Alien Bounty Hunter, Vol. 1

by Adrian Wassel, David M. Booher, F.J. DeSanto

Ben Madsen is a bounty hunter. Yeah…he knows how that sounds. But Ben likes his job―until the bondsman convinces him to take a bounty he doesn’t want, to get the kind of paycheck he needs. When the big payday turns out to be more than Ben bargained for, he’s swept into an otherworldly conspiracy and dropped into alien city hidden right here on Earth. Good thing he’s the best man for the job―sort of. Hero or fall guy, Ben Madsen will prove one thing during his misadventures: He’s really good at jumping from high places and surviving.

From Stephen Levinson and executive producer Mark Wahlberg comes a sci-fi adventure full of humor, heart, and you guessed it…aliens: ALIEN BOUNTY HUNTER.

Genres: Comics, Science Fiction, Graphic Novels, Aliens, Action

160 pages, Paperback

First published August 7, 2018

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ben the bounty hunter is called in for a special bounty. Turns out aliens are actually on earth and there's an alien city below Alaska where this bounty has fled too. I liked the world building here even if too much was glossed over, like how an alien city exists underground. Nick Robles art was very good. The series has potential if the writing gets a little tighter and less disjointed.

Received an advance copy from Vault and NetGalley. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.

[Viking Jam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Publishing Date: August 2018

Publisher: Vault

ISBN: 9781939424273

Genre: SciFi Comic

Rating: 3.0/5

Publisher’s Description: Ben Madsen is a bounty hunter. Yeah…he knows how that sounds. But Ben likes his job—until the bondsman convinces him to take a bounty he doesn’t want, to get the kind of paycheck he needs. When the big payday turns out to be more than Ben bargained for, he’s swept into an otherworldly conspiracy and dropped into alien city hidden right here on Earth. Good thing he’s the best man for the job—sort of. Hero or fall guy, Ben Madsen will prove one thing during his misadventures: He’s really good at jumping from high places and surviving.

Review: A bit of a departure from the norm, this comic scifi barely delivers a cogent story line. The only two things good about it was the characterization of Madsen and some of the illustrations. The aliens were marginal and the world building finite.

Check out my reviews, here.

[Lukasz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.5

Comic book time! 

I’ll start with the artwork. It’s stunning. The lettering, colours, little word bubbles with alien words can compete with the best in the genre. Just check the images of the Reaper on her bike or this wicked alien and her tentacled sidekick. A joy to watch. 

Straightforward plot doesn’t surprise but remains enjoyable throughout. Likeable characters move through a strange world divided into sectors ruled by malevolent aliens. I especially liked the Reaper - a true badass female character with her own reasons and motivations.

The book finishes with a cliffhanger, but Volume 2 should be out soon, right?

An enjoyable brain candy with stunning artwork.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review is a lot harder to write than I had anticipated. It's not that the book was bad or poorly written by any means, I actually enjoyed the story line for the most part.

Let's do it this way,

Here's what I liked:
-The artwork was absolutely gorgeous. The colors, the line work, everything.
-The world building was really well done.
-The characters were very unique.

What I didn't like:
-There was so much text going on sometimes, it was actually distracting.
-It didn't flow. And that was a huge turn off for me when it comes to graphic novels. That's probably the main reason that I didn't give this more stars.

I did enjoy reading this and would love to check it out when it's published.

[RG · Rating 3 out of 5]

Millar light. A bounty hunter finds out aliens exist in a world under Alaska. His bounty is an alien on the run. The art is amazing but it feels like a movie waiting to happen. Some things just dont really make sense. I mean the alien world under Alaska doesnt get an explanation, it just is

[Milou · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: I received a copy of this story via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinions expressed in this post.

Ben's guardian is very ill and he needs a lot of money to help her and save her community center. Enter an offer he cannot refuse from a secret government agency to catch a fugitive alien. Sounds great, right? It was, in a way.

My problem with this graphic novel is with the way the story is told. Although the idea is definitely interesting and it is a story filled with heart, the many jumps in time and attempts to throw in backstory made the plot lack in consistency. It just didn't flow well. Although some aspects of world building were really strong, it also lacked a lot in other places. Basically, I was very confused a lot of the time.

The art style was nice. It fitted the story very well and did a great job of distinguishing between the different settings.

Overall this was an okay read, but I don't think I will be picking up the next volume. 

[Etienne · Rating 1 out of 5]

What was looking like a promising start just really soon fell into the same action/not much story story with a badass and funny heroes. Didn't like it!

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though the plot is really straight forward, I quite enjoyed this bit of brain candy. It was easy to get into the tale and that’s partly because the characters, for the most part, are archetypes. Ben Madsen was easy to sympathize with. He’s bullied into taking this job to hunt down and retrieve a specific alien (Nyx). There’s a very large alien prison hidden under Alaska. It’s a strange world all of it’s own divided into different sectors. Each sector is run by a malevolent powerful alien and they don’t take kindly to a mercenary human running amok!

One of my favorite characters was the Reaper. She’s got her finger on the pulse of the alien prison and for her own reasons gives Ben some much needed assistance. I think more could have been done with her character but that might come in the next volume.

There’s all sorts of aliens in this story; they aren’t just uniform baddies that Ben takes out willy nilly. Don’t get me wrong; our hero does his fair share of removing aliens hell bent on killing him. Yet there are still individual aliens with their own motives in helping or hindering Ben.

Also, there’s some conspiracy going on with the Coalition, which maintains the prison. They had some sort of deal with a technologically advised alien species and now Ben is caught in the crosshairs of that deal. Ben’s computer guy (Brooks) works from the outside to dig up info but getting info into the prison and to Ben is quite difficult.

Ben has a solid relationship with Rita, an older woman suffering from cancer who acted as Ben’s granma or elderly aunt while he was growing up. Throughout the story we get flashbacks to Ben’s childhood and how Rita influenced it. I hope we see more of her in Volume 2.

The tale does leave us on a cliffhanger, so I hope Volume 2 comes out soon. I’d like to see more depth to all the characters and perhaps a bit more history on the prison to make it more believable. All told, 4/5 stars.

The Artwork: The artwork is gorgeous! I love the images of Reaper on her bike, of this wicked alien (Miasma?) and her tentacled sidekick, and those tiger-like beasties going after Ben. Nyx is also drawn very well, having an androgynous cast to him. The lettering was nicely done too, some sections having different colors which helped me keep straight who was talking. I also liked how little word bubbles with ‘alien words’ were used to show that a tech translator was working. At the end of the volume are the various covers for the individual issues which I spent some quality time admiring. 5/5 stars.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley.

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 1 out of 5]

'Alien Bounty Hunter: Volume 1' from Vault Comics just didn't work for me. From it's weird premise, to it's typical acion heroes and aliens. Which is too bad. This is usually the kind of thing I really like.

Ben Madsen is a bounty hunter with an ailing aunt. He gets sent to Alaska on a job and discovers an entire alien city under the ice. His search for his warrant leads him to interact with the aliens there. Some are friends, some just want to fight. Ben is really good at fighting. He's also good at jumping from really high places and surviving. He'll need his skills to survive.

First off: an alien city underground that no one (outside of a few government officials) seems to know about? With advanced technology and a pretty vast area? I couldn't buy in to this premise. Ben is a pretty standard loner, action hero, but I never really got to care for him. He goes around beating things up, and there are a few flashbacks, but the empathy was totally lacking for me.

The art is decent enough. The story is just a jumble of half-formed ideas. I finished it, but it was a struggle for me.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Vault Comics, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Laura Newsholme · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty compelling book with some gorgeous artwork and some interesting lettering. It tells the story of Ben, a private investigator who finds himself compelled to locate an alien bio-terrorist in an alien prison. The story was fairly unoriginal, but it was well executed and had a few twists and turns along the way. I thought the dialogue was particularly good - it felt natural and authentic which I appreciated. As I said, the artwork was brilliant and there were some panels that had incredible details in them that really encouraged the reader to pore over them for some time. I liked the protagonist - he's quite snarky and cocky, but he has a heart of gold and his motivations are honourable, which was nice to see. All in all, I thought this was an enjoyable read and I will certainly look out for vol. 2 to see where the story goes from here.
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

[Theediscerning · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh but this was an abject mess. Funky aliens from Central Casting, and a secret governmental holding pen for them under Alaska, and a bounty hunter forced to go solo in digging a lethal alien out, after it flees a Weapon X programme. The problems are multiple – I know Alaska is large, but the underground world is just mahoosive. The characters (shape-shifters and all) are impossible to follow. The timeline is even worse, even breaking into flashbacks to a trauma in our hero's life when the authors get bored of having aliens just zapping each other. And there's a lot of alien zapping alien action, if you like that thing – mostly drawn in a very hard to follow way. Kudos to the colourist, but the rest certainly had a bad day at the office.

[Mutated Reviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Alien Bounty Hunter” is a new and exciting comic featuring a man they call Madsen, an extremely good bounty hunter. Although it begins with a base in Alaska being compromised by an alien specimen who’s used it’s own bacteria to create a bioweapon inside it’s own arm, and is clearly dangerous. They need someone to come in and capture it before anything happens, and that person is Madsen, after he learns he will not be getting paid for his work with human bounty hunting anymore. The alien, however, is not what anyone expects.

Check out my full review here!

https://radioactivebookreviews.wordpr...

[Neonila · Rating 3 out of 5]

What can I say, I love me some aliens.

The art style was definitely the highlight of this comic. The colors? Amazing. The backgrounds? Amazing. The way the characters are drawn? Amazing! Nick Robles did That™. Speaking of the characters, the diversity in this story was spectacular and very refreshing. The story was full of suspense and adventure and it kept me at the edge of my seat which is always a plus.

The only complaint I have is that the speech bubbles at times were kind of confusing to follow and they felt too much. Other than that, it was a pretty fun read and if you're interested give these aliens a chance.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ben Madsen (late of California) has been tasked with tracking down a "bioterrorist" who is definitely not from California (actually not even from this Earth). The bounty is quite high, but Ben needs it to get a community center for a sick family member. So he takes the job, even though he knows that he is likely being screwed. Which he is. But Ben is resourceful and manages to gain allies that lets him get in touch with his prey. But not everything is as it is presented, so beware, Ben beware!

[Vermillion · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so good. I love the world building and characters. Illustrations are amazing. Some parts are bit confusing but i will definitely continue the series.
Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC in return for my honest review.

[Michael Moreci · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book; tons of fun with great art and a story that really propels things forward. Looking forward to more, without question.

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

This would have been better as an actual novel. You miss out on a lot of explanations and world building that are necessary to the plot.

[Duncan Rice · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is difficult to follow at times. Too much cutting back and forth. I've lost track of two of the characters. The premise is fun but it just doesn't flow well.

[Adam Sequoyah · Rating 2 out of 5]

A barely passable story.

MPA ratings: PG-13 for language and for violence

[Espen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great start to the beginning of the series. Will definitely continue

[Tawallah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This seems to be a decent start to a series. The overall story arc seems interesting and I’m curious to how it unfolds. This is the story of Ben Marsden, a bounty hunter who receives an offer he cannot refuse. Raised by his guardian who is now very ill, he needs the money to treat her and save their community. Ben has a technie backup. The new assignment comes from secret government agency and he is sent to retrieve a fugitive.

I appreciate how difficult it is to tell a nuanced story with few words and art. This struggle is clear as flashbacks are used to provide the backstory. Unfortunately the flashbacks tended to break the flow and create some confusion. With time it became easier to distinguish flashbacks as stream of consciousness. The only other issue was that the transition from issue to issue requires attention to detail and I found it seemed to skip vital steps. Despite these flaws I am invested in this tale.

I enjoyed the art style. The vivid colors and its use to distinguish settings was excellent. There were a few scenes that were overpowered by the text but generally a good blend.

If interested in action hero with heart and aliens, you can try this recent release. Few swear words, some violence but no nudity.

Thank you NetGalley for a digital copy. My opinion is honest and not influenced by being offered a copy for review.

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating:🥄🥄🥄🥄

Review: Interesting, straight forward plot, great artwork.

Downloaded from Netgalley exchange for free review. Thanks!