Product Description: The Eisner Award-winning team of superscribe Brian Michael Bendis and artist extraordinaire Alex Maleev unleash an epic story of mankind's struggle against the alien threat of the Covenant! Picking up from the conclusion of blockbuster video game Halo 2, the must-read saga reveals how the Master Chief, while onboard a hostile ship headed towards Earth, is battling against Covenant forces! Intertwined with Master Chief's interstellar one-man-war is the saga of a great American city's rebellion and downfall, two disparate lives' collision and shared fate, and the Convenant's hunt for an ancient relic of untold power and value. With hope dwindling and the fate of humanity hanging by a thread, is there any chance for a future? Journey into the Halo universe! Collects Halo: Uprising #1-4 and Marvel Spotlight: Halo.
Maybe it won't meet your expectations, but it'll still be a good read. I enjoy Halo. I love graphic novels. Now, the two have been mashed together with a couple of legends in charge. Should be the perfect combo, no? That's what I thought when I pre-ordered it. Turns out it didn't meet my expectations, but it didn't completely destroy them either.
Chronology: One thing that was good is that it created a connection between the story arcs in between Halo 2 and Halo 3. There was a bit of a gap in between those two games that left many of us wondering how we got to that opening cutscene in Halo 3. Then the gameplay started and I'm sure many of you, like myself, brushed that to the side and started to whip some covenant behind. To be honest, even after Halo 3 was finished, the story void between the two games didn't even enter my head. After all, if you are playing Halo for the story, your priorities are different from the typical gamer. All that said, when I heard about this novel being released my curiosity was piqued.
Writing: I'm a little iffy on the writing. It started out fairly lacking and through the first half of the comic I felt that the writer (Bendis) rushed things to get this little project out of the way. It doesn't feel like a labor of love in the least. A few clichéd moments, a couple of them nearly sent a literal groan out of me. All in all, it feels rushed and less than what I've come to expect from Bendis. As we enter the middle of the story things pick up a bit. A few clichéd moments are still sprayed in, but not nearly as bad as the beginning. Bendis really lets his talent shine as we near the end. His foreshadowing techniques are impeccable, leaving you smiling and nodding once they are elucidated. This is subjective, but I think he did a great job with the ending. The story was shorter than expected, but satisfying, nonetheless.
Artistry: This was done well. Not going to say it would be in the upper echelon of the graphic novel art, but definitely above average. The drawings have that dark gritty graphic novel feel that fans of the scene have grown to know and love. A few scenes seem rushed here also, and it makes me wonder how much time they were given to complete this project originally. That said, it is only a few scenes; the vast majority of the art is outstanding. I wouldn't say Maleev has outdone himself, but he did a quality job.
All in all, I wasn't blown away, but I wasn't disappointed. This is a step forward for video game stories in different mediums, and after the latest Uwe Boll flick, I think you will agree that it is a breath of fresh air.
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
