Tag Archives: e.x.o. the legend of wale williams

Around the Tubes

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The weekend is almost here! What geeky things will you all be doing? Will you go see Shang-Chi? Sound off in the comments below. While you think on that, here’s some comic news and reviews from around the web.

The Beat – A Year of Free Comics: You’ve been warned – BEWARE OF TODDLER! – Free comics!

Kotaku – It Took 400 Hours To Draw This Attack on Titan Flipbook – Wow.

Reviews

ICv2 – E.X.O.: The Legend of Wale Williams Vol. 1
Talking Comics – Killadelphia #16
The Beat – Mazebook #1

Mazebook #1

Review: E.X.O.: The Legend of Wale Williams Part Two

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Fear of technology is one of those themes that Isaac Asimov, mastered in his time. In I Robot, the dangers of artificial intelligence are explored and also how it affects human life.  Daniel Wilson, also explores the capacity of robots and how fearful we should be of artificial intelligence in Robocalypse. Both stories, makes one question how much we need technology and just how smart do we need artificial intelligence to be.

Naturally, where technology propels so does the military industrial complex, as can be seen by the mass production of drones. As this industry is usually light years ahead of private industry, they tend to take advantage of technology that the world gets used to. This effect twofold, as technology improves lifestyles it also becomes more evasive, as those same drones were used for military missions now they are also used to spy on neighbors. In Part Two of Sage One of EXO: The Legend of Wale Williams, the dangers of technology is explored even more as, we catch up with our heroes shortly after Wale and Rotimi both suffer injuries form their last battle with CREED.

In the first few pages, we catch up with Fury as she is on mission to retrieve data, so she knows exactly what Prytek and CREED are up to.  We also catch up with Wale, as he recovers and learns more about the EXO suit, as there are some hidden features that he had no idea the suit had. We also catch up with Rotimi, as the cyber genetics he gets equipped with, gives him a weapon that can help him in his fight with CREED. By book’s end, a final battle royale between our heroes and CREED ensues, leading EXO using his full powers and though they are victorious, a new villain gets unearthed.

Overall, an excellent conclusion to a story that reveals more about the villain than it does about the heroes. The story by Roye Okupe is a fun science fiction thriller, that shows what a hero should be made of. The art by Sunkanmi Akinboye is gorgeous and vibrant. Altogether, a fun ride that everyone will want to get up on.

Story: Roye Okupe Art: Sunkanmi Akinboye
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Review: E.X.O.: The Legend of Wale Williams Vol. 1

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Afrofuturism is one of those genre/subjects that has been getting a lot of love as of recent. In the latest trailer and movie stills from the upcoming movie for Black Panther, much of the world is getting to know exactly what Afrofuturism, means and what fans of Black Panther like myself have known for years. The concepts and characters that were introduced in Black Panther’s mythology showed to only an advanced view of technology but also of diversity. This is not to say that there were not some storylines that had some problems and as well as some characters that looks more like some stereotypes.

Unfortunately, not too many characters, unless it is from publishers in Africa, have been written about Afrofuturism in Africa, unless one counts the last take on the Unknown Soldier.   There have been American takes on Afrofuturism like Mr. Terrific and many of the characters from the Dakota Universe. Other than these examples, this has been a scarcely explored genre, which a treasure trove of possibilities that many creators are afraid or lazy to explore. So, when I found out about E.X.O.: The Legend of Wale Williams, I was thrilled.

The reader is taken to 2025 Lagos, Nigeria, in a technologically advanced society where technology is used to commit crimes and the police are at a disadvantage against smarter criminals. This is where the reader is introduced to EXO, a superhero who questions whether he is the answer. We are given his complicated backstory, one that has echoes of tony Stark, but smarter and with a direct moral compass.  Before the end of this volume, he not only has to contend to dirty politics, rising crime, a few new allies but a supervillain, that may spell doom for Exo.

Overall, a beautiful portrait of how the world, especially in Nigeria, will look in the future, and how diverse heroes can be just as good or even better than the vanilla ones the comic book world has been flooded with. The story by Roye Okupe is engaging, action packed and provides enough twists and turns. The art by Sunkanmi Akinboye thrives and delivers as many punches as the story does. Altogether, a great book that should not be missed and will have the reader tuning in for the next episode.

Story: Roye Okupe Art: Sunkanmi Akinboye
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Listen to Roye Okupe Discuss E.X.O. – The Legend of Wale Williams on Demand

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On demand: iTunes ¦ Sound Cloud ¦ Stitcher ¦ Listed on podcastdirectory.com

E.X.O. – The Legend of Wale Williams, a superhero story set in a futuristic 2025 Africa, follows Wale Williams, an impetuous young adult who inherits a suit with super powers after his father goes missing. Tricked into returning home to Lagoon City, Nigeria following a five year absence, Wale embarks on a journey to investigate his father s mysterious disappearance. As he comes to understand the suit’s powers, Wale realizes he must restore hope to his city by preventing catastrophic attacks from the sociopathic, Oniku, leader of an extremist group called The CREED.

On this episode of Graphic Policy Radio, we discuss the comic series with creator Roye Okupe.

Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Okupe is a creative specialist who holds both a Bachelor’s and Master’s in computer science from The George Washington University. His passion for animation led him to found YouNeek Studios in 2012, an avenue that would allow him pursue his dream of creating a diverse library of superheroes. Under that umbrella, Roye wrote, produced and directed several animated productions including, but not limited to, 2D/3D animated short films, TV commercials, show openers, music videos and much more. These productions have allowed Roye to attain much prestigious recognition such as being #5 on Ventures Africa’s list of 40 African innovators to watch.

Roye Okupe Discusses E.X.O. – The Legend of Wale Williams LIVE this Monday

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exo-waleE.X.O. – The Legend of Wale Williams, a superhero story set in a futuristic 2025 Africa, follows Wale Williams, an impetuous young adult who inherits a suit with super powers after his father goes missing. Tricked into returning home to Lagoon City, Nigeria following a five year absence, Wale embarks on a journey to investigate his father s mysterious disappearance. As he comes to understand the suit s powers, Wale realizes he must restore hope to his city by preventing catastrophic attacks from the sociopathic, Oniku, leader of an extremist group called The CREED.

On this episode of Graphic Policy Radio, we discuss the comic series with creator Roye Okupe.

Listen to the show LIVE this Monday at 10pm ET.

Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Okupe is a creative specialist who holds both a Bachelor’s and Master’s in computer science from The George Washington University. His passion for animation led him to found YouNeek Studios in 2012, an avenue that would allow him pursue his dream of creating a diverse library of superheroes. Under that umbrella, Roye wrote, produced and directed several animated productions including, but not limited to, 2D/3D animated short films, TV commercials, show openers, music videos and much more. These productions have allowed Roye to attain much prestigious recognition such as being #5 on Ventures Africa’s list of 40 African innovators to watch.

With the superhero genre currently at the height of popularity, Roye has made it a goal to create a connected universe of heroes, with origins from locations that are currently neglected and/or ignored. In August 2015, Roye released his debut graphic novel titled: E.X.O. The Legend of Wale Williams Part One, a superhero story set in a futuristic Nigeria. E.X.O. was received with critical acclaim and has since been featured on CNN, Forbes, The New York Times, NBC, The Guardian, ABC7, BBC, The Huffington Post, Mashabe and more!

Listen in and Tweet us your questions @graphicpolicy.

Listen to the show live this Monday.