Robotika: For a Few Rubles More #3&4

by Alex Sheikman (with David Moran)

Well, I'm really glad that I read the hardcover of the original book this week, as I definitely wouldn't have been able to follow this comic at all, which is strange since the first double issue went down quite smoothly on its own.

First, this is a lovely comic. Sheikman's art is terrific - it reminds me a little of Steve Skroce with a dash of Moebius. The problem tends to be one of pacing and exposition. The second half (issue 4) uses a three-tiered storytelling technique, which works quite well. I don't think we need the entire page explaining this though. John Byrne never explained when he did stuff like this back in Fantastic Four, and that was for a younger, and less comics-sophisticated audience.

I'm not sure if Sheikman is planning on continuing this series or not. It's a fun book - the whole cyber-samurai steampunk thing is cool. I think he needs a little more schooling in plot though....

Robotika

by Alex Sheikman (with Leif Jones and Travis Sengaus)

When I saw that the 3rd/4th issue of 'Robotika For a Few Rubles More' is set to come out this week, I decided I should jump this recent Ebay purchase up on my reading pile a bit, so I could have enough context to follow the new issue.

I'm glad I did. I had no idea Niko was the main character. When I read #1/2 of the new series, I assumed that the book was all about Bronsky, although now I stand corrected.

Sheikman is an incredible artist. I love the sensibility he brings to this comic - "steampunk samurai" is what it is called all over the flyleaf and forewords. He's created a very unique look for his world, with its floating jellyfish battery things, and his ugly cyborgs.

His plotting is off somehow, but that adds to the foreign feeling of his world. When I started reading this, I assumed it would be a standard quest story, but the quest is resolved by the end of the second issue. From there, it becomes clear that this is really a 'getting the band together' comic, which I assume is to serve as a prelude to further adventures. It's interesting that the newer volume doesn't appear to deal with the quest the heroes leave on at the end of this volume (of course, maybe they're still on their way to that quest, and I should read it again - it's been a few months).

In all, this is a good comic, which gets very high marks for ambition. This is exactly the type of thing that I love Archaia for (even if they seem to be repositioning themselves more into the mainstream with their new licensed properties).

Robotika: For a Few Rubles More Double-Size #1&2

Written by Alex Sheikman and David Moran
Art by Alex Sheikman
Were it not for the inclusion of Chew #1 with The Walking Dead, this would be this week's best value buy for certain. As part of their return to publishing, Archaia is doubling up issues of some of their titles, and then selling them at a $4.99 price point, which is a lot of comics at a decent price.

This issue contains the first two chapters of the second Robotika series. I never read the first one, but tend to like Archaia's books, and decided that this would be worth trying out. I'm glad I got it, as it's a very good title.

As a first issue, it kind of assumes that the reader is already familiar with the characters and the setting, which I wasn't, but there was enough going on here that I was immediately intrigured, and hooked.

Robotika is a gritty, Japanese-influenced cyber-punk Western. Do I need to say much more than that? Sheikman's art is fantastic - it has a very French look to it, and the story unfolds at a nice pace. I'm going to hunt down the first trade now, and am looking forward to the next issue, which is supposedly coming out in August.