Terra
by Jake Estrada
Welcome to the fourth edition of Under the Net.
I will be rating the elements of the book on a scale of one through five.
One is poor, two is mediocre, three is fair, four is good, and five is excellent.
The title I am reviewing is Terra, and I must say it is a pretty good long-running web comic. You can read it completely on the web and, to support the creators, you can also purchase the first volume. This book is pretty cool, because you get this space opera that deals with the expansion of the human race across the space sphere. It reminds me of what the European settlers did when they spread their influence to the west as they eradicated the Native Americans that had taken root in the Americas, and brought them to a tragic end. In this story, the humans are greedy as usual, and they are taking up the space killing everything off, and there is a force that wishes to kill off the humans and hates them. The force is called Shadow Cabal, and members of this force want to spread a virus/illness that would kill the population. The military wants to kill the aliens and expand. The book has a nice flare that makes it an easy and swift read. The main characters are Agrippa Varus who is an alien from the race called Azatoth who is an agent of the Resistance, and his partner is Grey O’Shea who is a human being trained by Agrippa to be an agent. There are also two other human main characters. Alexis Hawke was once a slave under the evil Solus. Alexis’s army buddy Rick McFarlane is a military guy who just wants to get back home to his wife and daughter.
The book is created by both Holly Laing and Drew Dailey, and it is very consistent and colored very beautifully, and it has an even flow. I must say it is a great and engrossing book that has very little flaws in it.
The web comic is full color, and it updates weekly on Wednesdays and sometimes on Fridays. If the book goes on hiatus, the creators let you know.
ART: 4 STARS
The Writing
The creators of this book have done a great job. I love how they have a prequel to the first book and how they draw it together to give you further insight into the main characters. I also like how they go back and forth in certain chapters to give you information on where each character has met or where the characters stand on certain principles. The story is what I call space opera at its best. Agrippa and Grey are partners. Alexis and Rick, whom were part of the military that took the resistance head on, got caught behind enemy lines and have come into contact with Agrippa and Grey whom were their enemies. They have befriended them and are slowly growing closer together by each passing page. I love how these people have come together due to needing each other, not because they wanted to, and have slowly grown closer with one another. I love how each side has their own agenda. The villains want to kill the humans and stop their expansion while the humans want to expand further and use the planets. I think the book is wonderfully written. I truly enjoy it, and I will continue to follow it. WRITING: 4 STARS
Originality
Terra has a nice flow to it, and it uses space and some people may think of Star Wars, but I actually think they are doing something quite original here by pushing this dark side that people have. That is what the authors of this book are trying to emphasize. Look at it this way, when the Europeans came to the Americas, they destroyed everything in sight, and so I could see humans going into space leaving their mark on everything and just swallowing it whole. I could see a set of people so sick of it that they want to rebel and kill the humans. That is what the Native Americans did; they grew tired and they fought back. It is only natural.
The premise has been done, but the story is still original, and I enjoyed it.
ORIGINALITY: 5 STARS.
Grand Total: 4.3 Stars
The Pros
It has the same creative team from beginning to end. It has a great story, great artwork, and very nice visuals. The colors jump off the page and it is breathtaking. It has a European-like art style that you would find in France of Italy. The art is beautiful, and I love it. I know I will look forward to the next page when it is posted.
The Cons
Sometimes the word bubbles don’t firmly go up to the characters mouths and can be kind of confusing. This is also due to some heavy exposition, which is not a bad thing. It reminds me of an old Chris Claremont comic where he would shove in the text, and you got your money’s worth. This is the only minor issue, and it can be easily ignored since it does not destroy the enjoyment of the comic.
My Final Word
This is a great web comic. Check it out and support these great creators. You won’t be sorry. Keep it up, guys!
The comic updates on Wednesdays (sometimes on Fridays). Check it out here:
Enjoy folks!
Jake Estrada
Email me at estradajake@yahoo.com for website suggestions. Thanks.
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