24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting, but don't shell out the dough just yet..., April 12, 2007
This review is from: 28 Days Later: The Aftermath (Paperback)
**Note**
Certain plot details are revealed in my review. However, major plot points, twists, deaths, etc. are not divulged.
Stage 1: Development
Two scientists conduct research and experiments on anger and excessive aggression. They attempt to develop a cure. Warren the main scientist is quite wreckless, while Clive is much more cautious although we learn of his own history with domestic abuse. It is the last straw for Clive when he learns that they have created the exact opposite of what they intended...a rage virus. He refuses to cooperate any longer while Warren loses control of the situation and an infected Chimp escapes.
My notes: I only had one real problem with this chapter. It was confusing in the beginning. There were 4 characters talking along with narrations and it was hard to keep the dialog and characters separate, mainly due to the way bubbles were placed or how characters were drawn or in some instances just shadows. After going over it several times, it became clear although it shouldn't take multiple readings to comprehend what is going on in just the first couple pages.
Warren is a corrupt murderer, Clive has anger control issues and a history with domestic violence...why exactly would these two want to rid the world of rage, when they make a good contribution of anger and aggression themselves? Perhaps fame and fortune...perhaps poor storytelling?
Stage 2: Outbreak
A family is having a picnic to celebrate the mother's birthday. Peaceful enough...until the little brother spies a monkey in a tree, and it doesn't want to play. Things happen very quickly and sacrifices must be made.
My notes: Things happen fast...WAY too fast. Characters have no time to mourn loss, nor do they seem to even take notice of the death of a family member...there is almost no character development at all and it would have had a much deeper impact if it actually gave you a chance to care about the characters. Characters make sacrifices when there was obviously other ways of handling the situation.
Stage 3: Decimation
A lone survivor in a seemingly empty London hunts down any remaining infected and makes some observations on their behavior and comes to the conclusion that they only attack the non-infected because of the use of products such as deodorant and perfumes. When he runs into another survivor, he takes it as a threat and vows to defend his territory...or HIS city as he says repeatedly, and he decides to put his theory to good use.
My notes: I can't stress how ridiculous this story is. The "revelations" on the deodorant just doesn't makes sense when you think about it. It is stressed how quickly the virus spreads, and newly infected obviously were wearing such products right before they became infected. It may make more sense now that the infected are rotting away, but it's not nearly as genius of a discovery as they make it seem.
The guy does something crazy and unjustified...to the point of being completely unbelievable.
Stage 4: Quarantine
The previous 3 chapters come together. Now under quarantine, the characters start to question the motives of their once thought protectors, and ultimately decide that they are in danger by staying under quarantine. A plan must be carried out...
My Notes: Another story where the characters' actions are ridiculous and unbelievable. Why would you flee where you are being protected, where are you going to go? It would be different if they had some sort of insight that would lead to them thinking they were in danger, but that wasn't the case.
The previous three chapters all come together and very sloppily so, and ends very downbeat.
Bonus: Stage 3 (Text Only)
There is also a text-only version of Chapter 3 for some reason at the end, which adds considerable thickness to the book, but doesn't add any actual content. It is interesting to see how a comic book is written before the artwork is done. The text describe how panels are to look, it's sort of like reading a screenplay.
Conclusion: The characters do some pretty crazy things, with little justification, that on top of the lack of any character development really breaks the deal for me and I can't say that I give a recommendation. Perhaps for 5 bucks...but not the 20 I paid. This graphic novel took all of about 10 minutes to read...That comes out to 2 bucks a minute!
If you are looking for some sort of deep insights behind the movie's story or to bridge the first movie and the sequel you may be disappointed. None of the characters from either movie made an appearance or were mentioned in the slightest way.
It is claimed to bridge the two movies...I went into this thinking it may tell what happened to past survivors and that it would bring me right up to the setup for the sequel 28 Weeks Later...I was wrong on all accounts, but this is not why I regret purchasing this. It is because of the poor storytelling and horrid development of the characters. It tells you very little of what you don't already know, and it doesn't really bring you to the beginning of the sequel. It could have very well been written years ago without any knowledge of 28 Weeks Later. I actually was much more impressed by the radical alternate ending storyboards on the 28 Days Later DVD...
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Nice Art, Not Much Story., October 11, 2008
This review is from: 28 Days Later: The Aftermath (Paperback)
Fox Atomic Comics makes an auspicious jump into the Graphic Novel arena with 28 DAYS LATER: THE AFTERMATH, a gorgeous full-color prequel/follow-up to Danny Boyle's zombie epic 28 DAYS LATER, which also serves as a prequel to 28 WEEKS LATER. If only they had charged $10.00 more for this book, you would have gone home from the store 28 bucks later.......
The book, written by the current go-to guy for comic-book Horror, Steve Niles, tells a trio of unrelated stories that come together for the finale, in a most underwhelming fashion. Characterization has never been Niles' strong suit, and THE AFTERMATH is more of the same. We meet the architects of the Rage Virus, join a family trying to escape London after the virus breaks out, and prowl the deserted streets of the city with a gun-wielding vigilante, before Niles attempts to join the stories together without much success. (Are there any potential readers of a book like this that haven't seen George Romero's classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD....? Niles must think so, since he stole the ending from it, lock, stock, and barrel........) The art runs the gamut from serviceable to pretty damned impressive......It's just too bad the art didn't have a better story to go with it. Fans of 28 DAYS LATER will find nothing here they haven't seen before. It's all wrapped up in a pretty package, and it's well worth a look, just don't go in expecting too much.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
