No One Left to Fight

No One Left to Fight #1-5

by Aubrey Sitterson, Fico Ossio (Illustrations)

What do the world's greatest heroes do when there's No One Left to Fight?

They've saved the world countless times, growing up together and growing apart in the process. But now, with adulthood tightening its grip, they're forced to reconcile their regrets and resentments, coming to terms with the lives they've chosen. Inspired by the legendary Dragon Ball, critically-acclaimed creators Aubrey Sitterson (The Comic Book Story of Professional Wrestling, G.I. Joe) & Fico Ossio (Spider-Man, Revolution) invite you on an action-packed journey through their expansive new world. Fans of Hellboy, Umbrella Academy, and Black Hammer won't want to miss this exciting new vision of what genre comics can accomplish. Collects No One Left to Fight #1-#5.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Young Adult, Fantasy, Comic Book

128 pages, Paperback

First published March 24, 2020

About the author

Aubrey Sitterson is a freelance writer, whose most recent work, No One Left to Fight is currently available in local comic shops, digitally on Comixology, and through special collector’s packages. He’s also the writer of The Comic Book Story of Professional Wrestling, which is available everywhere, including local bookstores, comic shops, and online retailers like Amazon.

Aubrey has written comics for all of the industry’s top publishers – Marvel, DC, Image, Dark Horse IDW, Oni, Dynamite and Viz. He also wrote and performed the sword & sorcery serial podcast SKALD from April 2015 to April 2018, without missing a single week. A full list of credits can be found here.

Contact Aubrey at dropkickoutthejams at gmail dot com.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Something of a homage to Dragonball and other similar anime. I loved Fico Ossio's art. The character designs and coloring are fantastic. If the storytelling did more than make constant allusions to the past without explaining any of it, I'd have given the book five stars. As it was, I felt like there were previous volumes I'd missed or something. It was really frustrating. But then again, that vibrant art really did it for me.

Received a review copy from Dark Horse and Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.

[Lashaan Balasingam · Rating 3 out of 5]

You can find my review on my blog by clicking here.

What would heroes do if there’s no more evil to defeat? Would they be able to survive the lack of excitement and adrenaline that it once procured them to fight those who enjoyed chaos? Maybe refocusing themselves to excel in other domains of life might stir some new purpose in them. Maybe embracing the life of a responsible adult is the answer to all this? Maybe they’re just not looking in the right places and the action they crave deep down is just around the corner. Praying that it succeeds enough to solicit a second volume, this creative team composed of Aubrey Sitterson (The Comic Book Story of Professional Wrestling, G.I. Joe) and Fico Ossio (Spider-Man, Revolution) look to dazzle the world with a brand-new series. Collecting the No One Left to Fight #1-5 issues comes an exciting, splashy, flawed universe highly-reminiscent of a beloved manga franchise.

What is No One Left to Fight about? Vâle, the hero of the universe, has returned to his beloved friends after a long isolated journey. His friends have, however, moved on and now live happily as parents to two kids, having also put behind them their life of battling evil. Reacquainted, Vâle, Krysta, and Timór are now off on a mysterious new trip as they explore the universe to find past allies and mentors, but something isn’t right with their great hero who is hiding an internal psychological pain. As if things couldn’t get any worse, the world isn’t without no one left to fight as they thought as a strange creature bids his time before an opportunistic engagement to destroy them all.

This story is an indisputable homage to Dragon Ball that doesn’t hide any of the similarities with the cult-classic manga as it presents a tale of adulthood, which is sometimes questionable, through various characters who cross paths once again after countless years have passed since their greatest battle. While there’s no significant depth to these characters, writer Aubrey Sitterson teases readers in terms of world-building with very little details offered to what happened in the past and what is going to happen to these heroes on their mysterious journey in the near future. The characters also continuously engage in an emotionally overwrought conversation about unresolved inferiority complexes and conflicts of jealousy, making for an infuriating and childish dialogue.

Artist Fico Ossio, however, offers an extremely vibrant and colourful world through his original artwork that continuously leaps out of the pages as you progress through the story. Conveying a truly cotton-candy universe where colour themes are nearly inexistent, if it weren’t for some clear character designs allowing us to distinguish good from evil, the artwork is an innocently entertaining hook to this series and might, unfortunately, be the only good reason to explore it too. Also borrowing on some 80s science-fiction technological designs, there is enough assimilation of known franchises to give this series its own sense of genuineness without being a rip-off. The series also abandoned a lot of logic to forgive the chaotic and destructive powers that some of these characters carelessly utilize throughout the story for mundane reasons revolving around unresolved complexes and unrequited love. Beware of these issues if you’re to explore this story.

No One Left to Fight is an energetic and vibrant universe heavily influenced by Dragon Ball that limits itself to teasing rather than delivering a satisfyingly complete narrative.
Yours truly,

Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/

[Erin Utt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the story average, not bad or amazing and interesting enough for me to keep reading. The characters are interesting and the art is (imo) really rad. Some series I will admit that I read because I enjoy the art. 🤷‍♂️

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is pretty much exactly the sort of comic book I normally enjoy, but as if hallucinogenically amplified for maximum color saturation. Seriously context aside, the colors in this book are mindblowing, it’s a technicolor bonanza. And context in place, it’s a story of the world’s epic superheroes who seem to have vanquished all their foes and are left with bickering and grumbling and reluctantly acclimating to adult lives without heroic deeds. Until, of course, a foe worthy of challenging shows up. It’s inspired by the sort of manga madness I normally don’t go for, but it’s just too much fun to matter. The characters, the action, the entire production is positively boombastic. And told succinctly in just 128 pages, collecting individual comics 1 through 5 and, at the time of publishing, desperately looking for the funds to go further. So yeah, high octane entertainment in a very classic, very traditional sort of comic book way. Great art, mad energy. Fun quick read. I enjoyed this one.

[RG · Rating 2 out of 5]

The artstyle wasnt for me. The story was pretty simple and gave off a manga vibe

[Ashkin Ayub · Rating 3 out of 5]

i came in to this assumption, but the protagonists are rich and highly complex. this doesn't seem like the book i normally read. the story is changing and growing. the art is compelling. honestly, this kind of energy would be hard for you to find a book. in addition, they were able to bring a few more profound ideas into the narrative about the persons and about our connections to each other and the world around us.

i was won over by the creative team. it's one of those books i strongly believe that has something for all.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fun ride! Obviously there are comparisons to Dragon Ball Z and parts did remind me of Birthright, this book has two elements that are essential to a good graphic novel: compelling story and amazing art. The color palette of this graphic novel will blow your mind... so vibrant!
The story is left open ended and I hope the author gets a pick up for more issues.
I absolutely recommend this title.

[Travis Duke · Rating 2 out of 5]

2. 5 stars. I thought there would be more fighting....silly me...no one is left! Jokes aside the story is a bit tough to chew on, confusing and not a lot of direction. The whole love triangle (or a square?) was not needed. The art is pretty good but the colors are the star, which doesnt speak well for a graphic novel if the colorist is the shining moment. I am skipping the rest.

[Philip · Rating 4 out of 5]

No One Left to Fight is a fun, fast-paced homage to Dragon Ball Z's ever-escalating struggle between good and evil. Aubrey Sitterson's love of the inspiration behind this comic shows in every bit of expository dialogue. Fico Ossio's art is vibrant, leaping off the page throughout the five chapters. As our semi-retired hero, Vâle, has defeated the ultimate foe, he's left pondering what value he still has to the world and to his friends. No One Left to Fight follows Vâle as he reunites with old friends, long-lost lovers, and former foes, all while dealing with the fact that he might not have a true purpose anymore.

I picked up No One Left to Fight in single issues, but the trade paperback is coming soon. If you're a fan of fighting anime/manga, you should definitely check it out.

[Emma Gear · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really looking forward to this book for a lot of reasons. I thought the writer, Aubrey Sitterson's new project Beef Bros. looked super cool, and the premise of this one very much seemed like something that could be an interesting take on the aftermath of a world that's been saved.

But... eh. I just don't feel like there's enough here, really.



Before I go into why I don't really like this comic I absolutely must stop and compliment the art. I didn't think the art was going to be the best thing about this going in as at first glance the color choices felt almost gaudy to me. Just bright pastel colors in every direction with all of the main characters having their own notable color scheme. Vale, the hero who saved the planet having hot pink hair while his eternal rival Timor has a very similar hairstyle but in soft baby blues seem like they'd be sort of grating after awhile but the art is so wonderfully realized that if you're on the fence but yo want to see some gorgeous art then let that be what pushes you over.

It's the story itself that I don't think is so good. No One Left to Fight is both the title and the premise of the book. The world has been saved from a dangerous evil that doesn't get elaborated upon TOO much. Vale is the big hero, though his brother Timor was there to help him out along with some others who get introduced as the story plays out. Having become incredibly powerful warriors capable of absurd feats of strength and heroism they now have to sort of... hang out. And exist in a world where there is no longer any conflict.

It's an interesting premise, but...



It's not one that I feel is played with in a good way given its page space. At five issues long there could be an interesting story told about perhaps the mundanity of peaceful life and coming to terms with how good things are despite you now being sort of useless as all you've ever known is battle kinda thing. I dunno, that's just off the top of my head. The actual story is sort of a walk down memory lane where the lauded heroes go around and visit some of their old allies who are now also living in peace after all the fighting is done. You get some glimpses into their backstories which certainly sound interesting but without the space to develop them to a significant degree you're left with a lot to fill in on your own. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it feels like it could've been done much better than it actually was.

And it does sort of betray its own title where there eventually is someone new to fight and you discover something that Vale's been hiding from his companions for some time. To the book's credit the big twist is absolutely something that could have been figured out beforehand through good foreshadowing (Because I did!) but the fact that the book pretty much ends immediately after the big twist as if you could never have seen it coming in a billion years is what makes this so underwhelming to me.



The art is fantastic and it's definitely still something I'd say to consider checking out, but the ending kind of drags the whole thing down. And not to a small degree or anything the ending is something I thought was profoundly disappointing. An extra issue to wrap things up better, have people come to terms with the big twist, or just eschewing the entire premise of the book and doing some more beautifully illustrated action scenes would all make this a better package imo.

As it is, I would give this a 2/5, but the art is honestly some of the best I've ever seen in any comic book ever and for that I'd bump it to a 3. The last issue is a particularly beautiful one and should be seen by all!

[Rory Wilding · Rating 3 out of 5]

From an early age, I was a big fan of Dragon Ball Z, which centred on super-powered martial artists fighting all-powerful aliens, androids and other supernatural forces that threaten the entire universe. Although I eventually grew out of it, I reclaimed that spark of fandom when I read the original source material by Akira Toriyama, who redefined the genre that is “Battle Manga”, paving the way for future works like One Piece and my beloved My Hero Academia. Obviously, no doubt this genre is not common within western comics, but there are creators in that field that want to put their own spin in the post-Dragon Ball formula.

After saving the world numerous times, the fighter Vâle is reunited with his adoptive brother Timór, who has grown jealous towards him due to his proud reputation. Reluctant to go with Vâle on a journey that reunite him with other fellow fighters, Timór is persuaded by his wife Krysta as the trio goes off on their journey, whilst Vâle is going through some internal conflict, as well as an evil presence that lurks in the darkness.

Having read Dragon Ball, I can already see the tropes, the most notable of which is the conflicted relationship between Vâle and Timór, which is not far off from the rivalry between Goku and Vegeta. Considering the title of the comic, at least you have the two brothers. Joking aside, this story feels a deconstruction towards the tropes of the Shōnen battle manga as the characters here have saved the world many times and are going through a retrospective look at past relationships and what could've been, something that is psychologically haunting Vâle.

I do like these characters overall, most notably Krysta’s pet octopus Pod, whose expressions say it all. However, on a storytelling level, there is a frustrating looseness, in terms of backstory that only makes sense if you’re well-versed in the conventions of the genre. The book lays out a lot of questions, but doesn’t bother answering all of them, whether this is the intention from writer Aubrey Sitterson, and yet nothing has been confirmed about the series continuing, hence why the cliffhanger at the book’s end isn’t satisfying.

Most of the book is action-free, but whenever Vâle and/or Timór go “Super Saiyan”, Fico Ossio’s full-coloured art just pops with splash pages showing the intensity and energy of its super-powered figures. As impressive as the world-building is, which is a mixture of sci-fi cityscapes and high fantasy, there are pages that over-crowded with too many extras filling in the panels.

As someone who loves Dragon Ball, I can see No One Left to Fight as a love letter to that genre within the manga industry, but it still falters from the storytelling lacking development as well as not showing much balls-to-the-walls action, but the characters are enough to save it.

[Yura Stakh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Короткі враження від коміксу "Коли ні з ким стати до бою".
Сюжетно - це практично вільний твір на тему Драгонболу (чи майже будь-якого шьонену). Фабула дуже проста: головний герой колись врятував усю планету і побив самого потужного лиходія. Однак, багато років по тому його життя не дуже клеїться: місцева Сакура обрала місцевого Саске, а наш протагоніст все що сохне по ній та ігнорує місцеву Хінату. Та й взагалі всі лиходії побиті і нема з ким стати до бою (насправді є). Як ви розумієте - це головний кошмар протагоніста будь-якого шьонену. Ніяких тренувальних арок, герої вже повноцінні імби. Зате самокопання, пошук сенсів, нетиповий погляд на типовий шьонен.

Малюнок бомбічний: кольори, деталізація, дизайн персонажів, екшн. Усе дуже смачно, зазвичай сильно смачніше ніж в тому ж Драгонболі. Зацініть місцевий режим суперсаяна (на фото нижче) - це ж неймовірна краса. Вибір кислотних кольорів вражає: все поєднано дуже грамотно та доречно.

Тайтл дуже свіжий, фактично станом на зараз є повний перший том, а продовження під назвою "Коли нема з ким стати до бою 2" виходить в США прямо зараз у форматі синглів (останній заплановано на лютий). Тому історія не завершується у першому томі та тримає інтригу на продовження.

Підводячи підсумки: дуже якісне західне висловлювання на тему Драгонболу та шьоненів. Читається легко та приємно. Однак, для розуміння діалогу, який веде тайтл потрібно бути хоч трішки в контексті шьоненів або ні, просто ви втратите шар змістів і фансервісу. Загалом авторам вдалось створити цікавий тайтл, єдине що можна закинути історії - це абсолютна вторинність, однак автори нічого не приховують та мають шанси розвернути жанрові шаблони ще цікавіше. Моя оцінка 8 суперсаянів з 10. Якщо ви любитель шьоненів та крутого малюнку, то варто звернути увагу.

[Dave Walsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'll preface this with a warning: I'm not a huge comic guy. I read a handful every year and am pretty selective.

The art is, in a word, astounding. Oozing with style and flair, this book has its own unique aesthetic that helps to flesh out the world.

I've seen complaints that there isn't enough story or whatever, but honestly, the art does a lot of the heavy lifting to establish the world and characters. That's probably the way it should be. No exposition dumps or anything like that.

The story isn't going to appeal to everyone, as you'll see from the reviews. This isn't the tale of our heroes saving the world; they already did all that and this is what happens after. This is what happens when, as the title implies, there's no one left to fight. What do heroes do when they aren't needed anymore?

They start families, try to be normal, try to integrate into the world that loves them but doesn't understand them. Or brood and contemplate these questions while unsure of what comes next.

I love stories like this and always will, so I'm always more receptive to authors looking to tell different stories from the norm. The shonen jump style and influences are clear, as well. So yeah.

[Mykhailo Gasyuk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Яскрава картинка, як у якійсь аркадній грі типу “Джека та Декстера” чи “Креша Бандікута”. Прямо перенасичена, чимось нагадує роботи видавництва “Удон”. Та й сюжет пішов не дуже далеко, бо це, по суті, комікс про файтинг. Не знаю, чи існує така оригінальна гра, але історію про неї вже придумали. Лор практично на нулі, ніхто у сетінг не допустить, не буде нянкатись з тобою, не відстьобне тобі ка… Коротше, світ тут як яскравий фон - на нього цікаво дивитись, але герої про нього особливо нічого не розповідають. В них є якесь спільне минуле, вони ностальгічно мандрують до кратера, де колись відбулась мегабійка, і ось те саме минуле наносить підступний удар. Час битися з босом роздягальні! Тобто, з посіпакою головного поганця! А до цього герої ще одне одному ледь не наваляли по самі вуха, бо в них конфлікт на підґрунті ревнощів. Файтинговий сюжет, щоб його…Звичайно ж, у фіналі першого тому хороші хлопці вигрібають, а у одного з них є якась страшенно важлива таємниця. Типово.

Три авансом і лише за малюнок. Дитячий чи підлітковий комікс не обов’язково має бути примітивним. Якраз навпаки, від нього очікуєш вигадливості.

Експлуатація сексуальності персонажів. Вона тут є, і вигляда… ще одним приводом для конфлікту у файтингу.

[Rowan · Rating 1 out of 5]

art style thoughts are of course incredibly subjective but the style of this one was just...restless. everything was in motion, constantly. the character designs feel like early 2000s american art trying to be manga designs *with a twist*, and the characters all act like teenagers despite being full grown adults. i love the idea of the story after the world is saved. i did not want a re-skin of season one naruto, except it's like a really bad high school reunion on top of that. also, so much left unexplained that it stopped being intriguing and started being annoying.

[Z · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. A (qualified) success, IMO.

Beautiful art (with some confusing storytelling issues), amazing coloring (which sometimes confused and overwhelmed the line art), and a punchy (literally) script, there was a lot to love. I don't feel like I got enough out of the 5 issue stint, though. I realize Sitterson and co were hoping to get their foot in the door with this trade to spur an ongoing but I was hoping for a more complete story instead of what was, honestly

[Niche · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not what I expected

So it's billed as "post-baddies superheroes," but rather than a unique questioning of raison d'etre or identity in world that no longer needs saving, it's "retired heroes have unresolved drama and a villain fights them." Maybe there'll be some questioning of mortality and introspection on life choices later, but this doesn't seem to be treading new ground. Give it a shot if you liked the X-Men issues with fatigued infighting and relationship drama.

[Benji Glaab · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a trip!!! This is some AAA art for sure. Kind of a shallow story with generic character develpoment/interactions. I see the dragon ball intended influence easily enough though I never really enjoyed the show as a child. Definitely worth taking a look at based on the art alone.

[Oliver Bateman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read and enjoyed this series years ago; highly recommended. Adding my Goodreads review so folks can follow this link to read my interview with the creators:

https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/e...

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my god the art is so good. I personally vibed with the story as well, but I'll acknowledge that it kind of assumes some familiarity with the inspiration (DBZ in particular) going in.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing story. Needs more backstory and conclusion. Shame these 5 issues are just a slide

[Sofia The Great · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good. I would read more.

[M.i. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the unique art style. Story itself was decent. The ode- tribute to dragon ball z, was a nice touch

[Frank Jarome · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun Dragon Ball pastiche that ends sort of abruptly, need to track down volume 2 so I can continue the story

[Irene · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Peter Melancon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this graphic novel up because it is so colorful and I want to see the conclusion! It's Dragonball meets Battle Chasers.

[Sal · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think if I liked Dragonball and similar manga more, I'd dig this a lot more as well.