Customer Reviews

Darkstalkers, Vol. 1: The Rise of the Dark Ones

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For those who've never heard of Darkstalkers:

Based on Capcom's game series of the same name, Darkstalkers. The story goes something like this... Strange and bizarre things are happening in the world. Undead walks the earth, demons rampage the countryside, global warming is on the rise... Ok, that last part isn't part of the story. But something is causing all this strange phenomena. And this something is drawing closer to Earth. Its goal? It seeks to devour the planet. Earth's inhabitants have no knowledge of this sinister being. They are having enough troubles with the Darkstalkers already. What are Darkstalkers? Creatures with tremendous power, some malicious, some harmless, and some even nice. Scantily clad succubus, cat woman, werewolf, the undead, possessed suit of armor, you name it. They are the main characters of this lovely series called Darkstalkers.

For those that are somewhat familiar with the Darkstalkers series:

Darkstalkers vol 1, The Rise of The Dark Ones, is a collection of issues 1-6. I'm sad to say that the volume collection is missing the short (about 3-5 pages) story that deals with each character's background, and the humorous one page Darkstalkers Mini that are found in each issue. Example of the short story: Cool sword, but where did it come from? The two things that AREN'T in the normal issue (to my knowledge anyway) are the extra illustrations at the end, and a short story concerning Morrigan when she was born. If you know who Lilith is and the story behind her, then you are not missing much. It's a nice little bonus. You'll understand the main story fine even without this origin story.

IMHO, this is something that most Darkstalkers fans will enjoy. It is very silly of me to presume that every fan and none fan will enjoy this book. Story-wise, I think they did a very good job of conveying the atmosphere and character backgrounds. There are some action scenes. Only some minor characters are injured or dead. The art is very consistent, excluding the cover arts. I'm only saying this because some graphic novels have drastic art changes over the issues (Thundercats.)

Below is a list of characters that actually get story coverage. List in the order of appearances:

Pyron
Morrigan
Donovan
Bishamon
Felicia
Talbain
Victor
Demitri

B.B. Hood actually gets some coverage, but that's in the short story that the volume lacks. For those who are curious, check the last few pages of issue #6 to see her origin story.

I've been in the manga scene for a while. And although there is nothing new or differant about Darkstalkers Volume 1, it is thoroughly enjoyable from begining to end.

The artwork is very well done, the colours, consistency and style of the art just rocks. Plus all the characters are drawn very close to their original concepts.

The story line of the comic is not exactly brilliant. It's rather straight forward, but that does not mean it's not entertaining. I don't know how true the story is to the actual video game as I unfortunetly never got to play Darkstalkers.

I loved this graphic novel, and would not hesistate to recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading manga's that are beautifully drawn, beautifully executed and are filled with a beautiful lead female characters.

I cannot wait for the next volume.

Very nicely drawn. I give it like a 4.8 because it says there will be a vol. 2 but capcom comics hasn't made a darkstalkers comic in 7 months or so. I liked it. i must buy for all capcom and comic readers.

I love Darkstalkers, and this graphic novel does the game justice. The drawings are beautiful first of all, and the story is very good. I read it quickly, its kinda short but other than that I had no problems with it at all. This is a great find for Darkstalkers fans, or even just someone who has no prior knowledge of the game series, and is just looking for an interesting fantasy read. Two Thumbs Up!!!!!

This graphic novel goes into the history of some of the most prominant characters in the Darkstalkers series such as Morrigan, Felicia, Demitri, Donovan and more, solidifying the storyline that the game itself followed.

The book includes six chapters along with a gallery of all the covers for each printing.

I love the crisp colors on glossy paper! The artwork is fantastic! A fair warning to fans, the binding is weak. So be gentle! My girlfriend was excited flipping through the pages and the binding lifted off a portion of the book. This is a USED/pre-owned that i bought so time may have played a part in that.

Very good book... Visually entertaining, the artwork I thought was done very well, and thought the writing was pretty decent. Makes you want to know a lot more of the story and it's characters..

This was a brilliant comic and even if you have never played to games you will enjoy it. The drawing style is engaging and very nice to look at, the colouring is vibrant and the story is fun and engaging. This volume is really just setting the scene and introducing the characters, leaving you wanting the next volume.

The major players in the Darkstalkers World are introduced, the scene is set and the problems facing both humans and Darkstalkers are introduced. The first chapter of this story is great fun and leaves you wanting more.

A very nice addition to your collection, UDON has done a great job with this comic!

This was as good as I was anticipating. I am pretty much an UDON faithful at this point, what with their outstanding Street Fighter stuff. If you are a Darkstalkers fan, you owe it to yourself to grab this one. My only complaint is that half the group is introduced, but the other half remains missing. (They are only seen in cameos in the beginning.) Of course, this just makes you beg for a Volume 2, which, as far as I know, is not on UDON's current schedule. One can hope, though.