ODY-C Volume 1: Off to Far Ithicaa (ODYC TP)

Great art, poor story, poor characterisation.This will be useful as a kind of coffee table art book, but for prose you're better off reading Homer.

I rarely post reviews, but in this case wanted to help balance out the star rating.I understand the previous reviewers comments, but feel that 2 stars is a bit harsh.Fractions ODY-C is exactly as described - an imaginative re-telling of The Odyssey, which by it's nature of remaining faithful to the literary style of the original Greek poem, requires a slower, more methodical approach to reading; it really is one to savour, taking your time, sometimes re-reading a few pages to absorb the text, a style that obviously doesn't lend itself well to anyone who prefers modern writing, or doesn't particularly enjoy poetry.It's also a book that lives or dies on its art, and it truly is beautiful. Christian Ward is a true talent.Fractions love for the source material shines through here, while introducing some clever changes along the way. A slow clap for a job well done.

I can't describe how much I love this series. The artwork is stunning and the story is perfection.It can be difficult to understand if you're not familiar with the Homer's Odyssey, but worth it for the art!

VERY GOOD

I was excited for this when it first came out but I just never picked it up. When I saw it cheap on Waterstones I decided to get a copy. While I thought the art style was pretty and the writing witty in places, I didn't really connect to the story.I have liked Matt Fraction's work for the longest time and some of my favourites are the Hawkeye comics but I don't think this landed for me. While the writing is engaging and entertaining for the most part, I had no idea what was going on. I don't have a background in myths but I think that this should be easier to understand even if this is not the case.I did, however, like the art style and the use of colour. I saw the vibe that was going on and even though I couldn't follow the story at least I was looking at some pretty pictures. It was definitely going for a drug trip kind of vibe and I was into it.I think that there is probably an audience for this series somewhere but that is just not me, unfortunately.The Verdict:ODY-C Volume 1 will take you on a trip which can be decisive to readers.

I'll admit that this is, at times, a confusing read, both visually and word-wise, and that the thought did cross my mind of giving up, either on this specific volume or on the series as a whole. However, the concept is fantastic (gender-bent Odyssey with no almost no men and a third sex), the intent laudable (feminist critique of one of the founding stories of Western Civilization), and the art spectacular (colouring included). And the most "difficult" aspect--Fraction's prose--was an attempt at mimicking the original's metric rhythm that, if not always successful, should be praised for its ambition. Overall: if you're not sure about reading this book, read it, because it'll take you less than an hour, but maybe read an interview with its creators, either before or after, so you get a sense of what they were trying to do.I'll definitely keep going with this--very intrigued that future volumes will re-tell the Oresteia, the story of Menelaus and Helen, and will somehow even include some of the stories from One Thousand and One Nights. I'll make sure my library stocks them!

I recieved this book from Netgalley for reviewing purposesODY-C is rich, rich in every possible way !So rich in vibrant colors that fill the gorgeous pages of this comic. Never in my life have I seen such out-of-this-world artwork in a comic-book. Every single page was a feast to the eyes.Oh and those delightfully weird monsters and creatures... Every character is so unique and alive !Words are hardly needed with artwork such a this but it accompanied it none the less, and how it did ! Rich in prose, rich in lyrical language … I have not read the Odyssey so I can’t compare the two to see how successful the retelling is, but it’s mind-blowing without the foreknowledge nonetheless !And at times rich in chaos!It’s fast paced, which is good but i did have to keep my wits about me to keep up.

Here is an attempt to retell Homer's Odyssey as a gender-bent sci-fi epic, but only succeeds in creating a colourful mess full of nudity and bloody violence that seem to be there only to up the stakes of controversy to try and generate some interest, however, I found it a little cliched and boring. There is some nice artwork warranting the second star, but not enough to make me want to progress to volume 2. I'd rather read the original story rather than this tawdry remake.