That was a really weird experience. Reminds me of Michael Moorcock's Jerry Cornelius but in a weird ,Lovecraftian way. Never really sure what is going on for much of it, I enjoyed it but did find David Rubin's art to be a little hard to follow at times. Good but not excellent but I would be interested in seeing potential sequels

I love everything by Lemire. This is a bit more techie/cyber than I normally go for, and the story was a little predictable, but the book was beautiful. Colorful and grimy all at the same time.

A detective is sent to investigate the death of an immortal being. What he finds has the potential to shake up life as he knows it.

The artwork for this graphic novel is well-drawn. The storyline is a little rocky, and not much back story is clear. The "big reveal" pages don't entirely get their point across, though the art is vibrant and interesting. There a lot of reliance on inference, and not all that much explanation or exposition.

I'm not really sure I'm the right audience for this book. I thought it would be an interesting dip back into modern graphic novels, but I think I chose one that isn't quite my cup of tea. I'll keep looking, though.

It is certainly written and drawn for ADULTS, so take note there. There are some graphic images that a child or immature teen might want to avoid.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy via NetGalley in return for sharing my thoughts on this book. Thanks to the author and publisher for this opportunity!

If you’re a fan of futuristic cyber-crime, then this graphic novel is for you. Reminiscent of DC Comic’s Doom Patrol and Lemire’s Black Hammer, the story begins with the murder of a god that will take the main character on a perplexing journey for answers. Between the well-written plot and the amazing artwork, you’ll find yourself captivated the whole way through.

My only concern was the likeness between Lemire’s Humphries and Negative Man from Doom Patrol. Before knowing this was self published, I assumed it had been an intentional crossover. Upon further investigation, I did find that Lemire had previously submitted concept art for Doom Patrol which was turned down. So, perhaps this was another chance at life for the rejected hero.

Look, you hand me something with Matt Kindt's name on it, I'm gonna read it, that's just the rules.

For his latest graphic novel, Mr Kindt has teamed up with a dream team of fellow writer Jeff Lemire (who's famous for a lot of acclaimed stuff I haven't yet read. I'm SORRY, I don't have all the time in the world and I'm doing my best to cover what I can) and artist David Rubin. And can I say that, knowing I was gonna enjoy the story because of who was writing it, I could really sit back and savor the art as I went along?

Small caveat: I had to read this on Adobe Digital Editions, which as we all well know is hot garbage. No way to properly view two-page spreads, so I had to do a lot of squinting and scrolling in an attempt to capture what the creators had envisioned for readers. Publishers Stop Putting Money In The Hands Of Adobe 2023/2024 Challenge.

Anyhoo. The book opens on a quasi-futuristic, not quite our world but close, urban street view, as The Detective reports to a crime scene. He's not a police or city detective, but works for a special Agency. The murder vic doesn't fit the standard profile, due in large part to the fact that the vic isn't human and isn't supposed to be able to die.

And that's pretty much all I can tell you about the plot of this incredibly clever subversion of the immortal beings theme and their relationship with humanity. It's smart and thoughtful and unafraid to tackle the concept of our place in the universe, with really astounding art and diverse representation. I loved the ending, even if it's something of a downer, as it fits perfectly with the themes being tackled here.

Want a comic book that will make you reexamine not only your entertainment but also your entire existence? Matt Kindt always has your back.

Cosmic Detective by Jeff Lemire, Matt Kindt & David Rubín was published October 3 2023 by Image Comics and is available from all good booksellers, including <a href="https://bookshop.org/a/15382/9781534399457">Bookshop!</a>

‘When a god is murdered, who solves the crime?’

My thanks to Image Comics for a temporary digital review copy via NetGalley of ‘Cosmic Detective’ written by Jeff Lemire and Matt Kindt and illustrated by David Rubín.

This was a fascinating graphic novel that combines science fiction with hard-boiled crime noir. It is dedicated to Jack Kirby and reflects his creative style.

In a dark and grimy city an unnamed detective is sent to a crime scene. He realises that the victim is a space god (an eternal) and subsequently this murder threatens to tear apart the fabric of reality. As he continues to investigate, the mystery deepens and the detective’s mind begins to crack under the revelations. The detective’s bosses are certainly rather intimidating in their own right.

Rubin’s artwork was extraordinary throughout. He contrasts the grittiness of the cityscape with the neon-bright psychedelic scenes as the detective encounters the eternals. The action as portrayed felt very visceral.

The graphic novel concludes with a series of character sketches. I especially liked the drawings of various races of eternals that contrasted their heights with that of the detective. There was also a couple of pages of the script that Rubin had worked from.

Overall, I was impressed with ‘Cosmic Detective’, finding it quite retro in style. It was quite a visual experience.

The story is pretty much what I expected once this got going with few surprises. It's about a detective who is investigating the death of a God. The writing isn't great.

What is great is David Rubin's art. It's inventive. epic, and packed full of detail. He's the artist you want to bring in when you need a messed up, original world that looks like it's part of an old cartoon that feels slightly sinister and off-kilter. I love his work.

An interesting take on the Detective story. Engaging and the illustrations weren't amazong but still very colorful and expansive and provided a great sense of the world.

The story really pulls you in and keeps you on the edge of your seat!

I'd heard rumblings of this "Jeff Lemire and Matt Kindt's take on Blade Runner" graphic novel, so I put in the request. The premise about an invincible being dying is intriguing, but what kept me reading is David Rubín's artwork--it's beautiful and captures the emotions and unique personalities of each character while also moving the story along well (though I still had to reread a few pages to understand what was happening). I'll keep an eye out for the next installment!

Beautiful illustrations to accompany a decent SF noir detective story. I don't want to give away any of the storyline but if you like a hard-boiled detective story with a twist this will be right up your alley. I enjoyed it.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

What initially drew my attention to this book was the title. It makes the book sound so exciting and mysterious, when in reality, it unfortunately didn't have the anticipated effect of suspense and thrills.

The artwork in this book was quite enjoyable. It was clear enough to tell the story easily yet trippy and gritty enough for the subject matter. The colors are wonderful and the art style is unique. This was probably my favorite part of this book.

Unfortunately, it really fell apart at the plot for me. There's just so much buildup in the beginning and then the book seems to very suddenly end after a few pages of intense action. Trying to follow the jumps and the pacing was more mentally taxing than I had anticipated and just didn't feel very worth it in the end.

There was room to balance out the characterizations and the plot to make everything flow nicely, but that never seemed to happen. While much of the storyline is predictable, it's still not very enjoyable trying to chug along through the pages and care about what happens to the characters. Perhaps if the book had been slightly longer there would have been more scene development and depth to the characters.

I did enjoy this book because of the artwork and the general plot inspiration, I just wish it would have been more nuanced and developed in some aspects. It was an OK read but unfortunately I don't see it being very memorable in the long run.

The artwork was excellent, the story just decent. I think this book would make more sense as a comic book series instead of a standalone novel. So hopefully this is just the first in a series. The story was interesting but rushed through without the time to get attached to any of the characters. It was fun for what it was though. The art really makes the book.

A seedy, dirty city. A stoic detective. A mystery beyond imagination. In a dark and grimy city, an unnamed detective gets called to a local murder, something unlikely and pretty unbelievable has occurred which sends him on a path of layered clues that will not only blow this case wide open, but his entire life. Utilising a chaotic but surprisingly effective mix of science fiction/cyberpunk and crime noir, Cosmic Detective takes the reader on a thrill ride full of top drawer surprises, reveals and epic twists in the tale that quite frankly had me dizzy at times. A rip-roaring story accompanied by artwork from some of the finest artists in the game, and it really hits the mark. An otherworldly mystery wonderfully enhanced by the artwork throughout which matched the evoked the cyberpunk retro era perfectly. A top read I highly recommend

A very fun futuristic sci-fi noir. Jeff Lemire is one of my favorite writers of the last ten years. His graphic novels are so beautifully written and the story always packs a punch.

Hello!

I hope everyone had a great weekend! Here in the States, we got a nice long weekend and without even realizing it, it was exactly what I needed. Over the weekend, I spent a lot of time reading and even was able to finish and pick up some new books to read (which is very exciting)! Recently I have been trying to read more graphic novels and manga instead of scrolling other apps on my phone during commutes, appts, etc.. So last week, I took the opportunity to read the E-ARC of Cosmic Dectective Issue 1. (Thank you so much to the publisher for the E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinions).

SPOILERS AHEAD

In a future society, one detective is sent out to investigate what some may consider a high-profile murder. The victim was someone who should not have been able to actually die (so this is a huge deal by itself). In order to fully investigate the murder to the best of his abilities he will have to take some unusual paths and learn about some people who prefer to keep things hidden from the public.

I was honestly shocked by how much I truly enjoyed this issue. I ended up really liking the main character and understanding his choices/struggle with this particular case. I also really enjoyed getting to see/meet his family a bit as they did factor into his choices in this case. I think I will be picking up more of this graphic novel series soon! In the meantime, this graphic novel hits shelves on September 19th, go check it out!

Goodreads Rating: 5 Stars

**Thank you so much to the publisher for the E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

I guess I was hoping for less cosmic, more detective . . .

Visually, this is pretty amazing - page after page of awesome technicolor backgrounds - eye candy of the most tempting variety. The characters, however, are hideously drawn; even the supposedly cute children make you cringe.

The plot? Well . . . I felt as though I was reading volume seven of a series where I hadn't read the first six. There was quite a bit of the detective running or driving a car in front of those cool backdrops, then some confusing action scenes, some people kind of explode into really pretty colors, some more running . . . well, you get the picture.

Maybe a mind more attuned to the cosmos will dig this groovy offering. I think I'll stick to earthbound detectives.

Fun enough, I guess (I usually like Lemire and Kindt, so no surprise). It feels underdeveloped to me, though. There's a mystery that's hard to care about, a missing person that's hard to care about and some stray story bits that just don't seem to matter. There are some nicely strange visuals and some good twists, but it feels like this one could either have been a very short story (little of it is actually surprising or tense, so boil it down) or actually something more like a maxi-series, where we'd have time to see the characters develop or at least grow attached to them. As it is, it feels like an idea that's only halfway fleshed out, cool in its twistedness (the mix of noir and New Gods sorts of concepts, the harsh psychedelics), but not really a weighty work.

First off: much love to Image Comics and Netgalley for the ARC of this title to read and review!

This one was a MEH for me. The artwork was great and the colors really helped set the noir/dark future vibe the title was trying to portray. The story just fell flat for me. The idea of investigating the murder of a god in the seedy underbelly of the city was absolutely something that sounded interesting, but the execution just wasn't there. Too many blank panels with nothing to add to the story. The story also felt really rushed and it just seemed like the reader was left to fill in much of the story themselves. I could have done with some more meat to the story to fill it out a bit more.

It was a little more graphic at times than I was expecting but it was good. The plot was unique and kept me guessing and the characters were different and interesting.

The Cosmic Detective is about a nameless detective who is sent out to investigate the death of a space god. I don't want to give anything away, so check out the synopsis from the publisher.

First off, the artwork is phenomenal. The artwork really brings out the noiratmosphere and has a psychedelic energy to it. The story held my interest and the pacing is good. I would recommend this to those who like science fiction and noir.

My thanks to Image Comics, Jeff Lemire, Matt Kindt, and David Rubin, and NetGalley for gifting me a digital copy of this book. My opinions are my own.