| Title | : | The Losers Omnibus, Vol. 1 |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1401227333 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781401227333 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 166 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2010 |
This collection introduces The Losers, formerly an elite U.S. Special Forces unit that served as the covert bloody hand of America until they stumbled across a C.I.A. secret they couldn't ignore. The C.I.A. tried to kill them, but they're about to learn that it takes more than one try to eliminate The Losers.
The Losers Omnibus, Vol. 1 Reviews
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A heist comic that sets itself apart by making the target the American government, or at least a shadowy faction that works within it. Our heroes are former CIA, seemingly killed in action by their own handler after discovering the wrong secret. After years in hiding, they've gone on the offensive, working to take down the handler that betrayed them.
When you get right down to it, The Losers is a heist series. For something like this, I need plans that I can believe, daringly executed. And luckily, we get that here. I also like that the team is allowed realistic fumbles on the way. Most of the characters are memorable, though a few are a bit thin. Every now and then, the dialog will start to sound like an unexceptional action movie, but for the most part it isn't bad. Huge, huge bonus points for adding Aisha, a woman who is capable, dangerous, and, wonder of wonders, not sexualized. Look at her! She's wearing pants! She's neither eye candy nor love interest! I wish this weren't so rare.
The best thing may be the vivid, action-packed art. Yes, it does kind of look like the storyboard for a big-budget action movie. That's why it works so well, because you know what's happening as it happens. -
Well now this was a refreshing slap in the face. Great characters, impressive art, a politically charged storyline not very far removed from our own reality. This all comes together in this Volume 1. The kinetic nature of the action is well captured, but it's not just senseless violence, there's usually a goal in mind, and even then it tells a story.
Reading the introduction, this book was a kind of love letter to Shane Black movies, and it makes perfect sense...however this might even be more enjoyable for me because it hasn't been tamed by Hollywood. I know there's a movie and it's probably de-fanged for mass consumption, but I love that 2 Brits made such a great book about a US Black-Ops team.
I think I also loved this because I feel like this is a modern take on the A-Team as well, with the colourful characters and strong relationships.
Strongly, highly recommended. Thoroughly enjoyable on so many levels. -
One of the all-time best action comic series. Jock's art in particular is incredible.
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I've read a TPB of the first arc of this series some years ago, and i really enjoyed it. Just like the movie. Action packed stories, with a nice plot, turn arounds, all out violence, treasons and all of that usually tends to have my taste. So, reading this again, was the same feeling.
We got The Losers, this Special Op group, with great skilled guys, who's trying to get a guy just known as "Max", after he tries to kill them, for something they discover. We don't get much of what happened in this first book, but it's super fun to follow the team's plan to get him. And we got our badass girl Aisha on the mix, even if we don't exactly why she's helping them.
Andy Diggle, although having some average to lame runs out there, is a capable writer, and i really like what he does here. Nice dialogues, characters with different personalities (and you cared about them) and a nice plot, really well builded. And with the art, Jock is not drawing all issues here, but when he does, he is killing it. Man is just drawing Mission Impossible on pages. Amazing volume, let's see where the story will go. -
A well constructed paint by numbers heist book. 3.5.
World: Jock's art is stunning. Ever since Black Mirror I have been a big fan, it's framing and characters. The world building is solid and we'll done. It's done in dialog and little of it is info dumped. There's enough of it to keep the story going and just enough not to be overly military and jargon heavy.
Story: Well paced and we'll written, this is a well executed heist book. The pieces and the tropes are all there, even down to the team and the betrayal and the cloak and dagger and the stuff that goes to shit during the heist. It's well don't, just not super original. It's the characters that sets this book apart.
Characters: The characters are fun, they have distinct personal voices each and fit into heist clichés to a T. The dialog is snappy and fun and oozes the right amount of cool to make readers care.
A fun and we'll executed heist that's is as original as the genre itself.
Onward to the next book! -
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Crime is probably one of my favourite genres, if only because it takes a great amount of talent to get it right. I had very high expectations of The Losers, from all the good things I've heard I was pretty sure it wouldn't be nearly what I imagined it might be. However am I happy with what I got!
Before I can even talk about the story, let us talk about the art. It captures the tone and severity of the characters so perfectly that if it was a single shade darker or lighter it wouldn't have worked at all. There's so much action in a story like this one, it's full to the brim with quick scenes that take pages of expertly planned movements to pull off and yet where so many artists go wrong The Losers never missed a beat. I followed along with each character as they moved through the page, dodging bullets, and running fast to try and pull off the impossible. If not for the art this story would not have worked as well as it did. Also, if not for the vivid colouring it wouldn't look so pretty! There are so many pages that I want to hang on my wall and just look at them all the time.
What made it all this even better was that I wasn't expecting it to look this good. Beautiful is not a word you would expect to use about a book that has such a high body count!
The Losers was just amazing all around. The dialogue is fantastic and you can tell that this is a very well thought-out story. Although the characters didn't get a lot of time to get fleshed out with all the action going on you know who they are and what they do within seconds of meeting them. They all have the same mission, but each has their own motivations and that made them interesting. I rooted for them before I even knew what I was rooting for!
What I was most worried about was Aisha. She's the only female on the team and I was worried. Thankfully, she's probably the scariest of the bunch. I'm so use to females being in the role of "femme fatales" in this genre that it is so nice to see a girl who isn't seductive, isn't cautious, and doesn't shy away from unapologetically killing people that get in her way. The guys may talk shit behind her back, but there is no way they'd say anything to her face unless they don't want it any more.
Then there's the plot that brings this bad boy together. When our team gets murdered by one of there own the good don't ever stay dead for long. Now their mission is to get back what's been taken from them.
In American fiction the idea of having to fight a corrupted government is a common concept (I can't imagine why), but I have never seen it done quite like this. The Losers is partly a story about the military and partly a heist story. I absolutely love a thought out, complex heist and this book is one after another. The Losers is so much fun and I'm incredibly excited to see where this takes us in volume two! For right now I'm content to read this book again and again. -
It's a real feat for an espionage comic (or any piece of media, for that matter) to feel fresh and original. It's even more amazing when you realize The Losers is now 14 years old. With a combination of hard action, explosive art, heist mechanics and international conspiracies, Andy Diggle and Jock managed to make something extremely unique that has really withstood the test of time.
This is the second time I've read this particular volume, the first time being about 7 years ago. I don't remember much from that first read beyond enjoying it, and reading it in advance of the (terrible) movie that was based on it. Having matured in my comics taste since then, I thought this might not quite hold up. I was so glad to be wrong! It's a page-turning, mystery-building, kinetic force of a book, and I blazed through it with just as much fervor as I did the first time.
The setup is pretty traditional: a team of absurdly skilled black ops soldiers has been "killed" for something they witnessed on a mission. Only turns out they escaped their deaths, and are now on a revenge spree to get back at the corrupt government officials who tried to off them. But the plotting and heist writing are so good, they more than elevate this series beyond that been-there-done-that premise. The book keeps you on the edge of your seat, and manages to surprise you constantly throughout.
Its one downfall is its character work. Diggle spends very little time differentiating the characters in this volume, seemingly saving all of that for the (much longer) volume 2. You get very little for each of them beyond their archetype: the stoic leader, the wisecracker, the "deadly woman" (which is another thing this book lacks: any diversity of female characters), the quiet one, the family man. That's about all we get of these guys, but luckily, this isn't really a book about people. It's about the unit and the jobs they pull off, so I'm willing to overlook the thin characterizations for the sheer frenetic pacing and twisty writing.
All in all, while this book is a great read, the series' quality will ultimately be tied to its ending. This volume ends on a pretty big cliffhanger, and with the plot being one of the most important elements of this book, it's hard to really judge it as a whole without having read the rest yet. With any luck, though, Diggle knows where he's going with this, and it will read like a solid spy novel. Fingers crossed. -
The Laughing Listener
Rating: 5 Stars
Ummmmm this book was SO. AWESOME. It's been days since I read this and my head is still spinning. So much action jammed into one book! Every friggin page had something going on. I COULDN'T PUT IT DOWN.
The plot of this is super clever and intriguing and I love the way it was put together. We uncover little splices of information while piecing together what happened to them in the past and it made me just as desperate as The Losers to find out what was going on. Plus, the art is just friggin' amazing. Jock did an awesome, kick-ass job and—I don't know if this was just me (a graphic novel noob)—but the panels seemed super dynamic and eye-catching.
Also, AISHA IS THE MOST BAD ASS LADY EVER??? I. Freaking. Love. Her. I want to BE her. Watching her beat the crap out of those douchebags to protect those women had me fist pumping in the air and yelling. And OF COURSE, Jensen is just the friggin' best. I love that he was able to bring comedic relief in between all the tense action. He had me stitches MULTIPLE times. "In undies? Me? No way, Jose! I'm wearin' A HAT!"
FINAL WORD
HELL YES!! This graphic novel was kick-ass awesome and I can't wait to start the next one to see what happens! -
This action packed story about a group of soldiers going rogue to uncover a corrupt government is not the type of stuff that I usually read. However, I always appreciate cleverness, and the The Losers operate with style. They execute plans with Ocean's 11 type precision and that will always entertain me. I've never seen the movie so I'm not sure how they compare but the character developement is lacking with some of the players such as Clay, the leader. Others leave something to be desired, such as the comic relief hacker Jenson. Perhaps this type of story doesn't require too much background but it is something I'm always looking for.
Also, I'm not a fan of an abundance of techo-army jargon. It loses me. I understand that some it needed to keep with the tone of the story but sometimes it just really took me out of the story and disrupted the flow.
Otherwise a pretty entertaining action packed adventure. -
Yup. The book is better than the movie.
The movie wasn't terrible; but it wasn't great, either.
The book it was based on, however, is pretty enjoyable.
I was able to pick it up at the library, but unfortunately, they don't have the sequel; and this 300-page omnibus was interesting enough to make me want to continue the story. -
The Losers are a group of five special forces operatives who, upon being betrayed and left for dead after an assassination mission, commit themselves to revenge. Teamed up with an agent of questionable motives named Aisha, the team attempt to track down the illusive Max, an agency spook, who was behind their elimination.
It’s a great and action-filled story although, at times, it gets a little convoluted. But all the double-cross stories these days tend to do that much to the chagrin of my attention span. Still worth the read though. -
Did you know the movie "The Losers" was actually a graphic novel before it was a movie? And did you know just how much was edited/cut out to make it just one movie? Quite a bit. The casting was spot on though. (I also think it adds some scenes that really add the story, but yeah.)
Not my favourite style of illustration/colouring, but I enjoy what they do with it. The characters feel all distinct (except Roque and Clay, imo.) The story is easy to follow, even though it may seem convoluted at times.
I'm a fan of the funnies, a fan of the action and scared of Aisha. As everyone should be. -
I loved this graphic novel. Action, comedy and an interesting storyline. Such great characters with a tragic back story. I loved Jensen the most. The smart, funny one. He could kick butt but still had a hilarious sense of humour. The heist aspect of this story was intense and a lot of fun to read. I now can't wait to read the second volume.
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Fell in love with the movie immediately when it came out. It's still to this day, in my top three favorite movies. I don't know why I put off reading the source material for so long. It's just as fun as the movie. Loved seeing how some of my favorite scenes from the movie came right out of these pages. They cast that movie really well. Can't wait to read book 2.
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I've seen the movie. I knew it was based off a comic and was curious about the similarities and differences between the two... I gotta say I like the comics a lot because you get more info on everything. Would definitely read again.
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Thoroughly spoilt by the movie adaptation. It's not the best in genre but worthy of a read.
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A 21st century A-Team story that's built around corruption and drug running in the CIA. Plenty action, solid twists and a compelling ensemble. I can see why this got a movie.
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Andy Diggle is a fave.
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Like an intelligent conspiracy theory action movie. Going to seek out book 2.
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3.5
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Action non particolarmente ispirato né originale.
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Tis a smart, intriguing script well matched to stylish, appealing art. I wish the language was cleaner, but that's the nature of this inprint.
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I'm madly in love with the movie, The Losers, and have watched it many, many times. There's something about a good buddy soldier film that just gets me.
Unfortunately, the graphic novel was a bit disappointing, at least initially. It was rather skeletal in terms of the plot and characters and their relationships and motivations. I commend the movie makers for expanding on this so well.
Okay, well the movie's plotline with Max was a bit over the top, but I'll forgive it for that because of everything else. This was one of two of the significant changes from book to film, with the other being Aisha.
Typically, Aisha was sexed up for the film, with the latest It Girl cast in the role. I have nothing against Zoe Saldana, though, and I liked her in it. It also resulted in sex scenes that rank high on my favourite sex scenes list. Her history and motivations were greatly changed to suit the plot and make her a love interest. It's Hollywood. What do you expect?
The Aisha in the book is equally - if not more - sexy, but in a far different way. She rarely speaks, and when she does, it's with deadly purpose. When she acts, it is with the deadly ferocity of a tigress. I absolutely adore Jock's depictions of her.
Towards the end of the graphic novel, I became more engaged with the plot and the hunt for max. Enough to make me want to read on. But I'm certain that my love for the movie helped me get this far. -
So, I really, really love The Losers movie (and not merely because of Chris Evans). I also somehow ended up really, really invested in my Losers ship of choice. Consequently, reading the comics seemed like a logical choice, especially when looking for a good break from the torturous exercise in marathon reading that is A Song of Ice and Fire.
While there are some significant differences between the comic and the film adaptation, this omnibus covers a lot of familiar territory. Having watched the movie way too many times, reading the initial sections was an interesting experience in large part because of how many shots from the film were revealed to be nearly exactly recreations of comic panels. The parts of this which moved beyond the film’s timeline didn’t leave quite the same impression, although they were certainty enjoyable. The team dynamic remains fun, especially when my brain is cutting and pasting the movie cast into everything, and Jensen stays just as awesome and fun and adorable as Chris made him in the movie. Also, ACTIVE VOLCANO FUNTIMES.
