwined. Together they must face Krypton’s dark underbelly or else risk losing their “perfect” planet altogether.

You can get your copy of House of El: The Shadow Threat on January 5th from DC Comics!

As a long-time fan of all things Krypton and Superman, I adored House of El: The Shadow Threat! Though the two leads are new faces to the comic book scene, there are many appearances of well-known characters, fitting this book wonderfully into the canon of Superman stories. Claudia Gray wove together plot lines and conflicts together to create an engaging and unique graphic novel! I especially enjoyed watching Zahn and Sera’s relationship evolve as the story progressed. The illustrations, by Eric Zawadski, were beautifully intricate, capturing the complexity of Krypton in all its technological glory!

My Recommendation-

If you love Superman’s history but wish you could get a different perspective on the last days of Krypton, you will love The Shadow Threat! This graphic novel is the first in a new series about the teens of Krypton, so there’s plenty more content to come!

I received an ARC of House of El Book One: The Shadow Threat by Claudia Gray thanks to the publisher through NetGalley.

I do want to start this review off by saying I am not a DC fan (comics, movies, etc.) but I have been trying to increase my comic/manga reading (because I love them and have not had the opportunity to enjoy them lately) and this looked really interesting (I also did not notice it was DC until I was already approved to review it). However, this was nothing like I was expecting in a great way.

The art style is not one I am a huge fan of, but it is very classic superhero comic style, so it works for this well story. Although, the main characters, actually everyone encountered, do not fit in the superhero category. This might be why I liked it so much. It’s two ‘normal’ people. Whether that continues to be the case throughout the trilogy, I doubt, but I am already invested!

The story gives me slight Romeo and Juliet vibes (“two house both alike in dignity, in fair [Krypton] where we lay our scene”). However, there is no real romance in the story, although I do ship two of the characters strongly. Their banter is just so great!

The action scenes are wonderful and you can feel the emotions rising high in them as they are life-or-death situations. I also enjoyed that the POV changed between two main characters, with ‘plot-establishing’ POVs from others. It made the story feel very cohesive.

The end (chapter 3) really ramps up the story and then leaves you hanging on by a rope (ha!). I really need to know what is going to happen next! I highly recommend this quick read, whether you like DC or not, because it really keeps you engaged throughout the whole book.

The Shadow Threat (House of El #1) is the tale of Krypton, before everything went so horribly wrong. Written by Claudia Gray (the detail that caught my attention to begin with) and illustrated by Eric Zawadski, this is a fascinating tale that shows a darker side of Krypton.

Zahn is one of the elites on Krypton. He was born into wealth, power, and privilege, and only recently has he realized just how much farther ahead that has brought him in life. How many times it has saved his life, or changed it for the better. Perhaps that is the reason why he's intent to join a rebellion.

Sera was born and bred to be one of Krypton's soldiers – literally. It's her job to protect the people, and to take on all of the risky missions specifically designed for the soldiers. She's one of the best at her job, despite all of the constraints.

You'd think that these two would never meet, but you'd be wrong. Their paths are about to collide in the events of The Shadow Threat, as both struggle to come to terms with all of the signs they've been seeing.

I'm going to be honest with you here, I really wasn't sure what to expect from The Shadow Threat. While I do read a lot of comics, I'm arguably the weakest when it comes to Superman knowledge. That being said, I just knew that I had to give it a try when I saw Claudia Gray's name on the project.

I'm actually pretty happy that I took a chance and gave it a go. Though I'm certain my experience will be drastically different from somebody who knows everything about Superman and his home planet.

The art style felt almost Atlantean at times, yet it actually worked quite nicely for Krypton and all of the advancements it has available. I adored the color palette, and for the most part, liked the character designs as well.

The differing plots revolving around Zahn and Sera were fascinating. Both had such strong personalities, and plenty of reason to be questioning the status quo (even if it is truly the last thing they wanted to be doing).

It raised a lot of questions along the way, and I for one am actually really looking forward to seeing what happens in the next installment of the series. That may be my lack of knowledge speaking there, I'm not certain. I'm not worried though, as it will be a fun read regardless.

I only meant to download this today but I got completely sucked in and ended up devouring all of it in one sitting. I'm not super familiar with Superman lore beyond the basics, but that didn't hinder my enjoyment of the story.

The characters are interesting and compelling and the stakes are high from the start - and really feel like it. I really enjoyed reading about Zahn and Sera and their friends, as well as their blossoming friendship and potential for more. Of course, it ended far sooner than I would have liked, but it was a great length to whet the appetite for the story while still leaving potential for more.

I've really enjoyed Claudia Gray's work in the past, and this was no exception.

The art was really great, with easily distinguishable characters, tension and drama, great colors, and a throwback comic-book style. It definitely enhanced the reading experience.

I will definitely be picking up the next books in the series as soon as they're available.

This book is set on krypton from the superman mythology but it really doesn’t have anything to do with superheroes other than the backstory of superman. The main theme is about genetic predisposition and genetic engineering with regards to social caste and philosophy. It wasn’t very captivating with the main characters but the story was new and interesting and some ways. By definition they were very one-sided. The art was fine. There isn’t much conclusion in book one so you need to read book two.

While the art was beautiful and the story fast-paced, I found it difficult to get into. I couldn't figure out who any of the characters were or what was going on. I feel that the authors assumed I knew more about their world than I actually do. Maybe reading it twice will help.

This is part one of a three part graphic novel series for DC comics. It follows two teens on Krypton as they uncover the truth about what is really going on on the planet. For those familiar with Superman, they know the tragic fate of Krypton and will be eager to read this prequel. As someone who isn't familiar with Superman, I found this comic a little confusing and hard to follow. Some of the other graphic novels for teens have been more straightforward and been more of origin stories. While the action was fun, and did leave on an interesting cliffhanger, it did not grab me as much as the other DC teen titles. I do think that teens who like Superman will thoroughly enjoy this title.

This graphic novel is the first in a series of three that details the tragic decline and destruction of the planet Krypton.

Zahn and Sera are from two totally different classes on Krypton, so they should never have the opportunity to cross paths, but when the quakes start getting worse, Zahn begins looking for ways to help. Soon he and Sera begin talking about the problems happening to everyone on the planet. The leaders won't listen to anyone who says anything about the inevitability of Krypton's end, but a group of rebels begins to hold meetings, and Zahn pledges to join in. Sera runs missions with her crew to find and stabilize other planets to live on, but none of them are working out. Both Zahn and Sera will have to team up to help save as many Kryptonians as possible before it's too late.

I enjoyed this first installment in the series, and it helped me put some of the pieces of Krypton's story together. It was interesting to see Superman's parents implement their plan to save their people. It was easy for me to care about the main characters and hope that they were able to find a way to save as many people as possible. The illustrations beautifully complemented the story and were essential for me to see how everything played out. I highly recommend this book and I am looking forward to reading the next installment.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. A positive review was not required, and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Curious about what exactly happened to Krypton? This graphic novel follows two characters, Zahn who is part of a royal family on Krypton and Sera who is a soldier. You get to find out what Jor-El and Lara were up to as seen through the eyes of two others leading up to the end of Krypton.

As a big fan of both Supergirl and other books by Claudia Gray, I was very excited for this title, and I wasn’t let down. It is an interesting story, and it left me wanting to read the next volume already. So good! I can make an educated guess regarding the fates of these characters, but I’m curious to see all of their story that has yet to come before that.

Like others in this new YA graphic novel series by DC, this can be enjoyed by longtime DC fans as well as those new to the world of Krypton.

A new story about Superman's planet, Krypton, before its fall. Zahn is a Krypton elite; Sera is a soldier. They are genetically engineered to be perfect at their respective jobs. Krypton is rotting inside. The governing body is lying to its citizens. Scientists Jor-El and his wife Lara are trying to fix Krypton, but is it too late?