What is the first thought that comes to mind when you read: Samurai’s in space? Is it Star Wars? Now take away the image of the lightsaber and replace it with a metal sword. Take away the vast amount of aliens and replace with cyborgs and robots and you’ll get an idea of what you’re in for with 7th Sword. I take a look at this brand new science fiction series from IDW to determine, is it good?
The 7th Sword (IDW Publishing)
This series opens with guards protecting a gas tanker as they cross a vast desert. We quickly find out they are protecting the gas from “miner-matics”, otherwise androids built for mine work. They smell the gas and want it. The protagonist is named Cray and he’s a war torn hero who knows the ways of the samurai. He’s lucky to be fighting these robots though, because they slice so good. As he’s battling them hand to hand, a mishap with a gun gets him blown sky high. The book’s main story is this strange traveler encountering an oasis city that’s soon to be attacked by a massive army.
Is that Grievance?!
Writer John Raffo does a decent job setting up the world. This is his first direct to comic work and one might note things move relatively slowly in the character department. We’re getting all the set up, from the mysterious warrior character to the city he most assuredly will need to protect in coming issues. The bad guys are equally mysterious in this first issue, there’s not much exposition to go on, but they do look foreboding and seem interesting enough. In fact, I’d wager the bad guys are the most interesting aspect, largely because the city of good guys and the protagonist are so bland. They don’t convey anything special or unique, at least not yet, but the bad guys are pretty disturbing and monstrous.
Whhhsssk!
Is It Good?
This comic is just okay. The bad guys and their alien minions are cool, but that doesn’t make the price of admission worth all that much. The story is also a bit cliched. You could call this Mad Max and just replace his gun with a sword and call it a day. That said there could be some magic in this series, it just hasn’t been cast yet.
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