Vol. 1: Tin Stars, Descender

I'm somewhere between a three and a four on this. Nguyen's artwork is incredible, and some of the best I've seen from him. I love his designs, and the watercolor look works extremely well for the painterly vibe of the story. Lemire etches a nook of his own in the sci-fi world here, with a lovingly developed world, full of unique races and planets. All of these ideas hit familiar notes though, and at the end of volume one, I'm still waiting for Lemire to show me why this work is different from what inspired it. The story is focused on the secret history of advanced robotics, featuring giant Celestial look-alikes and a Pinocchio figure for a main character. The characterization is unfortunately off the mark, relying heavily on simple archetypes, without providing any real grounding depth. There's a lot of potential, and the world isn't at all unattractive, but I wasn't blown away, when I was really hoping to be. I'll probably be in for book two, and the twist at the end was enough to keep me on board, but I'm not sure what sort of heights Descender will soar to.

This was a really great start to what is sure to be another Lemire classic. It shares quite a few of the same story tropes and themes as Lemire's Sweet Tooth such as isolation, what it means to be human, a child possibly holding answers to the apocalypse, and loss of loved ones.

Nguyen's art is absolutely gorgeous, while I agree with the other review wishing it was in a larger format, that's not up to the publisher (Image), the creators have to pay for the format their work gets published in, larger format costs them more money. But I'm very pleased with the size it is, the water colors are magnificent, character designs are incredible, and the scenery is jaw dropping.

If you like comics by Lemire, or sci-fi stories about sentient A.I., or are a fan of beautiful artwork, I recommend this book.

Really enjoyed the watercolor type artwork. It’s a fast paced, multi tiered story that keep you engaged and wanting more. Great story telling, fun characters. It’s emotional but hard sci-fi. I grabbed it on a whim and I’m working my way through the whole series. This series poses questions that are big but not overly drawn out. This deluxe version has bonus artwork in the back which is very cool to see since I loved that aspect. There are adult themes so this is not appropriate for a younger reader.

[I received a copy of this book through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.]

Some time in the far future, the worlds of the United Galactic Council are attacked by unknwon robots soon nicknamed "Harvesters". Ten years later, after robots were outlawed and culled, a child-companion by the name of Tim-21 wakes up alone in a deserted mining colony, only to find out that the kid he was assigned to is gone. Tim doesn't know yet that he may be the key to unlocking the secret behind the Harvesters, and potentially to fight them in case they ever return, which is why Captain Telsa and former robotics genius Quon try to find him before others do. Others who would like nothing more than to scrap him.

An enjoyable comics, even though it's not the most original story I've read so far in term of such themes and how they're being explored: the now fallen scientist, the sexy military officer following in her father's steps, a cult bent on exterminating robots... Tim's memories were quite interesting, as they touch upon his relationship with his foster family, and what it meant to him, but I can only hope they will be explored further in a next volume, since it's definitely worth more. A couple of things didn't make too much sense, too; for instance, why does Tim—a robot-companion created for *cgildren*—carry an embedded weapon? (Unless it's related to how robots came to be, but even then, it doesn't stand to logics to leave them with such weapons when everything else, like their height and AI programs, could be changed.)

I quite liked the artwork (watercolour illustrations); I found it really beautiful for close-ups, though a bit confusing when it came to larger-scope scenes. Some fonts were also hard to read, and didn't fit too well with the overall mood set by the graphics.

This first volume ends on a cliffhanger that may have lots of potential in the next one, so here, too, I hope the story will find a good way to explore this new twist.

Its worth it for the art. But the writing is very... I don't want to be mean, but its very flat and artificial to the point where I never got immersed in the story or the world. I think the most important tests any work of fiction needs to pass are: did I feel something? Do I care what happens next? and did I at any point forget I was reading a story? Well... frankly the answer is 'no' to all 3 of those. I have read plenty of other graphic novels where this was not the case. But maybe you will have a different experience! Maybe space opera is your jam, or maybe this style of writing is what youre into and youll have a lot of fun reading this. But for me, when there are still so many more series for me to buy and try, I cant deny I'm disappointed.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

To be honest, I only picked this title because it was free and I was looking to check out a new graphic novel. I wasn’t even sure if I would like it. However, I LOVED it and I’m sorry it ended.

Tim-21 is a very lovable character. The story was emotionally gripping as it went over Tim-21 assimilating into his human family and then waking from 10 years of sleep to find his whole family and their colony have been wiped out by a gas leak in their mining colony. He sent out a distress call that alerted the whole galaxy to his existence. He became a prime target for his supposed relation to the Harvesters, which were AI that had earlier attacked several planets in the galaxy. Because of fear of robots following the attacks, many robots were destroyed and the Gnishians were major players in purging all robot life. Tim-21 along with the scientist that created him (and just maybe the Harvesters) and a few other players were kidnapped by this horrid looking creatures in order to destroy all the robots in the party. The story ended with their rescue by someone whose son, Tim-22, was identical to Tim-21.

Some of the characters were really grotesque looking but the artwork was really detailed. Sometimes a little bit too detailed, like when one of the characters was tortured by having their arm cut off. I could have lived without that but this is not a graphic novel for kids. My favorite characters were the three main robots, Tim-21, Bandit the dog-like robot, and Driller. They were all very endearing in their own ways and I felt emotionally invested in all three.

Like I said this was a fantastic reading experience. I am looking forward to future installments.

5 stars.

Three stars, purely because this is mostly an opinion piece, and others have clearly enjoyed this comic far more than I have. To each their own, you know?

I personally give this comic a 5/10, because of it's just sort of Okay nature. That is, while Descender is doubtlessly a very well put-together book, with beautiful art and acceptable characters, it didn't inspire to me to read on or find out what happens next. The characters are recycled, (Disillusioned Genius, Ambitious Commander and Stern Sidekick, Bad Guy with Claws), the plot also a little over-done (Chosen One finds his way in a world that just wants to destroy him), though it's not so predictable I wanted to roll my eyes. A little robot boy wakes up ten years after an Apocalypse Machine destroys stuff (and the resulting cull of all androids by surviving humans) and is hunted after by Space Pirates and White-Suited Government alike because his code (gasp, hush) resembles that of the Apocalypse Machine. Notice I can use vague terms and still completely capture what the factions in this story are. Timbot (boy robot) is innocent of the capricious ways of humans, and but with the help of his friends, Dog and Grizzled Sidekick, he might find his way to his Destiny.

The art is beautiful and the story Okay-ish (nothing original, nothing complex, but cute enough to make me smile sometimes) but when put together it lacks a certain something that makes me want to buy Vol. 2.

Descender is emotion wrapped in wires, and it's a great start to a space opera focused more on the existentialism of what makes something sentient.

​Ten years after "Harvesters" (robots bigger than you can imagine) have pretty much decimated eight fully populated planets, a robot named TIM 21 awakes to find his mining colony in ruins, and his family missing. ​He discovers that after the mass destruction of the planets, humans took to robot cullings, nearly wiping out a good bit of the AI population.

- Every character is pretty interesting. From a scheming robot scientist, to a human murdering mining droid, each character actually has something unique to add to the plot.

-Though slightly reminiscent of the movie AI, it goes into full space opera mode as soon as the pages get to turning. The only time it feels overly trope like is when TIM 21 is remembering his family, and the compassion and love he experienced with them. This is done through a flashback and isn't as necessary to the plot as the rest of the history that's explained.

-The backstory that Doctor Quon goes into towards the end of the book is more than worth the wait, and fully immerses you in where the story could be going.

-Rating-

M-There is a little bit of graphic violence in this one, it's nothing I wouldn't let a twelve year old read though.

Please see more of my reviews at amandadanadotcom!

I really really enjoyed this! I can't wait to keep reading. The characters have a very real feel. Even the ageless robot boy and alien creatures seem to have original and authentic personalities. The story is just enough. It's not some uber sci-fi filled with gibberish and intellectual nonsense to make you feel dumb. At the same time, it's not some simplistic children's story. There's a lot of heart keeping it from being a dry, bleak, future spacey story.

This takes a slight hit in my rating due to the fact I felt there was a bit too much set up overall. In fact there is set to the set up almost near the end. Yes it felt like ti serves the overall plot, but it felt like it was a bit too much hindsight exposition. By that point I felt it was unnecessary; perhaps better served as a slightly more vague prologue?

Still this is well drawn and the use of color made a strong impact in the panels. Better yet there is a nice story that does intrigue for the most part and definitely opened the door to my interest in finding out what comes next.

Image Comics, and Jeff Lemire, have done it again. A grand first arc, Tin Stars sets the stage for an engrossing, if at times familiar story. But it isn't so much the big idea of the story that anchors its value, here, it's the storytelling brilliance of one Jeff Lemire which is on display yet again.
Watching Jeff Lemire's career arc is like watching a butterfly slowly stretching out it's wings into unbound space, pushing further and further out from that warm cocoon. Lemire's genius is grounded in his ability to tell the small stories within a larger framework, and tell them seemingly effortlessly with human grace rarely witnessed on the stage of Graphic Novelization. He's building a case to be placed among the greats at this, the Gaimans and Vaughans of the comics world, and missing any entry in his growing cannon is akin to missing a National Park on a cross country road trip.
This book is no exception. It's another step into a bigger world, a bigger playground for Lemire to tell his grandly personal stories at the core of all of our humanity, whether we be robot, alien, or otherwise. The pacing is engrossing, the twists turn just in time, and the story feels ripe by the time you turn the last page.
As with so many wonderful first volumes, however, if there's any reason not to buy this it's just that: you'll be left demanding more. I found myself back at the shop the next day, having read the volume in one sitting, buying loose copies of the next two issues. I might need to go to Image rehab...

I picked this one up because of Lemire's name, and I was not disappointed. The breadth of his creativity -- from stark realism like "Essex County" through dystopian fantasy like "Sweet Tooth" -- is remarkable, and "Descender" is another worthy entry. The story has the mood of classic sci-fi -- a feeling robot child left alone in a fallen world, only to be reawakened for a crucial adventure. Dustin Nguyen's drawings are simple and lovely.

As with many Sci-Fi titles, you'll find a good deal of the well-known here. The blend of tech and mysticism, the symbol of innocence, the AI child who's somehow destined to importance--all the tropes we know, and yet. . . You'll find the story well blended, with enough tweaks to keep you interested, enough heart to make you invest, and in such a beautiful, unique art style that you'll turn each page longing to see the beauty of the images. It's a perfectly great story that borrows and surpasses many of its predecessors, presented here in a wonderfully bound grouping that takes you much further into the story than a lot of other Volume 1 Collections will. Well worth your money, well worth your time.

A lot of well written reviews

I like the series to buy it in Collected editions, but not as issue.
Its an interesting universe.

It is colored in a water color style, gives it a feel most comics do not have. Warm one moment, dark and gritty in others.

Each character helps tell a story/part about Descender Universe. And reading it I start to ask questions. Then their answered.

United Galactic Council is the government for several planets, or close to the real world United Nations.
Giant space robots show up and start to destroy things, The races of the United Galactic Council start to call them "Harvesters".

the "Harvesters" break a lot of stuff and races, then leave. Who built them, why were they attacking, will they come back?

The United Galactic Council is now greatly weakened, planets start up old conflicts Others try to gain more control in the universe.
and most hate robots now.

A few years latter robot "Tim 21" becomes active, at the far end of space part of a mining operation (or is it)
Seems "Tim" is important, he and the "Harvesters" share the same code/codex/operating system (its explained a little)

Seems the "Tim" models were targeted by the "Harvesters". (unless I miss read that)
So Tim-21 is very important key to understanding the "Harvesters"

Its nice space opera mystery to read

I am hooked. This is a fantastic sci-fi graphic novel that understands how to keep the reader on the hook. I absolutely LOVE the watercolor drawing/painting scheme. Makes each page outta control beautiful. The language is fun and engaging and the story line keeps you hooked. The ONLY problem with this series is that it is still in progress and I have to wait for the next volume.

40 years old and have never been into comics. The artwork caught my attention and I've been hooked ever since. GREAT Sci fi story and beautiful artwork. Some of the watercolor imagery is as good an example of the art form I've seen. I do prefer the individual comics to the collected editions simply because the delicacy of the pages ads to the elegance. The thicker pages in collected editions tend to be glossier.

On a planet far off in space, an alien machine parks in orbit and threatens a beautiful futuristic civilization; nice to see a future that isn’t Dystopian in a graphic novel. But that was just the prologue, as ten years later we’re on a mining moon, where everyone’s dead except a boy, who’s just woken up and wondering where his mom and brother are amongst all the bodies, which makes it look like the dead planet on Serenity.
Because of that I wondered if the boy knew he was a robot, but that was a red herring; he’s well aware. So he and his dog/robot companion, a la Muffy from Battlestar Galactica—aka Bandit aka Yappy-Bot—look around for anything alive.
At the same time a robotics expert is drafted by a redheaded captain—remember, it’s Telsa, not Tesla—to go looking for the boy bot before mercenaries can nab him, thinking he has something to do with the attack a decade before. After getting shot the kid bot is in some kind of droid purgatory which lasts for quite a bit. The best character might be the drilling robot, who comes up with lines like, “Gladiator bots! Oil will be spilled!” And on the back cover there a shot of little Tim totally channeling Luke Skywalker about to climb into his x-wing.
All in all this was a pretty good story, with fun though flawed characters. If there’s a way to describe the artwork, I would go with bright watercolor. As one would expect there’s a hook for more to come, and after that there’s a small lexicon of planets, but that’s all the extras. But it doesn’t really need anything else, being a complete and well-drawn-out story.

Descender reads like the science fiction book I plotted when I was 15. Depending on who's reading, that can be a nuisance or a dealbreaker. Unfortunately, for me, it's the latter.

It's hard to categorize what makes a comic script unreadable. There's a certain abruptness to it, where nothing seems to flow properly, and everything is told and not shown. The writer's mind is on the world that they've inevitably spent years planning and writing, and the characters and plot are just a way to lay out their fantasy. It's laid out with confidence, and stunning artwork, but it's hollow.

Characters say things that nobody would ever really say, and so cliched I must have written the same things dozens of times in high school - "We've got a problem, Boss", "It's a MACHINE" and the ever-present invitation to an exposition dump, "What is that supposed to mean?". And their actions and the plot are just as contrived, full of holes and conveniences and missed opportunities with never a genuine human reaction to be found among them. There's a constant air over-importance as we're presented with the same robot dream featured in a million other written works, the same space boarding battle, the same alien arena, the same token sex object female the author doesn't even seem to realize they're objectifying.

I may be overly critical. I'm used to Saga, Prophet and Transmetropolitan, and I'm especially averse to writing that reminds me of my old amateur efforts at graphic novel scripts. But when there's such a vast range of quality in the stores 4.5 star rating, you have to start somewhere.

Descender is roughly as robotic as its main character, and substantially more pretentious. When you've got a million comics to choose from, you can safely skip this one.

This has become my favorite comic. At first I would say it is similar story wise to Mass Effect but it goes so much deeper and in different directions it's an amazing story and read. I love this series so much and can't get enough of it.

It's a beautiful space opera with amazing watercolor art.

40 years old and have never been into comics. The artwork caught my attention and I've been hooked ever since. GREAT Sci fi story and beautiful artwork. Some of the watercolor imagery is as good an example of the art form I've seen. I do prefer the individual comics to the collected editions simply because the delicacy of the pages ads to the elegance. The thicker pages in collected editions tend to be glossier.

On a planet far off in space, an alien machine parks in orbit and threatens a beautiful futuristic civilization; nice to see a future that isn’t Dystopian in a graphic novel. But that was just the prologue, as ten years later we’re on a mining moon, where everyone’s dead except a boy, who’s just woken up and wondering where his mom and brother are amongst all the bodies, which makes it look like the dead planet on Serenity.
Because of that I wondered if the boy knew he was a robot, but that was a red herring; he’s well aware. So he and his dog/robot companion, a la Muffy from Battlestar Galactica—aka Bandit aka Yappy-Bot—look around for anything alive.
At the same time a robotics expert is drafted by a redheaded captain—remember, it’s Telsa, not Tesla—to go looking for the boy bot before mercenaries can nab him, thinking he has something to do with the attack a decade before. After getting shot the kid bot is in some kind of droid purgatory which lasts for quite a bit. The best character might be the drilling robot, who comes up with lines like, “Gladiator bots! Oil will be spilled!” And on the back cover there a shot of little Tim totally channeling Luke Skywalker about to climb into his x-wing.
All in all this was a pretty good story, with fun though flawed characters. If there’s a way to describe the artwork, I would go with bright watercolor. As one would expect there’s a hook for more to come, and after that there’s a small lexicon of planets, but that’s all the extras. But it doesn’t really need anything else, being a complete and well-drawn-out story.

Descender reads like the science fiction book I plotted when I was 15. Depending on who's reading, that can be a nuisance or a dealbreaker. Unfortunately, for me, it's the latter.

It's hard to categorize what makes a comic script unreadable. There's a certain abruptness to it, where nothing seems to flow properly, and everything is told and not shown. The writer's mind is on the world that they've inevitably spent years planning and writing, and the characters and plot are just a way to lay out their fantasy. It's laid out with confidence, and stunning artwork, but it's hollow.

Characters say things that nobody would ever really say, and so cliched I must have written the same things dozens of times in high school - "We've got a problem, Boss", "It's a MACHINE" and the ever-present invitation to an exposition dump, "What is that supposed to mean?". And their actions and the plot are just as contrived, full of holes and conveniences and missed opportunities with never a genuine human reaction to be found among them. There's a constant air over-importance as we're presented with the same robot dream featured in a million other written works, the same space boarding battle, the same alien arena, the same token sex object female the author doesn't even seem to realize they're objectifying.

I may be overly critical. I'm used to Saga, Prophet and Transmetropolitan, and I'm especially averse to writing that reminds me of my old amateur efforts at graphic novel scripts. But when there's such a vast range of quality in the stores 4.5 star rating, you have to start somewhere.

Descender is roughly as robotic as its main character, and substantially more pretentious. When you've got a million comics to choose from, you can safely skip this one.

This has become my favorite comic. At first I would say it is similar story wise to Mass Effect but it goes so much deeper and in different directions it's an amazing story and read. I love this series so much and can't get enough of it.

It's a beautiful space opera with amazing watercolor art.

I picked this up on a whim and I'm glad I did. The art is amazing. It's watercolors and pretty distinct from the (few) other comics I've read. It's rated mature but it's more like a PG-13 mature than an R mature.

I love this book. Space, Robots and Adventure. Check, Check, Check.

The art is lovely and there are a lot of large themes building up just in the first volume.

If you loved Isaac Asimov's robot books then I predict this comic will go into a lot of the same areas.

It's my new favourite.

I don't like Descender. That's about as plain as I can be. I'm gonna keep reading for a little bit but the art is just plain awful. Looks super good from a distance but when you really look closely it is just bad sketches. It doesn't stand up to many other great comics out there.

The plot however is damn good. I just wish they had gotten a different artist to flesh out this great world!

This is one of the most refreshing graphics I have read in a while. This is from a person who really doesn't like sci-fi but loves fantasy! Its really and amazing read and the visuals are beautiful. People who love the scifi movie A.I will really find a deep connection with this series.

wish I didn't buy it... the water colors are muddy and colors not thought out well. looks like someone just rubbed their leftover pallet paints all over it. characters also leave something to be desired, they're very one-dimensional and all the roles are occupied by the people you would expect. buy it if you want something completely unoriginal and mediocre in all aspects.

I honestly can't figure out the geniuses over at Image. The majority of their deluxe edition collections come in a 7x11 inch offering. However, a few come in "deluxe oversized editions" of 8x12 inches, such as 1: Black Science Premiere Hardcover,Low Book One,Tokyo Ghost Deluxe Edition, and even Deadly Class Deluxe Edition: Noise Noise Noise.
Are the oversized deluxe additions reserved solely for works by Rick Remender? I mean, sure, both Scalera's and Tocchini's busy artwork should probably be seen in a larger format. But why does Michael Lark get the short end of the stick? His work on Lazarus Book 1 (Lazarus Hc) is exquisite, some of the best of his illustrious career. And yet both volumes of Lazarus are only 7x11 inches in size.
While that's certainly a shame, IT'S AN ABSOLUTE TRAVESTY that Dustin Nguyen's sumptuous water colors are presented merely in a 7x11 format. It's a crime! I get that it's only a one-inch difference, but honestly, what's the REASONING BEHIND IT? IT'S ILLOGICAL! IT MAKES NO SENSE! And really, it's just plain annoying as hell, to be perfectly frank. His paintings in this book are the most beautiful art that I've seen in a comic book in quite some time. (Off the top of my head, I have trouble thinking of anything comparable. Maybe Alex Ross.) If anything, it should be presented in an Absolute Edition size rendering.
So somebody over at Image please explain to me the rationale behind that decision.