Lazarus: The First Collection

Lazarus #1-9

by Greg Rucka, Michael Lark (Illustrator), Santiago Arcas (Illustrator)

In a dystopian near-future government is a quaint concept, resources are coveted, and posession is 100% of the law. A handful of Families rule, jealously guarding what they have and exploiting the Waste who struggle to survive in their domains.

Forever Carlyle defends her family's holdings through deception and force as their protector, their Lazarus. Shot dead defending the family home, Forever's day goes downhill from there.

Collects LAZARUS #1-9 with a four-page preview and additional content.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Fiction, Dystopia, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book

245 pages, Hardcover

First published November 19, 2014

About the author

Greg Rucka, is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Is no one seriously going to say anything about Forever's Lego click-on hair?



Come on, people! That is not a sort of hairline that appears in nature.



It looks like she's wearing a hard plastic hat in the majority of the panels! I honestly don't understand why there aren't people lined up around the block, pointing and laughing at this nonsense.



And nobody else looked all weird like that, so I started looking through the pictures until I discovered what (I think) the problem is with this thing.
The dude can't draw slicked back ponytails!
Forever looks fine as long as her hair is down or there are a few wisps of hair in the front, but that's not what's happening in the vast majority of the panels.
Normal Human Hair:

Mutant Lego Hair:



I'd read the first volume a few years ago and liked it, but this time around I just had a hard time ignoring that glaringly bad hairstyle. I mean, the ponytail is a fantastic choice for someone who sees a lot of combat, but if you can't draw that sort of thing well? Then just buzz her head or something.
Yes, I know I'm being petty.
Still. Uck!



As far as the story goes, it was alright. I think I originally enjoyed Lazarus, Vol. 1: Family because it was more of a teaser than this Collection. <--(vol. 1 had issue 1-4, and this is 1-9)
After I was done with vol. 1, I had all these questions that I was interested in finding out the answers to, and at the end of this, I was just left feeling like those same questions were still all hanging there. I want to know where Forever really came from, who sent her that message, and if she's going to go rogue and give these turds the middle finger...



The gist is that Forever is the genetically enhanced Lazarus of her Family. There are quite a few of these Families out there and they each (basically) own a portion of the world. The term Lazarus refers to the fact that she (and those like her) can take a head shot and come back from it. At this point in the series, Forever is unaware that she isn't a real member of her Family. And she was raised with her 'father' dangling the emotional carrot of his love and approval in front of her to get the best performance out of her skills. Now that she's an adult she's still being manipulated into doing things she finds morally questionable because of her need to please her 'family' and keep them safe.



Maybe I'm just burned out on dystopian settings right now because most of my friends absolutely love this title. At any rate, it's still a really good concept, and I'm still going to continue with the series. I'm just not quite as excited as I was originally.

[Artemy · Rating 4 out of 5]

So after really enjoying Black Magick: The First Book of Shadows I had a craving for more creator-owned Greg Rucka stuff. And Lazarus is a book I've read about four years ago and had conflicting feelings about it — I loved the world-building and the ideas, but felt let down by the execution. Four years is a long time though and my tastes and preferences changed a lot since then, so I thought that maybe I should go back and give Lazarus another chance. And this time I really read it — I was taking my time with every issue, letting every event sink in, tracking every character and their place in Rucka's world, and now I finally can admit that I was wrong and Lazarus is actually pretty great. Well, except for the terrible Lego click-on hair (thanks, Anne, now I can never unsee it!)

I even went as far as reading all of the family bios and event chronology in the back of the book! Which made me think two things: 1) Rucka really loves to make his readers do homework, and 2) Rucka is an incredible world-builder. Yes, Lazarus is a book set in a dystopian future, but unlike 99% of shitty stories set in dystopian futures that go "uuuuuh I guess a war happened or something", in Lazarus the author actually spent a bunch of time and energy on researching, plotting and chronicling the myriad of complicated sociopolitical events that led to it, showing you exactly how easily our real world could become a lot more like what you see in the book. No, you don't need it all to read the actual story, but it makes it feel that much more alive and plausible, and it makes you care more about its major players, even if in this volume you haven't yet seen half of them.

So yeah, looks like I'm digging Lazarus now. I'm going to re-read the next two volumes in the second collection, and if it all goes well and those books will also end up being better than I remember, then I can't wait to catch up on the rest of the series and see where it went after I dropped it the first time.

[Donovan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just don't really care for Rucka's writing. I found myself bored with the archetypical characters, dialog, and standard dystopian world building. And the artwork has that Sean Phillips feel but without the spark. Tread lightly with this one.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Contrived, yes, but at least in interesting ways.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a feat of impressive and detailed world-building, we’re dropped into a world where the 16 richest and most powerful families have dissolved government and have divided up control over the entire globe. And each family’s lead protector is a Lazarus, a family member that has been conditioned to be an unstoppable killing machine.



I was completely engrossed in this world, wonderfully detailed by the amazing team of Greg Rucka and artist Michael Lark, and all of the seeds they’ve planted that have potential for some real Game of Thrones-like intrigue, with the shaky tension between the families. I also love the way Rucka tells the story, never spoon-feeding the reader and slowly letting the world reveal itself.

And I loved learning about our badass, ultra-cool, enigmatic protagonist, Forever, the Lazarus to Family Carlyle, who rules the western part of the U.S. and Canada with an iron fist, and I can’t wait to see what happens when she learns the secret of her background.

This is a series that is crafted with real care, and sign me up for more.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this, it’s a really interesting premise of the world being split into different factions/families with each having their own genetically modified soldier. This first book did a good job of introducing the world and the characters but still leaving a lot of questions to be answered.

[Tori (InToriLex) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Find this and other Reviews at InToriLex

Throughout the series Forever Carlyle works hard to defend her family and home. But struggles throughout the series with her own identity. This series is violent, emotional and very entertaining. Throughout the series it highlights the great disparity in wealth distribution that exists in the world, people outside of family's or their service are considered Waste. The series was inspired in part by the Occupy WallStreet movement, so many parallels are intentional.

Forever is a feat of science, physically enhanced and perfected to be the Family's perfect defender. All of the powerful Family's in Lazarus have their own Lazari for their family. But Forever must grapple with the possibility she is not biologically related to her family. There is quite a bit  about how the allegiances are formed between families and the corrupt nature of this world, but how Forever deals with it all, is the most fascinating.

The large majority in this overpopulated world are Waste. Waste exist  at the brim of poverty and the mercy of the Family's charity. Most people work hard and go though a selection process called Lift that will make them valuable servants to a family and improve their status.

The action scenes are great along with the rest of the artwork, and this shifting perspective comic has alot left in store  for readers. Forever is not quite a super hero and the dystopian society brings a wonderful story line to the medium. If your not into comics but enjoy dystopias, this comic is definitely something you should check out. How wealth and power corrupt in this futuristic setting is close enough to home to make you think about the society we live in. (P.S. I  will only review larger collections of comics at a time.)

[Jasna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my third time reading this book. I just received the Third Collection, so I thought I should refresh my memory again of the whole story. :) As with many things, I picked up many more details this third time around and appreciate the world-building even more. I also read most of the extra material at the end, including the timeline of events at the bottom of each family's bio. With our real world's inequality and environment getting worse as the years pass since Lazarus' first release, Lazarus' extra material is spooky to read. One starts to question whether you're reading fiction or a prediction of the future.

Again, the world-building in this book is phenomenal. It helps that I'm a sucker for sci-fi dystopia, a diverse cast, and woman power. That said, I concluded at the first release of this story that Rucka has created the perfect story for me, and I still think that is true today. I think I further appreciate this series after finishing the Game of Thrones and part of House of Cards TV shows, what with all the politics and struggle of power among the families at the expense of the common people.

I'm excited to re-read the Second Collection and start the Third Collection. I think I remember feeling that the First one was my favorite of the two at the time, but we'll see how I feel this go around.

[Lost Planet Airman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very intriguing graphic novel series. A dystopian future where world economies are still in churn a half-century after collapse, and sixteen powerful companies run by family dynasties have divided up the world and replaced governments.
The Carlyle Family rules corporate fiefdoms in western North America. They have advanced medicine for longevity and employ some of the population as "serfs" and provide (minimal) aid to the rest ("waste").
Forever "Eve" Carlyle has been medically rebuilt to recover from any wound short of near destruction, and trained to be her Family's Lazerus -- a nearly indestructible defender of the Family's interest. But Eve, and the reader, begin to discover that she may not truly be loved by her power-hungry relatives, and that she may not ever have been family -- or truly human any longer.

[Trike · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this story, even though it feels very familiar. Basically this is a mash-up of x-23 and Into the Badlands. 3.5 stars.

X-23 is the genetically engineered daughter of Wolverine who is trained to kill from birth. She shares Logan’s healing ability, which makes her an unstoppable assassin. (The X-23 stories by Craig Kyle and Chris Yost are masterpieces. Go read them.)

Into the Badlands is a TV series on AMC (and now Netflix) that’s about a post-apocalyptic America that’s been carved into fiefdoms ruled over by families and their loyal retainers. Firearms are hard to come by so most people use swords and other bladed weapons. It has some of the most inventive action scenes outside of a Jackie Chan movie. The third season starts in April 2018. Here’s the trailer for season 2 - there aren’t any real spoilers and it gives you a feel for the world: https://youtu.be/Nvn1laEhI_A

The main character here is Forever Carlyle, sometimes called Eve, a genetically engineered warrior with rapid healing ability who has been trained from birth to be a fighter, living in a post-crash world ruled over by a 16-family plutocracy. Each family has their own version of an unstoppable assassin who can reboot and rise from the dead. Hence “Lazarus.”

This comic feels like Rucka dropped Laura (X-23) into the badlands. X-23 came out a full decade before this book, so it seems clear that was an inspiration, while Into the Badlands started filming at the same time this was being published, which means they probably have a shared source that sparked these ideas.

It’s unusual that a comic would be more grounded than a wuxia-influenced TV series, but that’s the case here.

We don’t get a lot of answers about Forever or how this world comes to be. I’m hoping that stuff is revealed in the next volume. Instead we get hints of larger political machinations going on within and between the ruling families, as well as smaller stories about the common people who have to live in this hardscrabble future. In that regard it reminds me of 100 Bullets, which used a similar technique of doling out tidbits as we learned more about that world.

The art is really nice and Michael Lark’s style is perfectly matched with this gritty and bloody story. A couple times I lingered over pages admiring the efficiency of the line work which conveyed emotion with just a few lines. Really good stuff.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was really good.
Good characterization and good world-building.
Good story and good art.
Looking forward to the second book, in what, 2 years or so?

[Machiavelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lazarus: Family by Greg Rucka are a brutal, smartly written introduction to a dystopian world ruled by powerful families and ruthless politics. At the center is Forever Carlyle, the genetically engineered “Lazarus” of her family—part soldier, part daughter, always a weapon. Rucka builds a world that feels terrifyingly plausible, and Michael Lark’s gritty, cinematic art adds real weight to every scene. It’s a story about loyalty, power, and identity, told with intensity and precision. Dark, compelling, and totally addictive. Next up we get Lift - which expands the world Rucka and Lark introduced in Family by shifting focus to the people living at the very bottom of this brutal, dystopian society. While Forever Carlyle remains a looming presence, this volume dives deep into the struggles of the “Waste”—the discarded masses trying to earn a place in a Family’s domain. We follow two siblings, desperate and hopeful, as they make their way to the Lift—a once-in-a-lifetime shot at rising above their station. The emotional weight here hits hard, and the pacing slows a bit to let those stakes breathe. Lark’s art is gritty and grounded, capturing both the harshness and fleeting humanity in this unforgiving world. If Volume 1 was about power and loyalty, Lift is about survival and sacrifice. It’s not always a comfortable read, but it adds real heart to the series’ political edge.

This is just stunning work by a writer and artist at the top of their game. Highly recommended!

[Brent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Greg Rucka and Michael Lark knock it out of the park.
Highly recommended.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Family (1-4). An enjoyable intro to this new Rucka series. I like the setup and Forever's place in her Family. The action-adventure is always good, as expected in a Rucka story. The overall plot was a bit shallow, but I'm willing to see past that in a first story. [4/5]

Lift (5-9). Now that Rucka has his feet under him for this new series, this second book is phenomenal: some of his best writing. It threads three stories, and they're all great. One is a story of Forever's past, and it's intriguing for its background on her and her family. A second is on a present problem that she's dealing with, and it's pretty low key until the finale which is absolutely enthralling. Finally, the last story is about five members of the "waste" and it starts out being fascinating for what it shows of the wider world, and ends up being great for the characters. [5/5]

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dang. What a difference continuity makes! I'd stopped reading this series after five single issues because I couldn't make any sense of it reading it once a month. This is a story that definitely needs to be read trade by trade. I enjoyed it so much more this time around and am following the events and characters so much better. I think it helps saving all the extra-narrative stuff for the end. The single issues had quite a bit of thoughtful back matter but it was too much to keep track of broken up month to month. Very much looking forward to the next story arc!

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good. The futuristic aspects of the story mixed with historical financial circumstances of people was pretty cool. a possible view of the future, with a tip of the hat to the past.

[Laika · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my comic for the month, recommended off-hand on a long drive back from camping. And off that inauspicious start, it’s easily the best graphic storytelling I’ve read in the last few months. Hardly the most original thing in the world, and definitely a bit of what I might call ‘tabletop rpg worldbuilding’ – but I would be an utter hypocrite if I held that against it, and it’s a well-trodden path I happen to quite enjoy travelling.

Set in the vague near future, Lazarus imagines a planet-wise dystopia, which functionally the entire species living under the rule of one of 16 families of oligarchs so wealthy they became empires in their own right. Each of those families has a (titular) Lazarus of their own – a transhuman champion and enforcer charged with coordinating their family’s defenses and being the point of their spear in feuds with the other Family’s. The Carlyle Family control the central and western United States (and Canada) and are the leading experts on genetics and biotech. The protagonist, Forever Carlyle, is the result of pairing that expertise with an infinite budget to making something that looks human and can pull herself together from a hellfire missile strike. The story follows Forever – first through uncovering treason within the ruling family, and then hunting down a terrorist attack targeting her eldest brother during a rare public appearance. And running through it all the dramatic irony and looming crisis that is Forever realizing that she’s not a daughter of the family, she just a very expensive and well-managed tool.

I have a deep weakness for well-done cyberpunk (probably watched Blade Runner at some impressionable young age) and this is the rare (though increasingly less so, thankfully) story that leans into the same themes and subject matter without drowning in all the specific tropes and ‘80s-fetishism that make the genre proper a decaying relic at this point. I mean, Forever is an attractive you woman who dresses in all black and kills dozens of people in bulky power armour with a sword as they try and shoot her – but besides that! (And she is honestly far less sexualized and better served by the narrative than most of her type. Her uniform even looks like actual fabric and armour instead of latex!).

Of course, cyberpunk without all the ‘80s retrfuture and specific visual tropes is mostly just horrifying inequality-based dystopia, and the narrative delivers that in spades. Half the second arc is from the perspective of some of the ‘waste’ desperately trying for a chance for formal family employment and the myriad of benefits and privileges that come with it, and the horror and desperation of the whole unsustainable setup comes across quite vividly.

Forever as a character also just compels me, for all that the specifics of her moral boundaries are a bit protean depending on dramatic requirements. The whole slow burn looming trainwreck with the question of her loyalties is engaging, as is the way different family members manipulate her (or don’t bother trying to). A week later the whole bit where her doctor/handler complains that he’s pumping her full of hormones to encourage loyalty and emotional bonding but they need to give her some sort of affection or connection to bond with still makes me smile.

Each of the two arcs works as an episode of the longer story, but this very much is a continuing story, and the hardcover is in no way any sort of satisfying narrative on its own. Which I don’t really mind, because I’m certainly going to keep reading – but on the level of craft I have to consider it a significant demerit. Otherwise – maybe my standards for graphic novels have just lowered a bit, but I enjoyed this pretty thoroughly.

[CJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a super enjoyable read! It's like a Bio Punk version of Game of Thrones. Basically, the world is controlled by a handful of wealthy families who each rule over different regions, constantly fighting for power. There's a ton of world-building and character development for all the family members and their rivals. The only reason I'm not giving it 5 stars is because it's a bit of a slow burn with all the set up, but I'm really intrigued to see how it all comes together.

[Ken Yuen · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fun series. The post apocalyptic, hyper-capitalistic world is really neat. With 16 families owning most the world, each with their own immortal super soldier. It's just a really neat vision of the future

[Rollin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Part of the catching up with what I read during and immediately following the move.

[Justin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dystopic as hell. Aristocrats and class traitors abound and the only people trying to make things better are terrorists.

[Rana Biswas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant, just brilliant...

[Andrew Sorrentino · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember anticipating each new issue when this series was published. Happy to revisit it now, and still greatly enjoying it. I like the characters, the art, the world presented seems believable.

[Elliott Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is so good, and dare I say a bit ahead of its time. I think I finally found the Rucka book for me. Looking forward to reading the rest of the series. Hope it lives up to this volume.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting approach to a female "superhero."

[Daniel Milford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sterk, sterk firer. Herlig world-building. Filmatisk tegnet. Bra dialog, bra driv. Grusomt deprimerende.

[Phil · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book collects issues #1-9 of the Lazarus series. There are two story arcs, "The Family" in issues #1-4, and "The Lift" in issues #5-9. The story is set on a future earth where the 16 richest families in the world have split up control, replacing the current governments.



"The Family" revolves around the Carlyles who control the western portion of the United States and Canada. It eases the reader into the world by establishing some of the major players and showing what Forever Carlyle, one of the so-called Lazarus, can do. She is protector of the family, but struggles with some of the decisions she has to make to keep it safe. The family is attempting to resolve a feud with one of the neighboring families. The contrast that the creators show between them is pretty interesting.

"The Lift" focuses less on the Carlyles by incorporating a poverty stricken family, the Barrets, who live in Carlyle territory. The story is split between Forever trying to uncover a plot that could weaken the Carlyle family and the Barrets as they struggle to escape poverty. This arc is done well and the creators do a good job of linking these stories.

The world the creators built is fantastic. It is well thought out and almost has a life of its own. I was disappointed that there wasn't a better effort to get the reader more familiar with the world and the jargon used. In the first arc there is reference to population in terms of family, serfs, and waste. There isn't much to distinguish between the three castes though. This is covered better in the second arc, but I would have liked to see it addressed earlier and more clearly.

Outside of Forever Carlyle and the Barret children, there isn't much for character development either. We see other characters on stage and what they are doing at the time. However, the limited view that the creators use puts a little too much distance between them and the reader.

[Erik Wirfs-Brock · Rating 2 out of 5]

It feels bad somehow to slag on creator non superhero stuff that isn't overtly exploitative, but I found this to be a pretty boring introduction to the series. The premise, corporations divide the world up in an explicitly feudal manner, is a good hook to hang a sf action series on, but nothing else is this volume is of much interest. The plot, such as it is, involves the ninja robot enforcer of one of the corporate clans do various missions while gradually realizing the corruption of her world and dealing with the various decadent aristocrats who she thinks are her siblings. The dialogue is straight laced or sub standard soap stuff, the art is photo referenced and stiff (and doesn't even have an interesting vision of the future I might add), the mystery of the heroines origin seems pretty straightforward to me, and the pacing is decompression central. Avoid!

[Relstuart · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting concept as the world is divided and owned by 16 families of billionaires. The author did a lot of research and apparently blended real people together to come up with the economic strengths of his families. The focus of the book is a female spec ops female that is the guardian of the family. She has been modified to heal quickly when injured so takes point in security and armed conflict though the families have plenty of foot soldiers. The first books has a lot of world building and has some conflict within the family. I'm sure we'll learn more about the story threads in the upcoming books.

The second oversize HC is due out in a few months and I'll check it out. It's a tough violent world but hopefully we'll get a interesting tale out of this.

[Ben Lei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loooved this. The series drops you right in the middle of things, so it was a tad disorienting to start, but Rucka does a great job of introducing the main characters and building out the world. I’m gonna start reading the next series of issues as soon as I finish up this review.