Reviews

Avatar: The High Ground, Volume 1 by Sherri L. Smith

haechans's review

Go to review page

2.0

didn't really do a good job of bridging the 2 movies. maybe they should've released all volumes prior to the way of the water release.

jazzy_readss's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging funny slow-paced

3.0

b00kl0ver227's review

Go to review page

adventurous fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

hanlov's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

I haven’t really read any other graphic novels so idk if it’s just this one but the dialogue was really choppy and kinda hard to follow along with, especially because i couldn’t tell a lot of the characters apart. The art was nice and I love getting more backstory about the world of avatar though :’) definitely have to finish the trilogy at least

bhrach's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

4.0

iamtofuhut's review

Go to review page

adventurous tense fast-paced

3.0

vernip's review

Go to review page

adventurous fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

 So for anybody who was wondering just how much we missed in the prologue with Jake and Neytiri growing their family, really not much.
In fact, other than trying to settle another bigass tree, the Na'vi were relatively ok.
But you know how it goes; you get complacent, that's when the Fire Nation attacks.
...
Ok, wrong Avatar, but as further explained by the movie, Sky People back and they have to prepare for war.
AND OF COURSE IT CAN'T BE AVATAR 2 WITHOUT THE KIDS GETTING INTO PICKLES AND SUITABLE RESCUES ALL AROUND!! 

isabellawortman's review

Go to review page

3.0

2.5 ⭐️ This entire volume was so confusing, it’s like someone started a sentence, switched topics, and then came back to the point. Also, correct me if I’m wrong, but there were major inaccuracies in this, for example Jake being Toruk Makto until they chose to leave the tribe in Way of the Water, but in this it makes it seem like he gave up his post prior to that??

necrotechnical's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark sad tense medium-paced

3.5

alexandr1ne's review

Go to review page

4.0

I think I really only started enjoying comics and graphic novels when, like anime, I realised that the inherent ridiculousness is part of their charm - and embraced that aspect, rather than expecting comic tie-ins to be tonal extensions of their parent media.

Because Avatar: The High Ground is ridiculous. It’s over the top, and even implausible at times. Not impossible - it’s reworked from an original James Cameron script, or script idea - but definitely implausible. But that doesn’t make it bad.

This is the first instalment in a three-part series which follows Jake, Neytiri, and their biological and adopted children immediately prior to the events of the second film. The Sky People have returned, and Jake Sully, as Olo’eyktan of the Omatikaya and as Toruk Makto, wants as many Na’vi clans as possible to unite and bring the fight to them. To the black world.

Yeah. Na’vi in space. It sounds cool, but there’s a reason this idea was cut and reformed into the sequel we got with Avatar: The Way of Water. It really stretches your suspension of disbelief in a way that doesn’t mesh with James Cameron’s total immersion philosophy, something that has always been at the core of this franchise, even before it was a franchise.

But that’s exactly why the graphic novel is the perfect medium to explore ideas like this. It’s perfect, low-stakes, over-the-top AU fun. In addition, the art was gorgeous, though it wasn’t always easy to tell the children apart; they didn’t resemble their film counterparts as closely as their parents did, but that was my only gripe. The landscapes, flora and fauna were all distinctly and recognisably Pandoran, and the dialogue was fine, though not as tight, natural, and imbued with character as James Cameron’s is.

Still, a solid 4 stars, and I’m excited to read instalments two and three!