Customer Reviews

Fathom: The Definitive Edition Volume 1 TPB

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Fathom" was comic book great Michael Turner's baby. The story of Aspen Matthews, a marine biologist who discovers that she's actually a member of the Blue, a race of humanoid underwater creatures. Unfortunately, at the same time she finds this out she also finds out that she is a pawn in a conspiracy by Blue extremists to take over the Earth...all of it.

Sounds cool doesn't it? And it is a great premise. But just like most titles created by hot-shot artists the story suffers when those hot-shot artists attempt to write coherent, engaging storylines and believable dialogue.

The art of Fathom is gorgeous through and through...not as good as Turner would later become (the Supergirl arc in Superman / Batman was his high point) but better than 99% of all comic art out there. The problem is that, just like Todd McFarlane, Michael Turner simply is not a writer. His characters are flat, one-dimensional and uninteresting. His jokes are lifeless and his plotting is by the numbers. A shame really...you wish he could have found a skillful writer to help him bring his ideas to life.

If you're a Fathom fan this trade paperback is the Holy Grail of Fathomhood...it collects many long lost issues that only a serious, serious collector would be able to unearth. So I would advise you to snatch it up...if only for the eye-popping images alone.

This book is gorgeous, and a touching testiment to Michael Turner, for the price amazon is offering this is a great deal to anyone looking for a completetion of the first 3 arcs of Fathom. The book holds together very well, the only draw back is that they did have to remove Lara and Sara for legality reasons in the latter issues, but it doesn't change much.

Aloha.

I might be the biggest Michael Turner fan on the face of the Earth. I remember the first time in my life when I knew I would become a comic fan. I even remember the issue that did it to me. It was the Wonder Woman cover of an issue of Superman/Batman. After witnessing that, there was no going back. I was a lifetime Turner fan. He was my favorite comic artist and nothing could ever change it. I can't tell you how many alternate covers, sketchbooks, ect, ect I've bought because of a Turner Cover. But I will tell you that when I met him in person a mere two months before his tragic death from cancer which I had known was coming for years, it was one of the greatest moments of my life. Not just a super-human artist, Turner was also a great creator of comic ideas, characters and worlds. I've said it to many people over the years. Turner was the Walt Disney of comics. From SoulFire to Shrugged, to Fathom, he managed to tell bright, beautiful stories in worlds of incredible beauty, taking us to worlds of imagination we could only have dreamed of. And Fathom was his master-work, his greatest legacy. Fathom was, IS, the greatest thing Turner ever produced.

At its heart, Fathom is a story that combines the real world, sci-fi, and fantasy ideas in a breath-taking alternate reality where mer-people live in the depths of the ocean and a war is brewing between them and humanity. The main character is your typical mythical heroine in of that she sees nothing special about herself, but is the destined savor of both worlds as the last of the rulers of the ancient race of the Blue.

The first story arc is the best as it not only features Michael Turner's then-rough-and-developing talent as an artist, but also the raw potential of his ideas as they take shape. And as we read and absorb the story it gets better and better as it progresses, taking us through world-conflict, experimental aircraft, fantasy vehicles and technology, to a climax to prevent world apocalypse.

From the leathery-rough Admiral Maylander to the steely-eyed evil of Killian, from the devil-may-care attitude of Chance to the cool-as-ice and suave-as-James Bond of Cannon Hawke (my favorite male comic character of all time), the characters manage to be archetypes, and yet unique and memorable. The dialog in the story is rough, but it feels genuine and gets to the point. Turner always delighted on taking people on a fun roller-coaster ride and he never slows down in Fathom. Certainly, as his talents progresses Turner has created more beautiful art, and his later books featured more polished writing. But you will never find a comic or graphic novel that more perfectly expressed his true feelings.

I've bought quite a bit of Fathom over the years. Originally I bought the individual issues. Then I bought the three collected editions of Volume 1. Then I bought the hard-bound copy of Volume 1. And of course i bought Cannon Hawke, Dawn of War, sketchbooks, the third story arc, and volume 2 individuals, as well as Aspen individuals and two different versions of the Aspen Collected Edition. I am here to tell you that whether you are an old collector or just looking into Fathom for the first time, THIS is the definitive version of the original story, collecting not only Fathom Volume 1 Arc 1 (the essential part), but also Arc 2, Arc 3, the half-issue Cannon Hawke side-story, all of Aspen, and a huge gallery of covers, posters and artwork (including images from the sketchbook, and the awesome dust jacket form the Volume 1 Arc 1 hardcover).

If you are a truly maniacal Turner fan you might scoff at some of the changes made in this edition. All references to Lara Croft and WitchBlade are cut out of the 3rd Arc (which is totally redrawn and re-worked to make it feature only Aspen rescuing Cannon). The cover gallery also has the wide, multi-issue covers truncated so that non-Fathom characters are no longer shown. While this is sad for completists, it could also be arugued that this purifies the book by making it only about Fathom, which of course it should be.

I used to say that the three greatest artists in the comic world were Jim Lee, Alex Ross and Michael Turner, but the greatest was Turner. His style has influenced everyone from Talent Caldwell to Chasen Grieshop. He's had more protegees and students of his style than any artist I can think of. He created more original beautiful worlds in his relatively short life-span than anyone I've ever seen or heard of. Fathom was his greatest work. And this is the way the story was meant to be read.

Oh my gosh! This is the best comic book I've ever seen! The artwork and color are so beautiful, and the cover gallery is amazing!
The imagery is absolutely the best in any comic!

The story is so deep and is leading up to a huge climax!

Definitely recommended for ANY comic book fan!

FATHOM,a story about 2 worlds colliding. One above, one below. Aspen, a woman with a shady history, slowly comes to discover the truth about her past. Where she's from, and what she can do.

I'd just like to echo the sentiments of another reviewer and say that Michael Turner's art is amazing, but beyond an interesting premise, the story falls flat. Wouldn't land dwellers and subaquatic beings look very different from one another despite a common ancestor? If you're curious and your money's burning a hole in your pocket, then check this out, but I definitely do not recommend getting volume 2.

I'm really enjoying Fathom series. Ive been inspired by Michael Turner to draw women like he did. So I bought this book just for the art, but I have been sucked into the story. Its a great comic series in my opinion. The art is of coarse amazing. It includes all the cover art in the back and some comments from the guys at Aspen. They have extra art and include alot content. Ill be sure the buy the second volume.

This Trade collects all original 14 issues of Fathom when it was part of Top Cow. Michael Turner's work is beautiful, and imaginative. This trade also has cover galleries and other special issues, which are all wonderfully drawn. Aspen Studios did an excellent job reproducing all of Fathom volume 1, in this book. A must read for comic book fans.

Yep. As others said. cool art, boring story. The first arc was interesting because Turner had a story to tell--the main character's origin--beyond just a smash-em-up. But the next few arcs were very, very dull. There really isn't anything interesting here.

What need more i say? This is the late Michael Turner's baby, art done by him, all collected in one simple but amazing volume!! IT even has pages that were done in only black and white redone in color! Enjoy and savor this series