In this outing, Faith Herbert, known as Zephyr, heroine with the power of flight, needs to protect friend and teammate Animalia from some very bad dreams. To do so, Faith has to enter a realm of dreams, and she enlists Dr. Mirage, a celebrity parapsychologist, to guide them. This volume collects issues 1-4 of the series.

This is another cute and entertaining volume in the Faith series. On the positive, I like the overall idea of Faith's character. She has a good heart and a positive attitude. While I do find some of her clumsiness at times a little tiresome, in part because it reinforces negative stereotypes about geeks, she always leaves us with a bit of hope and optimism. Hope and optimism are two things seriously missing from superheroes in this day and age. As before, there is not much substance here. You do get some nice escapist fun, and the comic is amusing overall. In the end, I did like it.

'Faith: Dreamside' by Jody Houser with art by MJ Kim is a graphic novel about a couple of heroes in a crisis.

Faith has been accused of murder, so she is letting her inner superhero stay hidden. When her teammate, Animalia, comes to her for help claiming to be haunted, she can't say no. With the help of Doctor Mirage, they will all venture in to the Deadside to try to help out. Along the way, Faith may find her inner hero again.

I liked this story about having the heart of a superhero and doing what it takes to help out friends. Faith is a nerdy character and there are some fun pop culture references for those looking. The art worked well for the book.

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

I have enjoyed everything I've read from Jody Houser and about Valiant's Faith and Dreamside was no exception. Dreamside is a bit of a zany story, in that I certainly didn't expect it to be partially a ghost story, but it's well done and well illustrated and is a great addition to the character's books.

Jody Houser boasts a dynamic art and page construction style and a zeitgeist-y sense of humor on top of strong story-telling/worldbuilding, for example, there's a particularly dramatic and well rendered one-sheet in which our hero looks like a Silver Age star (wings of light and all) in which she asides to the reader about how cool she probably looks. It looks great, it's pretty funny, and the story's arc is a real "you've got to save yourself" uplifting kind of thing that always goes down well. In all, a strong recommend.

I really enjoyed the original Harbingers series from Valiant in the ‘90s, and I enjoyed the newer one almost as well. I fell off a little bit as things split up, and thought I would dive back in here. Overall, I find I like the team dynamic more than I like the individual characters. This story presents itself as a quirky drama, and I love how the creators neither body shame nor exploit Faith’s body, but I didn’t find myself deeply drawn into the plot. It was light and easy, and not a terrible way to pass by an afternoon, but overall pretty unmemorable.

This review will be available in the Quick Hits! section of Graphic Novel Weekly, and will go up at the provided link on April 4, 2019.

Jody Houser has turned Faith into my favorite character at Valiant. Faith has always been that fangirl who gets powers type character. Houser takes that aspect and steers into the skid. I find it very refreshing how earnest and altruistic Faith is. Plus, she's just so damn funny. This comic just makes me happy and there's not a lot of comics that do that today.

As far as the plot goes, Animalia from Generation Zero is being visited by ghosts and turns to Zephyr for help. They enlist Dr. Mirage and all head to the Deadside to investigate what's going on. The plot is a bit spare, but there's only so much you can do with Valiant's 4-part arc structure. MJ Kim's art is pretty good, even is the doe-eyed anime look is overdone at times.

My main experience to Faith was in Valiant crossovers (Harbinger Wars 2, I think), so this was a breath of fresh air - albeit a little on the short side (4 issues). Greatly enjoyed Jody Houser's writing and Jordan Bellaire's colors, but I was a little mixed on some spots of MJ Kim's art.

The story seemed to me to be interesting and main character nice, but that was it. I really couldn't get into the story, I was kind of forcing myself in to finish it. Faith's humor was plain, what makes her different compared to other heroes is just her weight, I can't think of anything else. It is not bad, just not for me probably..

Now this is the type of story that I want to read about Faith. It is bright and fun and zany. So, it starts off with Faith keeping a low profile because she is wanted for murder. When Animalia makes an appearance and asks Faith for help with some ghosts, things take off. There are some great female characters in this book between Faith, Animalia, and Dr. Mirage. I will always take more opportunities to see Dr. Mirage make an appearance in a Valiant title.

I particularly like how the personalities between the three ladies play off each other. Each brings a unique perspective to this world they live in. The journey into the Deadside is great too. The realm the characters travel too is so different from what has been shown before. It is bright and silly (but don't let that stop you from reading this book). I also like the references to not only events in previous Faith books but the stories of Animalia and Dr. Mirage too. The only shortcoming of this book that I can think of is that it doesn't do a great job of introducing the characters. So someone who hasn't read other Valiant books might be a little confused at first.

Well, I didn't see this coming. Faith is asked by a young girl with powers to keep some spectral visitors away, so the two call on the help of someone else from the Valiant universe I'd never seen or heard of before. And I was getting frustrated – this was looking like another missed opportunity, a book where Faith, the larger woman superhero, did not get to be a superhero, but was being used for something else instead. It felt like a Superman comic where he tags along with John Constantine to see what's what and do what he can – a negation of the very reason we picked it up in the first place. But lo and behold, even though we're talking four single issues in this arc, it did a full switcheroo, and fully got me into the place the full Faith title is heading towards. And for that I have to commend it – if you enjoyed the wacky and not-completely-brilliant first book under Faith's name, then this won't feel the same, or even the right kind, of beast to have as sequel. But trust me, it is. Coming to the franchise here is not the best thing to do – and as usual Valiant never let outsiders into their universe with the ease they should. So I'd suggest going back to the beginning and starting again. Faith looks better here, and her bigger purpose is looking more varied and just better on this evidence. Phew.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley.
I have this a four out of five stars.

I really liked the art and the story line. I liked that three of the characters had to fight for their dreams or fight their dreams. I liked the rescue mission as well. There are ghosts in the story which was interesting and superheroes.

Faith Herbert, AKA Zephyr, is a superhero on the run. While hiding in plain sight from the authorities, Faith is summoned by Animalia, a superhero ally, to help fight an evil enemy who only occurs in dreams. With help from Doctor Mirage, a famous parapsychologist, Faith must travel into the Dreamside to rescue Animalia. What Faith doesn’t expect is that in the process, she will have to face her own fears to defeat the evil entity taking over our dreams.

Faith: Dreamside is a 4-book omnibus with a unique storyline by Jody Houser and wonderfully creepy artwork by MJ Kim. I knew that Faith was already an established series and that there may be a few holes in my understanding of what was happening in Dreamside. However, there were plenty of clues throughout the story that helped me figure things out. The characters are well developed and Faith is such a relatable character. I love her passion for being a superhero and her loyalty to her friends, despite her fears. I really enjoyed reading Faith: Dreamside and look forward to reading more in the series!

Thank you to Diamond Book Distributors, Valiant Entertainment, and NetGalley for this eARC! All opinions are my own.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher I was able to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
***
This is my second time reading a Valiant title and what I’ve learned is I need to get in touch with my comic shop and read more. I loved Faith, she’s got a beautiful heart and so far my experience with her is she’s a fantastic character. I also loved meeting Doctor Mirage and seeing her in her element, going to Deadside and working together to save Faith’s friend.
Fun read, definitely need more Faith in my life.

I received this eARC from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Um, hellooo plus-size superheroine! What a refreshing take on superheroes. Faith is not only not your typical superhero, she’s also beautiful, smart, and witty. I loved the positive body-image portrayal, and I so dearly hope girls (and boys!) – actually, anyone who’s reading this graphic novel -- will see that heroes don’t always have to be super fit and abnormally powerful; they can be powerful just by being themselves. I absolutely loved that portrayal, and I loved how Faith didn’t let her size weigh her down.

I loved the relationships formed, the adventures Faith had when trying to rescue her friend, and the portrayal of alternate worlds. I was, however, a bit lost as to why the story started with Faith being hunted for murder and after some exploring, I realized that this isn’t the first book in the graphic novel series. I wish I’d know that before reading it because I was confused in some parts.

Overall, however, Faith: Dreamside was enjoyable, had wonderful art, great pacing, and wonderful dialogue.

I LOVE Faith. I love how she is a plus-sized woman and super heroine and how she doesn't let her size define her and how she feels about herself. Yes, she has problems, but her weight isn't one of them. THANK YOU!

I love her relationships with her friends and how she makes new ones through trying to help the friends she currently has. She is a giver, but isn't surrounded by users. She has healthy relationships. They aren't perfect, but they are healthy and REAL.

I know it may seem strange for a comic book to be called "real", but the characters feel that way. They are humans with some supernatural powers, but they all have problems. Real life is real life, no matter how powerful the person dealing with those problems is.

Though to be fair, Faith is dealing with some BIG ones right now, because she has some powerful enemies, but she is dealing with it as best she can and isn't focused on vengeance.

Not a full five stars, as she is still in a world of trouble and I hate to see one of my favorite characters hurting, but a good, solid 4 stars.

This isn't the book to start with if you want to read about Faith, because what she is going through in this book is a direct result of prior books, but I don't think it would be impossible to follow. I would still recommend starting at the beginning, so you get a good feel for the characters and know the backstory going in.

I highly recommend reading about Faith if you are tired of anti-heroes and tired of the gravity and biology defying body parts of the usual comic book heroine.

My thanks to NetGalley and Diamond Book Distributors/Valiant Entertainment for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

The superhero life isn't always fun and games.

Faith used to be a good and big superhero, she had a following, she loved helping people. Then one day she got framed for murder and all of her supercreed went down the drains. Now she works writing about her old life and lives hiding her real self from the police.

But her hero heart hasn't stopped, so when she hears a cry for help, even knowing that she can be caught, she goes to help. And it all goes bad, the police shows up, even after her saving someone, and arrest her. Now on her way to the precinct a Kaiju, alien dinosaur that looks like the godzilla, shows up and ends up kidnapping her for her help. Animalia is having ghost problems and needs Faiths help.

Together with Doc, and her ghost husband. Faith tries to help Monica Jim with her ghosts, even going out her own body to the dreamside to save her.

Faith: Dreamside was a amazing read! With 4 volumes we have a awesome story about a heroine that is struggling because of the past, and her story of trying to get back on her hero feet and save a friend. What is more awesome is the fact that she isn't our stereotypical hero! A blonde plus size, smart, funny hero isn't what we see everyday but Faith is just as great as any! Besides the whole Alien hologram making her seem like a killer. But if even Superman went through it in Batman vs Superman, what can we say?

The art is amazing, as well as the script and the coloring! I cracked up in the dreamside when the Blue eyed white dragon mixed with transformers showed up! Don't think I missed that even if Doc and Geek Faith missed it!

Now I need more of the Doc and her ghost husband in my life, I wanna know her past, and now after their travel to the dreamside where she had that talk with the dream, their future! And also, wanna see more of Animalia's power and Faith coming back and kicking ass!

Totally recommend it for those who like a nice superhero comic with a hero that's just as geeky as you!

Thank you Netgalley, Jody Houser, Diamond Book Distributors and Valiant Entertainment for this chance of reading the comic in exchange of a honest review!

This kind-of side-story volume follows directly after the end of the last main volume of this series with the Faithless. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about it at first because I don't really read any other Valiant titles so I'm always worried I'm going to be lost when they bring in other well known characters. This was really good though and I think they incorporated Animalia and Dr. Mirage in a really cool way. Also I'm definitely going to check out Dr. Mirage's solo title because she seems really interesting. Overall a really good volume that has Faith confronting some ghosts from her past and also helping out a new friend. Can't wait to see what's in store for her next!

Faith is a warm-hearted superhero who, unfortunately, can no longer superhero. Her enemies have framed her for murder and the police are looking for her superhero ego, so Faith goes "undercover" as a regular person. It really brings her down, not being able to help people as well as fly - the thing she always dreamed of. So when a young kid begs for her help Faith cannot turn her down - whether she's a fugitive or not she still has a great desire to help others.

This is my first ever read of any Faith story...so I went into the dreamside blind. It was an enjoyable read with a complex theme hidden in the background. It made me interested to read more Faith stories and learn more about this character.

Faith: Dreamside is a new miniseries from Valiant. It includes a couple of their beloved characters…one of whom you could probably guess from the title of the series. Along for the ride is Dr. Mirage and Animalia.
Confession time: I am still not fully up-to-date with Faith’s main series. I’ve read most of the miniseries about her at this point though, so I’m used to getting minor spoilers. It does however mean that sometimes I’m out of the loop when major events occur.
Dreamside is only four issues long, but in some ways, it felt like it was longer. There was a breathtaking amount of character development and several absolutely striking views of a whole new land that these characters have never previously been to.
This was a beautiful series. I loved the character dynamics and the world that was shown to us, courtesy of Dr. Mirage and the combined subconscious of our main characters. I loved almost every element to this series, so forgive me if I sound a little too enthusiastic about it.
The series starts out with Faith being a little on the angsty side and being pretty tough on herself. Though on the bright side it did reinforce all of the reasons behind keeping your alter ego a secret. I’m not sure if this happened towards the end of Faith’s series, another series, or was invented for the sake of this introduction…but before this miniseries started Faith had been framed for murder. And by that I mean the superhero side of her had been, forcing her to take on her mild-mannered and adorably geeky alter ego full time.
Realistically this is something that all superheroes should do from time to time. Not get framed for murder, but take a break from the superheroing for a little bit. It probably provides a lot of perspectives. Granted it’s probably a lot less painful when it’s an intentional break…
Anyway, moving on. Animalia gets thrown into the mix early on, and she doesn’t really understand why Faith is so upset or holding back. Some would make comments about ‘kids, amirite?’ here, but Animalia has gone through a lot, so it’s not like she doesn’t get heavy subjects. In fact, she’s dealing with something downright horrible at the moment, hence her sudden appearance to Faith.
I actually really like Animalia’s character, and think that she’d be a great influence on Faith. Part of me wishes that the two could spend more time together, but that risks having the whole adult superhero with a child sidekick thing, and I think we’d all prefer to avoid that.
Dr. Mirage was fantastic. Her backstory was new to me, so naturally I found it utterly heartbreaking. I’m definitely going to follow the other series with her in it. I just have to know the whole story.
The last two issues were without a doubt my favorites of the set. I loved the world that they went to, and more than that I loved the way it was interpreted by the artists. It had this sickly sort of childhood theme overlaying something dark and more insidious. It was really well done. I wouldn’t mind seeing more of that.
There was a decent amount of character development, despite there only being four issues to work with. I don’t want to go into too much detail, because of spoilers. But I will say that I’m curious about the long-term ramifications of some of the things the characters learned from it.
I’m sad that I have to let Dreamside go. But since this isn’t Faith’s first miniseries, I hope that means we’ll get another one sometime. In the meantime, I guess I’ll go back and read all of the backlog I’ve been missing out on.