Tsu’tey, proud warrior of the Omatikaya clan, betrothed to Neytiri, has his life turned upside down by the arrival of Jake Sully of the Sky People.

Honestly, I don’t know why I read this book. I find Avatar to be perhaps the most overrated and over hyped four hour nap I have ever watched. A CGI version of Pocahontas or Fern Gully at best, and an utter waste of time at worst. Blah, blah, great visuals in theaters, yeah, I get that it may have been. But it’s not in theaters anymore. I tell you this to disclose my bias to the movie up front so you can take my following comments with the grain of salt if you feel it’s needed.

Look, this comic hasn’t changed my feelings toward the movie, but I did enjoy it. A lot more than I expected. Which is to say it didn’t absolutely suck. The target audience to this comic is, I believe, somebody who is a fan of James Cameron’s verdantly luscious world, and not your jaded former movie rental store employee who now writes about comics.

That said this comic does hold up the visual element of the world. Ian Duursema, Dan Parsons and Wes Dzioba deliver a visually appealing comic that successfully evokes James Cameron’s visually renown film. Speaking of the movie, the comic takes place at the same time as the events in Avatar and so it’s assumed that you’ve seen the movie (and have retained a little about the story line beyond a general disdain), which means that this isn’t an ideal place to begin your journey into James Cameron’s world. Sherri Smith does bring an engaging story to the fore from the perspective of a character that isn’t the central focus in the movie, adding an additional layer to the world.

Whilst I doubt this book will be read by those who haven’t seen the movie, if you fit into that category then you’ll still be able to enjoy the book. Obviously, having seen the movie will allow you to really dive in and enjoy the comic (especially if you liked the movie).

Story: Sherri Smith Art: Ian Duursema
Inks: Dan Parsons Colours: Wes Dzioba Letters: Michael Hiesler
Story: 7.2 Art: 7.8 Overall: 7.4 Recommendation

Dark Horse provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review