crookedtreehouse's review against another edition
3.0
I really wanted more from this book than just slapping Gay Issues on the standard underdog sports story. The premise, that an up and coming boxer's career is put in jeopardy when he's outed by a competitor, was cool. I also liked the dichotomy of the up and coming boxer's father having been a bigot who died in the ring after verbally assaulting his queer opponent. But it starts treading water about halfway through and just becomes familiar trope after familiar trope until we reach the end where we're hit with another familiar trope.
Fans of sports comics might love this, and if you're looking for an LGBTQIA+ sports comic, well ... there's Fence, Avant-Guards, and Check Please, most of which are better. But this one skews more adult without being, you know, Adult.
Fans of sports comics might love this, and if you're looking for an LGBTQIA+ sports comic, well ... there's Fence, Avant-Guards, and Check Please, most of which are better. But this one skews more adult without being, you know, Adult.
irayred's review against another edition
3.0
Sometimes you have to fight your way to success, even more so if you’re a queer person, surrounded by bigots.
James Bellyi is a young MMA wrestler who’s outed by his opponent in the middle of a fight and now, the company he works for, doesn’t want him to get the title, even if he deserves it.
On top of that, James’ dad died a few years ago by the hand of a gay MMA wrestler too. You see, DJ Bellyi was a homophobe who practically was asking to get beaten down. Wayne was the one who knocked him down for good and the guy never got up again. But this death changed both young James and Wayne. Now, so many years after that accident, Wayne becomes James’ coach and he helps him get back on the horse.
Now, this kinda sounds like the movie Creed, I know, the only difference is that we got a queer MC. Thus, we have the right amount of drama and action scenes that make this a fast read. Though I wasn’t really in love with the art style, the story has its strong points.
I would definitely recommend to read this graphic novel whether if you’re a fan of MMA or you’re interested in different yet entertaining queer stories.
I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
James Bellyi is a young MMA wrestler who’s outed by his opponent in the middle of a fight and now, the company he works for, doesn’t want him to get the title, even if he deserves it.
On top of that, James’ dad died a few years ago by the hand of a gay MMA wrestler too. You see, DJ Bellyi was a homophobe who practically was asking to get beaten down. Wayne was the one who knocked him down for good and the guy never got up again. But this death changed both young James and Wayne. Now, so many years after that accident, Wayne becomes James’ coach and he helps him get back on the horse.
Now, this kinda sounds like the movie Creed, I know, the only difference is that we got a queer MC. Thus, we have the right amount of drama and action scenes that make this a fast read. Though I wasn’t really in love with the art style, the story has its strong points.
I would definitely recommend to read this graphic novel whether if you’re a fan of MMA or you’re interested in different yet entertaining queer stories.
I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
homosexual's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC!
My Booktube
The story is as it says in the synopsis so there isn't much else for me to say. The coloring and panel work in this is very nice and helped contribute to the atmosphere while reading.
This is more of a 3.5 but I rounded up for the shoutout to queer people in sports at the end. What can I say, I'm sentimental.
My Booktube
The story is as it says in the synopsis so there isn't much else for me to say. The coloring and panel work in this is very nice and helped contribute to the atmosphere while reading.
This is more of a 3.5 but I rounded up for the shoutout to queer people in sports at the end. What can I say, I'm sentimental.
jekutree's review against another edition
4.0
Solid.
The story itself was a great story of forgiveness and tremendous perseverance. The art is fantastic and the characters are all great. I do think there is a ton of deep rooted phobia in athletics (which is a major portion of the book) but having it be as blatant as it is here seems a bit cartoonish at times.
Strong 7/10
The story itself was a great story of forgiveness and tremendous perseverance. The art is fantastic and the characters are all great. I do think there is a ton of deep rooted phobia in athletics (which is a major portion of the book) but having it be as blatant as it is here seems a bit cartoonish at times.
Strong 7/10
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